Posted on 03/09/2008 8:28:10 AM PDT by OnRiver
McCain will begin a cross-country tour emphasizing his life story. His advisers believe that while most Americans have a vague sense that McCain served his country in the military and in political life, they don't actually know his story. This trip--the "Service to America" tour--is intended to fill out that narrative.
(Excerpt) Read more at weeklystandard.com ...
Houston On a sunny Texas day last week, two men discussed politics under the shade of a 14x22 foot concrete armadillo as they watched the chaos of John McCain's arrival at Goode's Armadillo Palace.
"I wonder if the New York Times is here?"
"I'd like to kick their ass!"
Leaving aside the question of how, exactly, this man would kick the ass of a newspaper, it's fair to say that this sentiment was representative. Inside, would-be cowboys at the bar sit on saddles fixed atop sturdy wooden posts. A mounted longhorn head fell off the wall and killed a piano player in the early 1930s, according to local legend. It's only noon, but it is dark inside, and the rowdy crowd gives the place a distinct Saturday night feel.
McCain takes the stage to enthusiastic applause and begins his remarks. He is bathed in bright light courtesy of local television crews, and he squints as he speaks. Soon, it's too much. He asks for the lights to be dimmed so that he can see the people in front of him. It's a natural request but a self-defeating one, too, as the chief purpose of such events is to help McCain carry his message beyond the 200 people packed into the restaurant to see him live.
Last week it didn't matter much. Less than 12 hours later, McCain won primary victories in Rhode Island, Vermont, Ohio, and Texas, and with those victories earned enough delegates to secure the Republican nomination. But those little things will matter more soon. As he sails toward a general election against an unknown opponent, many expect his campaign operation to undergo some dramatic changes--from the torn sails and marauding spirit of a pirate ship to the hulking engines and sleek lines of a cruise ship. They're half right.
At the risk of really killing the metaphor, he will be less dependent on the wind--on factors he cannot control--than he was in the primaries. The money and national political network that come with being a nominee will allow McCain to build the kind of operation his team had begun to put together last spring, when overspending left the campaign nearly broke. In that sense, his campaign will get an upgrade. Still, all signs point to a strong year for Democrats, and McCain will be outspent by the Democratic nominee, whether Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, next fall.
So while McCain's effort will begin to take on the qualities of a real general election campaign, he intends to preserve much of the insurgent character that helped him get this far. Either way, it will be unconventional and, at the beginning, nonideological.
After a quick "thank you" tour of New Hampshire, McCain plans to kick off the new phase of the campaign by not campaigning at all. At least not overtly. Later this month, he will spend more than a week overseas, with stops in Europe and the Middle East. His advisers say that while McCain is going chiefly to assess progress in these areas, he will also reinforce an important campaign message as the Obama-Clinton fight continues. "While those two are throwing deck chairs at each other, he'll look like the president," says a senior adviser to McCain.
When he returns, McCain will deliver what one adviser calls a "significant national security address," talking specifically about the future of the war in Iraq, the importance of a stable Iraq to U.S. policy in the region, and more broadly, how a McCain administration would win the struggle against radical Islamic extremism.
After that, McCain will begin a cross-country tour emphasizing his life story. His advisers believe that while most Americans have a vague sense that McCain served his country in the military and in political life, they don't actually know his story. This trip--the "Service to America" tour--is intended to fill out that narrative. It will feature stops in cities and towns that have somehow shaped his life. Among them: McCain Field in Mississippi; the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, where McCain graduated fifth from the bottom of his class; Pensacola, Florida, where he trained at the Pensacola Naval Air Station; and Jacksonville, Florida, where he lived upon returning from his time as a POW in Vietnam. At each stop, the campaign will emphasize one aspect of McCain's character and talk about why it will be important in the White House.
In the months ahead, as he gives definition to his general election campaign, McCain will spend a good chunk of his time visiting places "where Republicans are not often seen," says an adviser. "Inner cities, poor rural communities, places left behind." He will speak to concerns about the economy and unveil an "empowerment" agenda designed to serve as a contrast to "the discredited policies of the 1960s and 1970s."
Not surprisingly, Jack Kemp likes the idea. "I would expect John to do a tour like that," says Kemp, who is advising McCain. "When he came to the House in 1982, he was a strong supporter of enterprise zones. And as a senator from Arizona, he has done a lot for Native Americans, Latinos, Hispanics. His stance on immigration was by far the most positive in the GOP primaries. He's comfortable with people who are not WASPy Republicans, not country club Republicans, and that's what makes some of our friends on the right very nervous. He can reach out to Reagan Democrats, independents, and people of color."
This plan was hatched before Hillary Clinton's successful night last Tuesday, when a McCain-Obama contest looked likely. Obama has struggled to win votes from what pollsters describe as "down-market" voters, and McCain advisers are confident their candidate can pick some of them up. Even if Clinton is the nominee, McCain's outreach to these voters could help him appeal to her main constituency, women.
McCain's general election campaign will be unconventional in two other aspects, as well. He will continue to provide reporters with virtually limitless opportunities to ask him questions in sessions on his campaign bus and in almost daily media availabilities. And most of his public events will be town halls, not speeches, something that will provide a stark contrast to the tightly controlled campaign of either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton.
The practical reason for this is obvious: He needs the "free media" coverage to offset what will be a huge disadvantage in paid media such as TV and radio ads. But McCain also enjoys these interactions with reporters and journalists. He says he needs the intellectual stimulation in order to keep the long days of the campaign from getting boring or repetitive.
The town halls, in particular, present risks. Some crackpot could ask McCain about something obscure in an effort to trip him up--say, a question about his plans for the president's working group on financial markets. Oh wait, that was Ron Paul during a presidential debate. Same idea. Still, because the campaign does not control which audience members get time with the microphone, McCain is sometimes left to clean up a potential mess on his own.
At the Armadillo Palace in Houston, for instance, one voter had a rather unique reason for supporting McCain. "Unlike other candidates in the race, if Cindy answers the phone at 3 A.M., she won't have to wonder where her husband is." The audience shouted its delight. But McCain wasn't happy. "I don't associate myself--even though it was meant in humor--I want to assure you what we will have in this event is a respectful campaign and I will respect Senator Obama and Senator Clinton."
Fair enough. But McCain has a very sensitive ear to perceived insults, and he is quick--sometimes too quick--to profess his dedication to a civil campaign. In Waco, Texas, one night before he secured the nomination, McCain took a question from a man who mistakenly addressed him as "President McCain." The audience laughed, then applauded, and the questioner joked that McCain could pay him the agreed upon $10 after he was done. More laughs. McCain had turned in a stiff performance until this point and the voter was doing him a favor by loosening up the audience. Basking in the love he'd gotten from the audience, the guy introduced his real question with another joke. "First, I want to make a comment that I feel Mrs. McCain will be a lot better first lady than Bill Clinton would."
It was a harmless remark and people loved it. But McCain felt the need to create some distance. "I take the humor," McCain said, turning serious. "I would like to point out that I will conduct a respectful campaign. We will respect all of our opponents and their spouses in this campaign." The crowd fell silent and in two seconds he had sucked the enthusiasm out of the room.
There are other risks to talking this much in public and to the press. It increases the likelihood that the candidate will make a mistake or say something that can be taken out of context by his opponents. Last year, McCain drew attention to himself when he joked about war with Iran by singing "Bomb Iran" to the tune of the Beach Boys' "Barbara Ann." He said he was not troubled by the prospect of a low-level, long-term U.S. presence of Iraq for 100 years, a remark that has been taken out of context and used against him by the Democrats. And last week, he leapt awkwardly into the long-simmering controversy about whether children's vaccinations can lead to autism.
McCain's team isn't worried. "Voters are not going to focus on a bunch of little stuff," says Steve Schmidt, a top McCain adviser. "They'll get the big-picture stuff that this election will be decided on."
Stephen F. Hayes is a senior writer at THE WEEKLY STANDARD.
This article makes clear what most of us dislike about McCain. He’s selling himself, not what’s best for America.
McCain’s campaign is predictable. He will try to out-Democrat the Democrats. Of course, as always, that strategy will fail miserably.
My hubby has a shirt that says something like.....
If you just get to know me you will worship me.
Sounds appropriate. ;)
he has to sell himself, as he isn’t what’s best for America....the U.S. is doomed for a number of years after this fiasco
“First, I want to make a comment that I feel Mrs. McCain will be a lot better first lady than Bill Clinton would.”
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LOL! More one-liners like that please. :)
Are you kidding me?
McCains service has been almost all he talks about. His number one phrase "My Friends", his number two phrase" I was a P.O.W. "....good lord he alludes to it all the time.
“Looking Presidential”? Right. Unfortunately for McAmnesty, he’s a legend in his own mind.
Anybody but McQueeg!
Now if he can just get JFK, to be his VP, we could hear it all the time.
Is Jack Kemp still relatively conservative or did he drink the "compassionate" KoolAid as well?
For later.
McCain is pathetic. He’s going to lose in a “land-slide” in a race with Mrs. Bill Clinton or Hussein Obama. Conservative Republicans will not vote for that lying, self-serving McCain.
I think people are going to be more interested in hearing about his plans for the economy, taxes, oil prices, Iraq, Iran, the falling dollar, health care, Social Security and the like rather than a warmed over re-hash of his time as a POW. He’d be better served using the time to differentiate himself on that from either of his opponents.
They all are spawned from the same cesspool ... the Senate. McLame will say anything to get elected and do the opposite. A Conservative Congress is the only hope.
Do McCain’s handlers not realize that Kerry did exactly the same thing in 2004 with disastrous results?
He’s a liberal in both word & deed, and good golly he’s now adopting liberal campaigning methods...
Wait till McCain picks john Kerry for his VP, I think they both served in Vietnam...
Then in 2008 there is no hope.
It's too late for Johnny. He already defined himself with his twenty-four year long legislative history. When he clinched the nomination, the race ended before it ever began.
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