Obama Vs McCain, In A Nutshell

Joe Klein, in the October 20 edition of Time magazine, perfectly summed up one of the key differences between John McCain and Barack Obama in this year's U.S. presidential campaign. Writing about the second debate between the two men, Klein observed:

"[McCain] simply isn't as skillful a communicator as Obama is. The differences between them was made clear in the second question of the debate - a fellow named Oliver Clark wanted to know how the Wall Street bailout would help his friends who were in trouble. McCain's answer was all over the place and obscure in a classic Washington way: he detoured into blaming Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and pointing his finger at Obama and "his cronies" for supporting those two incomprehensible institutions. Obama, by contrast, brought the bailout home in simple language: "Well, Oliver, first let me tell you what's in the rescue plan for you. Right now, the credit markets are frozen up, and what that means, as a practical matter, is that small businesses and some large businesses just can't get loans. If they can't get a loan, that means that they can't make payroll. If they can't make payroll, then they may end up having to shut their doors and lay people off.""

In other words, McCain immediately launched into attack-and-blame mode, as Republicans always seem to do. Every question, after all, is an opportunity to smear your opponent, and no Republican ever wants to see one of those pass by unfulfilled! Obama, on the other hand, actually answered the question, in terms that everyone could understand. McCain seemed like an angry, spiteful old man who's more interested in going for the throat than dealing with an issue; Obama came across as a calm, intelligent person who could be trusted to rationally think his way out of just about any problem he (or the country) might face. And I think that pretty much defined the 2008 presidential campaign, and aren't we all lucky that more Americans saw it that way than the alternative!