(Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Chronicle)
Former Assembly Leader and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown has written a very interesting column for the San Francisco Chronicle regarding GOP Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin. Here are a few excertps:
For first time in modern history, a presidential race is actually going to be decided by the vice presidential pick.
Thanks to Sarah Palin, this is no longer a contest between Barack Obama and John McCain – it’s between Brother Barack and Sistah Sarah.
Rock star vs. rock star. Inexperienced vs. inexperienced. Newcomer vs. newcomer. Change vs. change.
His “change” is East Coast intellectual. Her “change” is NASCAR.
His change is wine and cheese. Her change is mayonnaise by the gallon.
And notice how everyone is calling her Sarah Palin – not Gov. Palin. That’s not good for the Democrats. It shows a certain familiarity that goes beyond just issues or her knowledge of the “Bush Doctrine.”
Heck, even I didn’t know what the Bush Doctrine was when Charlie Gibson asked her about it the other night on her first national TV interview.
The Democrats have got to get to the core of this new campaign. It’s not a pretty thought, but somehow Democrats must plant in voters’ minds that, given McCain’s age and his health history, he might not make it through the term if he’s elected.
Right now, the best shot Obama has of winning is to get out and register 12 million or so unregistered blacks, especially in the South. But he has got to do it without anyone noticing.
Palin will have no problem signing up new voters in her group. She can go to the Mountain Dew 250 in Talladega, Ala., and pitch for votes, and no one will bat an eye.
But Obama can’t go to a meeting called by Al Sharpton to get out the black vote, because if he does there will be a backlash.
So Willie advises that Obama get to the core of the personality campaign and compete there rather than try to bring the voters to focus on the issues? Well, Willie is a veteran campaigner and knows how to win. I admit trying to get voters to focus on the issues is really, really difficult with such a short attention span.
Willie Brown is the consummate junk yard political dog, so when Willie speaks everyone should at least listen. I may not like the guy for the way he plays hard ball politics but I respect the hell of him. He’s handed the conservatives their heads on so many occasions it is even remotely funny. He is after all THE reason that term limits are in effect in the California on two occasions, both the state level and (was it Co. or City, sorry my sleep deprived brain fades at the moment) where he went afterward. Like him or not, he’s nobody’s fool.
One thing I find fascinating is that the more the bashing of McCain/Palin goes on the numbers grow for them. This will be very interesting to see how this all plays out.
You can debate it all you want, it’s those voters in the middle that WILL decide this election. It’s up to both sides to either woe them or piss them off. My suggestion to all political sides to be nice and play fair, people seem to be very tired of all the disrespect and mud slinging. I think that honesty is always the best way, not conjecture, innuendo and personality assignation, but that’s just my opinion…and I might be wrong. I still believe in honesty, integrity and respect, I know, not very energizing, but at the end of the day I can be happy about how I act and who I am. I think we need a lot more of that in or society as a whole.
Old School guy. Focused in on the old standards of race and gender.
Old Geraldine Ferraro said something similar during the primaries when it was Senator Clinton vs Senator Obama.
Oh, and Brown can be lead astray pretty easily. From 1075-1978 he was a staunch supporter of the Reverend Jim Jones’ “Peoples Temple”. Brown attended the Temple perhaps a dozen times and served as master of ceremonies at a testimonial dinner for Jones where he stated in his introduction “[l]et me present to you a combination of Martin King, Angela Davis, Albert Einstein … Chairman Mao.”
Brown later said “If we knew then he was mad, clearly we wouldn’t have appeared with him.” From Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_Brown_(politician)
He’s hardly one for accurate information. He’s more about the “celebrity” of positions of power.
Carl,
Do you think Paul’s endorsement of the four independents could have an impact on the election? I think this is a worthy topic for discussion. Too bad most folks are caught up in the fallout of the Lipstick Wars.
anon – “most people” do not know who the Ron Paul is – so why would they care who he endorses.
He might as well be Pat Paulsen – he looks like a twin of Paulsen.
http://www.paulsen.com/pat/?p=31
Is it just me, or does Willie look high as a kite in this pic? Or perhaps he is going to eat my face – yikes !
I assume* (*Danger Will Robinson, Danger!) you’re speaking of Ron Paul.
Maybe, RP has a following, to be sure. How cohesive they are remains to be seen. One thing about us independents is we are damned independent. We think for ourselves, make determinations on our own, and follow our own advice. We MAY take the advise of others into consideration, but when the curtain closes and it’s time to make the vote count, we are the wild cards in the deck.
More and more are divesting themselves of the old party system and making up our own minds rather than paying the piper hired by some group of deal makers in the inner party circles. It really does make sense. We are sick and tired of the party games and sucking up to folks that run the locals. We are sick and tired of the deals struck in some rear seat of a limo. We are sick and tired of the same BS and there are more and more of us out there. I am proud to have been a part of that movement to independence from the chains of those backroom deals and keeping corrupt policritters in power. There are a few good folks out there in the parties, to be sure, on both sides of the aisle. I think we still need them to be there or we will all be screwed in the process. But seemingly they are few and far between and sadly declining in their numbers.
It’s one of my greatest disappointments that there is less and less distance between the parties, they are both way too socialist in there desires to gain the popular vote. Clamor all you wish for increased social programs and you get less and less freedoms, more and more corruption. The System is now so full of opportunity for that corruption that it looks like there is more than 20% of OUR money that somehow drains down some black hole in any govt. program and leaves us all scratching our heads over the inefficiency of the system. This is only one of the many issues I have with the increasing clamor over socialized medicine, or “single payer” medical systems as some describe it. Competition will and does lower costs, monopolies do not. Monopolies are much more likely to be corruptible as well, since there is more power centered in fewer and fewer hands. As the old adage goes, “Power corrupts, absolute power courts absolutely.” I see no evidence to the contrary in that statement.
I can only hope that RP is in some way a part of that independent movement, but only time will tell.
I really do wish my crystal ball (and/or Magic 8 Ball®) worked better!
In Junior’s small circle of friends (possibly even too small to form an actual circle) NOBODY has ever heard of Ron Paul, and people either don’t care about “swiftboating” or think it’s a GOOD thing.
Junior need to go out more, Junior need to meet more people.
Vern –
You need to stop being the school yard bully.
Since junior knows who Pat Paulsen is, I presume he was a fan of the Smother Bros. Show. Rock on!
Carl –
I appreciate your thoughtful posts. Today’s headlines reveal Lehman Bros. is poised to go BK and it’s probable BofA will purchase Merrill Lynch and the subprime fiasco looms larger than originally presented to the American public. This is real life; we’re all being hit by increased prices at the gas pump, grocery store, losing homes and the uncertaintly of employment looms. And Vern continues to hammer the lipstick on the pig stichk.
Isn’t it ironic that both Obama and McCain were selected by their party because of their position on the war in Iraq, but it’s the economy that’s front and center on every American’s mind.