Cartoonish Behavior

It's well known that Joe Biden once plagiarized a speech from former British Labor Party leader Neil Kinnock.  Now we learn that Barack Obama plagiarizes from a cartoonist.

McCain Night

John McCain is not a great orator.  This is no surprise.  His speech was effective, though, because he sold his greatest commodities -- toughness, experience, independence, devotion, honor, commitment and sacrifice.  The speech oozed with these themes.  John McCain will be running as the real agent of reform, and the one whose devotion and service to his country uniquely position him as deserving of the Oval Office.  The McCain brand is the reformer we trust and admire.  This contrasts with his opponent who talks of change but has never delivered.  It's a difference between one who has accomplished through deeds versus one who is only accomplished with words.  It's the man who has plumbed the depths of experience, however unpleasant at times, against the man who has written two memoirs without really having done anything noteworthy or truly sacrificial by comparison.  It's the old lion versus the young buck, and the young buck may have a lesson or two to learn before its all said and done.

My initial assessment is that the majority of those who watched the speech from their homes will go to bed this evening with a tremendous amount of admiration for John McCain the man.

Palin Night

Wow...Governor Huckabee is really getting in some shots at Barack Obama and the Democrats.  The line about Sarah Palin getting more votes while running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska then Joe Biden did in his run for the presidency was classic!  I wasn't a Huckabee supporter, but I have to applaud his ability to deliver a message.  He's really warming them up.

Giuliani is having a good time openly mocking Obama's resume.  He started laughing when he mentioned that Obama was a community organizer.  The entire convention hall is in an uproar laughing at Obama.

WOW!  Sarah Palin owned that hall.  The speech, the delivery, the family, the looks.  America will embrace her and the Democrats may well begin feeling some degree of panic.  Great overall night for the GOP.

Update on Wednesday, September 3, 2008 at 10:51PM by Joe

The reviews of Governor Palin's speech have been overwhelmingly positive.  I particularly like this John Kass piece in the Chicago Tribune.

Are the Clinton's Tipping Their Hand?

Am I getting too conspiratorial when I think that Hillary's full embrace of Obama in her speech is a pretty good indicator that at least the Clinton's don't believe he stands much chance of beating McCain?  She does her duty for party unity, Obama loses, and she becomes the front runner in 2012.

The "Oprahfication" of Political Conventions

I'm listening to Michelle Obama's speech, and the primary thought going through my mind is how so many of these convention speeches are just, well...tripe.  Speeches, read from a teleprompter, are typically layered with mythology, hyperbole and emotionalism.  The only thing worse than the carefully thought-out and scripted nature of the speeches are the teary-eyed convention attendees.  Don't these people realize that their emotions are being manipulated by professional stage managers?  This includes putting the Obama children front-and-center in a planned scene to interact with a television image of "daddy."  I can't help but believe that my intelligence is being insulted.

There actually is one thing worse than the teary convention delegates.  That would be the adoring media pundits covering the convention who think that every word spoken is "profound," "moving," "touching," or simply part of "a great speech." 

I strongly suspect that the political conventions predating the age of television were far more interesting.  They were certainly more meaningful, as the selection of each major party candidate was often actually fought over and decided at the conventions.  Issues were hotly-debated, and the rhetoric likely got a little fiery.  Now we get the "softer side of Sears."  The goal has become to avoid any signs of dispute or dissension.  Political conventions are nothing more than television coronations, and one has to wonder if their real usefulness is a thing of the past.

Update on Tuesday, August 26, 2008 at 09:16AM by Joe

I wanted to expound on my suggestion that political conventions be done away with.  Most presidential election cycles in modern times have each nominee decided well in advance of the late summer conventions.  Even the Obama-Clinton contest, which dragged on for several months, was pretty well sown up by the beginning of summer.  The delegate apportionment process for the Democrats, however, is bizarre enough to potentially create a situation whereby two candidate fight it all the way to the convention.  I would propose that both parties use a simple "winner takes all" method to win states.  Conventions could still be held, but they would be purely procedural, and not intended to showcase candidates.  The electorate would be far better served with less "conventioneering" and more frequent debates and joint town hall appearances where the candidates are forced to be a little less scripted and more real.