What I Heard in the Debates
I watched the first debate and listened to the second debate between McCain and Obama. Indications are that Obama will win, in my opinion, and that will be McCain’s doing. He doesn’t know how to debate. He is not a great communicator. Obama is.
What I heard from McCain were example after example of why Obama is not ready. He presented the evidence, but requires too much thinking for people to get his point. McCain’s examples appear to point out we look at Obama’s first instinct on things. His second instinct is often correct, showing Obama can learn from his gaffs, but as president he may only have time to act on his first instinct, and because of his inexperience, his first instinct is often wrong. Examples:
- By pointing out earmarks, his disapproval of them and Obama’s continual approval of them, it makes McCain look petty. McCain appears to care more about 18 billion than he does about 500 billion. The real point is that if you cannot get control over smaller spending, how can you get control over the larger? Inexperienced.
- On Pakistan, I heard the same thing that McCain did when Obama said he would invade Pakistan. However, Obama backed off and says that he didn’t say. Well, he did, and then backtracked. Well, McCain should commend Obama for his change, while pointing out that his first instinct was wrong. Instead, he harps as if Obama stands behind his gaff. The real point is that Obama didn’t think it through… inexperienced.
- On taxes, McCain points out that Obama voted to raise taxes on people making $42,000 a year. Obama never concsiously supported that, though Obama did vote for a tax increase that would cause a single person with no kids making $42,000/year to pay more in taxes. McCain makes it sound like Obama doesn’t care about families with kids and make $42,000 per year. His real point should be that Obama didn’t think this through, and realize the ramfications of his vote. Inexperienced.
- McCain points out that small business owners make over $250,000 per year, and implies that Obama doesn’t care about them. Obama says CEOs are living high on the hog, getting 7 figure bonuses. These are not the same groups of people, but both fall under the group that Obama will be taxing. McCain harps on making it seem like Obama doesn’t care about small business owners and the jobs they create. Well, sure Obama does care about them. The real point is that when Obama casts out his tax net, the people providing half the jobs in american will be caught in it, and jobs will be lost. The points? Obama hasn’t thought this through… inexperience.
It is clear to me that McCain realizes all of this, because every point he makes is of this ilk. But, he doesn’t make his case… probably because of his own inexperience debating before the American people. He is used to making academic arguments that stand on their own, and relying on the ability of his intellectual audience to catch his meaning… well, that doesn’t work in a presidential campaign. And it isn’t working in this one, and I am afraid that we will end up with a President who speaks well and cares, but is also ready to point blame at the opposition without thinking things through the first time.
November 11th, 2008 at 7:58 am
Another example I forgot was the economic bailout. It was caused by Democratic policies during the Clinton administration that gave banks the incentive to give loans to people who couldn’t otherwise get them. It was these loans which, over time, caused the credit crisis. Obama is correct that a lack of regulation is in part to blame… but without this Democratic policy change in 1995, the lack of regulation would hardly have caused this. If Obama doesn’t realize this, then his planned actions in the areas of energy and medical will be set in a race to be our next big economic crisis… probably not during his administration, but after a future Replican president’s handling of a future rising market’s reaction to Obama’s promised social policies.