Campaign 2008

Wishful Thinking from MyDD and Open Left

By J. Wesley ⋅ March 29, 2008 ⋅  Email This Post ⋅  Print This Post ⋅ Post a comment

With Obama sinking in the polls vis-a-vis John McCain, the Netroots, such as MyDD and Open Left, are trying to reassure themselves. The latest echo in the Leftist chamber is a notion that being a “war hero” doesn’t help you win an election. MyDD makes a statistical argument that military experience won’t help McCain this year. “For the American people these days, it’s less about a candidate’s war biography than their policies and how they run their races - and that bodes ill for the old, unstable, and out-of-touch John McCain.”

“For the American people these days, it’s less about a candidate’s war biography than their policies and how they run their races - and that bodes ill for the old, unstable, and out-of-touch John McCain.”

This seems like a specious argument to me. Looking at data from decades like the 80s or 90s tells us -nothing- about the current situation. Yes, being a WWII hero didn’t help Bob Dole. But that was at a time when domestic concerns were salient, and no one cared about foreign policy. As for John Kerry, he lost because his military service turned into a liability because of his betrayal of U.S. servicemen after he returned and his misrepresentations of his own service.

McCain is running as a war hero in a time when foreign policy, military affairs and national security are all “hot” issues. While MyDD rightly points out that Americans aren’t invested in Iraq the way they were in WWII, they still want decisive leadership on the war. Even people who disagree with McCain on the war are often reassured by his clarity and the sense that he knows what the hell he’s doing. The Democrats are so mealy-mouthed and muddled that they scare people.

The Netroots can delude themselves if they wish, but McCain’s military service will be a HUGE asset this year. Anyone who says differently is whistling past the graveyard.