John McCain Responds to Obama’s Speech and Victory
Talking Points Memo calls the speech John McCain gave yesterday, in response to Barack Obama’s expected victory speech after clinching the Democratic nomination (edited), “frighteningly sad.” You can watch it below, so you can make up your own mind.
The problem with McCain is not that his speeches are terribly written. Not at all. When you read most speeches given by politicians (afterwards) you think to yourself “it sounded far more impressive when (s)he delivered it.” Political speeches aren’t intellectual sermons about politics.
No, what makes one speech different from the other - in most cases - isn’t what’s written by the speechwriters, but how the politicians delivers the speech. His eloquence. If Obama, for instance, would have given the very same speech, quite some people would probably have called it inspiring. When McCain delivers it, however, those same people fall asleep.
Should that matter in an election? No, it should not. Governing isn’t about who gives the best speech - personally I believe that Hitler was a good speaker as well, at least for the culture he came from - it’s about governing. Speeches don’t have anything, literally, to do with governing.
But, especially in today’s day in age speeches matter. They campaign on television. They have to inspire Americans, because Americans want to be inspired. They do no longer want a boring, but pragmatical and trustworthy leader. They want someone who inspires them, who ‘lifts them up.’ Someone who gives them the impression that they and their country are heading somewhere; a goal, a destiny.
John McCain is no such politician.
Which is why I believe that Obama will sweep McCain in the elections. For the first time in quite some elections, I believe that it will not even be close. McCain is a leader, with regards to style, of the early 20th century, or even before that.
I totally agree with your assessment of the speech- reading the transcript, it’s a good speech, but seeing his delivery is a different matter. I also don’t think they did him any favors by holding it in a small, indoor venue. What’s the point of giving it from New Orleans if you don’t make a photo op of it- he should’ve been in front of Jackson square or in a ninth ward neighborhood.
I disagree about it ending up as a landslide for Obama though. He’ll get quite a bump now that he’s clinched the nomination, but there’s no reason to assume that’s going to last or that his charisma and oratorical talents will be enough to put him far ahead like that.
Actually, McCain spoke well before Obama, so it is hard to characterize his speech as a response to Obama’s.
General won’t be landslide. This speech was ok. The election imo will be as different as the primary cycle was. This isn’t going to be a Nixon/JFK election. It is going to be a Bush/Kerry one. The calls for substance will be loud-whether the buzzed halcyon nits will hear it is up for debate.
Obama’s speech was available well ahead of time to the press, so McCain’s staff could have worked from the advance release.
If fear still beats hope, McCain can win, provided he can convince people of the batty notion that being more neocon than Bush on foreign policy will really protect your children and lawns extra much