October 13, 2008

OVER?!?!? NOTHING's Over Until We Decide It Is

Despite being a fairly intelligent fellow overall, former Vice President Dan Quayle is today considered to be one of the biggest doofuses in American political history.

Dan Quayle became a political laughingstock largely because of:

1. a mainstream media hostile to Republicans and

2. extremely poor image management by Quayle's staff.

One might want to consider Bill Kristol's track record in image management before taking any political advice from him, particularly when he's given to hyperbole along the lines of the following:

[McCain's] campaign is totally overmatched by Obama’s. The Obama team is well organized, flush with resources, and the candidate and the campaign are in sync. The McCain campaign, once merely problematic, is now close to being out-and-out dysfunctional. Its combination of strategic incoherence and operational incompetence has become toxic. If the race continues over the next three weeks to be a conventional one, McCain is doomed.

He may be anyway. Bush is unpopular. The media is hostile. The financial meltdown has made things tougher. Maybe the situation is hopeless — and if it is, then nothing McCain or his campaign does matters.

Another data point to consider: Ohio is turning around, with two recent polls showing McCain in the lead. McCain's fortunes may be getting ready to turn around in Florida, Nevada and Missouri, as well.

A mere TEN DAYS AGO, the polls were a DEAD HEAT in most of the swing states, and no one was calling for McCain to fire his entire staff and completely change his entire campaign strategy.

DEAD HEAT. TEN DAYS AGO.

There are still TWENTY-TWO DAYS left between now and election day. That's an ETERNITY in presidential politics, and the numbers appear to be turning in McCain's direction in key states.

I'm all for sharing constructive criticism with the McCain Team, but all this whining and defeatism is driving me nuts.

I don't know about y'all, but I'm with Bluto: