Joe Klein: What Actually Happened Yesterday

[babylonsister]

http://www.time-blog.com/swampland/2008/09/what_actually_happened_yesterd.html

September 25, 2008 10:32
What Actually Happened Yesterday
Posted by Joe Klein


John McCain faced another crisis yesterday--a political one, not the financial emergency he used as an excuse for his rash actions--and once again he overreacted. This is becoming a pattern (as is his "greatest crisis since..." formulation: yesterday, since World War II; previously--on Georgia--since the end of the cold war), and it is not very reassuring behavior in a potential President.

snip//

What McCain didn't understand was that the legislative crisis was already receding when he made his melodramatic--and somewhat wild-eyed--suspension of campaign activities statement. (He didn't understand this because he has had no input into the process and, indeed, is neither respected for his financial expertise nor desired in the process because of his combative, peremptory negotiating style.)In any case, the crisis was receding because the Bush Administration was caving to the Democrats' modifications, as the President made clear in his speech last night. A Democratic Senator close to the negotiations told me after the speech, "We pretty much have a deal. The negotiations aren't over, but this is just too damn important to get snagged on a codicil."

Since it would have been fairly embarrassing to McCain for the crisis to end without his meaningless intervention, Bush laid on the White House summit and likely kumbaya session for this afternoon where the deal will probably be announced. And now, McCain faces a further embarrassment: what to do about his decision to pull out of the debate? It seems to me that if agreement is reached today, he has to debate tomorrow--and now, because of his "crisis" announcement, the debate will take place on turf less favorable to him: on economic as well as foreign policy. Even if an agreement isn't reached today, he will be hard pressed to explain why he isn't debating tomorrow. In any case, Obama's cool steadfastness has put him in the driver's seat on this one.

And that raises an interesting question: Why was McCain so quick to pull out of the debate? After all, with the momentum slightly in Obama's direction, he needed a game-changer--and foreign policy is, allegedly, his area of expertise. His peremptory actions yesterday was not the behavior of a confident man. It was the behavior of a man uncertain, despite all the macho bluster, about his chances in the most important theater of battle in any presidential campaign, one where gimmicks, diversions and untruths can be directly countered by his opponent. McCain may clean Obama's clock in the coming debates--but it seems entirely possible that the old fighter jock may be frightened that he's about to ditch another plane.

[me b zola]

1. McCain==>>Not ready to lead

Not today, not at 3am, not ever.

[CTyankee]

13. Can you even IMAGINE him at 3 a.m.?

I remember when they didn't wake up Reagan over some crisis that arose in the middle of the night. It's scary even to think about it...

[Wetzelbill]

2. McCain is running around like a chicken full of Ex-Lax

Thats one of my sayings I developed to accentuate my folksy charm out on the campaign trail. Vote Wetzelbill/Kurovski '08

[Arkansas Granny]

5. Well, I must say that it leaves a vivid mental picture.

[babylonsister]

6. Always politicking, aren't ya.

:D

[Wetzelbill]

8. I'm really regretting canceling on Letterman

I have to make up for it somehow. :)

[yellowcanine]

11. I have a hard time getting my mind around that metaphor. Exactly what does that look like?

[Wetzelbill]

20. I do not envision folksy images, I just create them

That's my genius. It's my gift... or some may even say my curse. :)

[Kalyke]

16. What office are you running for?

:)

[Wetzelbill]

18. President

I fully expect to win. I like Obama, but you know, now is my time.

[Cha]

19. "Chicken on ExLax"...

I may have to borrow that when I want to insert a pithy, folksy saying into my recollections of mccain's political ploys that backfired big time, yesterday:evilgrin:

[Wetzelbill]

21. It's great when trying to creat that "down home" feel to a smart ass statement

It's a fine line.

[Cha]

22. I came over here to get the spelling of your name

right 'cause a DUer has already cracked up at the "saying". My "posts" didn't record a "reply" so I'm glad I came back:)

[BattyDem]

3. Klein's right

McCain probably would have done well in a foreign policy debate, but now he'll have to spend at least part of the debate talking about economic issues ... and the Keating 5 may come up! :evilgrin:

[karynnj]

9. I am not sure of his doing well on foreign policy issues.

He always got credit because he said he was an expert and ... he was a POW. But he has beenn wrong on every issue and is proud to know very little of the factions or cultures in troubled spots. It wasn't that he said Shia when he meant Sunni occasionally (which I would bet EVERY Senator has doen at least once in the huge number of times they speak. This was a fundamental lack of understanding of which country was mostly which leading to inferences that were wrong - Iran (Shiite) training Al Quaeda (Sunni)

He has been in the Senate a long time and he is a vet, but that does not make him an expert on foreign policy like Kerry and Hagel (also vets - and that is the only thing I see that makes people think he has foreign policy experience) He has twice - far apart spoke of Czechoslovakia as a country in today's world. He spoke of the Iraq/Pakistan border. There is a lot of reason to worry about misstatements.

[BattyDem]

12. I don't think he's great on foreign policy either, but ...

that was the planned topic and of course, he practiced and rehearsed his answers. If they throw in some economy questions - and I don't see how they can possibly avoid the topic, given the circumstances - he's going to have to wing it!

[karynnj]

17. I agree and it's not just typical "economics"

where he's likely had his positions for decades, but very complex issues involving banking, securities, international markets, and regulation. Obama had little experience in this either, but he has spent the last week closely connected to what was going on and having his experts explain it - and he is a quick study. (I doubt he understands the nuances as well as Dodd, whose committee has worked on this for decades or Kerry, who is on the Finance committee, which he got on after he was on the banking committee for 9 years. But, he certainly knows enough he can give a thoughtful, coherent 3 minute answer to any likely question. )

McCain does not seem as quick a study and likely coasted on his relationships in the Senate.

[Median Democrat]

4. Bump - Spot On

Regardless of what you think of their respective policies, even Republicans should be asking themselves if they really want McCain in the White House.

[wildflower]

7. "Wild-eyed"...excellent descriptor for this pattern of behavior. n/t

[Solomon]

10. McChicken has lost his McNuggets.

And Sarah's moose is cooked.

[BattyDem]

14. LOL!

:toast:

[Cha]

15. Everywhere you look..mcpalin is

the Theater of the Absurd.

mccain wasn't thinking about the economic situation down in Oxford, Mississippi..only his own desperation.
.
"Ironically enough, if John McCain goes through with his threat to skip the foreign policy debate scheduled for this Friday for the sake of prolonging and complicating the ongoing negotiations over the Paulson bailout package, it may end up creating another distressed asset -- the University of Mississippi's investment in Friday's face-off. Officials from Ole Miss told ABC News today that a cancellation would be "devastating" to the University -- and that a postponement might not be possible:

Andrew Mullins, special assistant to University Chancellor Robert Khayat, told ABC News that the Ole Miss campus has been transformed to accommodate the candidates and the press. Road blocks are in place on campus and in the community and the debate television set for the candidates has already been constructed. He said the university has spent roughly five and half million dollars getting ready for the debate.

Mullins also noted that if the Commission on Presidential Debates asks the campus to hold the debate at a later date, he is not sure the university would be able to accommodate them.

"It's huge. You cannot just say that you're not going to do this thing," Mullins said. "I don't have any idea whether we do the debate" at a later date. " probably wouldn't do it."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/24/ole-miss-officials-debate_n_129057.html