I saw an interview on CNN this morning with a talk show host (Mike McConnell) from Cinncinnati. One of the topics was the increasingly angry tone of the McCain crowds urging him to play hardball with Obama. Apparently both campaigns have decided to take a more civil tone for the duration. But this radio host then amazed me with his explanation of the attitude of the angry McCain supporters. He said he did not agree that McCain needed to go negative at this point but he understood the frustration. His contention is that they are tired of Republicans being the political punching bags. He said that the Republicans did not know how to take the gloves off, that they played softball.
I have no idea what cave this guy has lived in. But both parties acknowledge that the Republicans have much sharper knives and are far more effective at negative campaigning than the Democrats. That’s not to say that the Democrats play nice, only that they are not as good at being ruthless in a political campaign. I don’t admire that trait in the party. But it sometimes is very effective. Take the 2004 “Swift Boat” ads. They distorted some facts about John Kerry. But Kerry’s problem was that they were not entirely wrong.
As stated in a previous article, I think going negative does McCain no good and cheapens his brand. It conveys the impression that he can’t win on substance. It may partly satiate the appetite of the party’s carnivores but undecided voters have an appetite for solutions.
