On McCain

I want to write a longer post about McCain later, but for now, I want to add my thoughts about his campaign. The bottom line is that I lost respect for him as the campaign wore on. Partly, it is because of the level of his negativity along with the elements he chose to focus on. All of it seemed so disingenuous - so unlike him. Spending so much time on Ayers was absurd, and calling Obama a redistributionist (for a tax policy not so different from one McCain from four years ago would have supported) was something I wouldn't have expected from him. He also chose to focus on symbols and culture wars (Joe the Plumber and Sarah Palin) instead of substance.

Worse though is what he allowed the campaign to do to his positions. So many of us hoped that McCain would change his party. For the past four years, McCain has moved to the right, probably with the intention of winning the Republican nomination. But even after winning the nomination, he continued to move to the right and appeal to the Republican base. So instead of changing his party, McCain let the party change him (Brooks covers this theme here, and of course he does a better job than I do). The Republican platform's immigration policy - so different from McCain's previous position, is far to the right. His tax policy is no different from Bush's - including tax cuts for the very wealthy. Even his global warming stance, which admits warming exists, shows disdain for anyone with even the slightest concern over nuclear power.

When I look back on the way the campaign moved through the final months, I see a candidate I don't recognize from the one I admired. Last night, at the concession speech, we saw part of the old candidate again (many people independently said that to me today). The old McCain was honest, gracious, and tough but fair. It's too bad we only saw that McCain after the race. I might say things would have been different if McCain had been able to be himself during the race, but I'm not so sure. At the very least though, I would have respected him far more.