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McCain/Palin Casting for new voters

Reagan Dems, Hillary Dems... Kucinich Dems. I'm not kidding.

By: Mark Kilmer (Diary)  |  September 6th, 2008 at 12:56 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

Even the Brits, whose politics are not ours, get it, as evidence by this post from London’s Daily Telegraph broadsheet.

On Friday night in Sterling Heights, Mr McCain’s selection of Mrs Palin appeared to have utterly transformed his campaign and made easier the task of converting Reagan Democrats to McCain Democrats.

Even some Canadians, like Dr. Salim Mansur, an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Western Ontario. He writes in the Edmonton Sun:

Similarly, McCain’s choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate is a fine demonstration of an OODA loop decision messing up the Democrat’s campaign, built on the phony slogan for “change.” Palin strikes the near-perfect note of a “change” candidate headed for dysfunctional Washington, whose poster face is the six-term senator and capitol insider Biden.

Observe, Orient, Decide, Act. The OODA loop is of the military, used in decision-making when the situation is voluble. The decision to select Palin has energized the Republican base, brought the critical ground troops-volunteers on board for the final two months, increased donations, increased enthusiasm, and started to attract the Reagan Democrats, such as they are today. John McCain says that they are going to Washington without concern for “breaking the china,” and that is what many in small-town America want to hear. Obama said of small-town America that their bitterness compels them to rely on their instruments of force and their mythology. In contrast, John McCain and Sarah Palin offer them hope and a china-breaking change from the status quo. Hope and Change from McCain and Palin. Barry offers them only bitterness. Go figure.


The Reagan Democrats are not the only ones emerged by and attracted to McCain’s choice of Palin. From the British article linked above:

It had been assumed by many commentators that Mrs Palin could not win over those supporters of Hillary Clinton with whom she differs on abortion. But women waving Democrats for McCain posters were highly visible.

It is easy to underestimate just how much many women despise the glass ceiling. And mothers, women with families, can identify with Sarah Palin as one of them, albeit one with the requisite gifts which enable her to do what she’s doing.

From the Detroit Free Press comes this, writ after a Friday rally in Sterling Heights:

McCain and Palin were greeted at Metro Airport earlier in the afternoon by two Democrats, who said they’ll vote for McCain.

Norma Portwood-Stacer held a sign that said “Hillary Democrat for McCain Palin.”

She was visibly excited by the encounter, clutching her chest and bouncing up and down after a hug from McCain and Palin.

The other, Laurel Federbush of Ann Arbor, described herself as a left-wing independent who supported Dennis Kucinich for president during the primary season.

She said she liked McCain’s opposition to torture during interrogations on prisoners.

If Senator John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin are to defeat the powerful Axelord/Obama machine/juggernaut, the one which talks Hopechangehop e in Denver and bitterness in San Francisco, it is going to take all kinds of voters.

At least now, after his Palin pick, John McCain will have the peeps to offer them rides to the polling places if they need them.

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  • greatbrit

    “Even the Brits, whose politics are not ours, get it, as evidence by this post from London’s Daily Telegraph”

    I wouldn’t get too excited about “Brits getting it” based on an article in the Daily Telegraph. The Telegraph is the most right wing mainstream newspaper in the UK and they, along with Rupert Murdochs Times, have been doing their utmost to spin a Republican victory for well over a year now.

    You’re right, generally, our (British) politics are not yours – we tend to take a more nuanced view of the world and tend not to see things as being clear cut black and white. We also prefer to keep our personal morality to ourselves rather than enshrining it in law. Also, we tend to be more outward looking – something to do, perhaps, with all the wars European countries have engaged in with each other at various times over the past 2000 years and the realization that understanding our neighbors leads more realistically to living peacefully with them.

    But hey, you’d be forgiven for not getting that impression from the Telegraph! :)

    • janis

      Comes with the territory when we have had to save the world from itself so often over the last almost 100 years.

      And I’ll take “clear cut black and white” over “nuance” any day of the week and twice on Sunday. Makes it much easier to identify good and evil, don’t you know.

      If by “understanding our neighbors”, you mean caving in to the demands of every radical Muslim thug you’ve let into your country, then by all means, understand away. From everything I’ve read over the past year, Great Britain is a hairsbreadth away from dhimmitude on a grand scale.

      • The_Rebel

        I’d rather get my “impressions” from the “mainstream” Telegraph than be brainwashed by those extreme left-wing rags such as the Guardian.

        As far as “….understanding our neighbors leads more realistically to living peacefully with them.”, I guess you mean people like Chamberlain, who proclaimed to understand the Germans enough to declare we would have peace in our time.

        The British have announced they will be pulling just about all troops out of Iraq after the first of the year. Nice way to telegraph the enemy of your intentions. Keep your left-wing ideas on your own little island. We don’t want need to infect any more Americans with that disease.

        • The_Rebel

          I’d rather get my “impressions” from the “mainstream” Telegraph than be brainwashed by those extreme left-wing rags such as the Guardian.

          As far as “….understanding our neighbors leads more realistically to living peacefully with them.”, I guess you mean people like Chamberlain, who proclaimed to understand the Germans enough to declare we would have peace in our time.

          The British have announced they will be pulling just about all troops out of Iraq after the first of the year. Nice way to telegraph the enemy of your intentions. Keep your left-wing ideas on your own little island. We don’t need to infect any more Americans with that disease.

          • Mark_Kilmer

            of Her Royal Majesty. There were some Brits who get it. (And from my contacts on your island, the Telegraph is the center paper, with Murdoch’s Times hugging the right and the Manchester Guardian hanging out on the left fringe. That fits with my reading of the web sites.)

            When I said your politics are not ours, I was talking about the science, the system of government, not the passivity of the electorate. Both of our countries’ electorates have the various elements you describe, and those who prefer nuance to facts and v/v, but our system, with its check and balances, has managed to keep one side from crushing the other. The left and the right are alive and well in the States, and they always will be, probably always sharing power.

  • Crowe

    Quite a high horse you’re on there, old chap…

    We tend to take a more nuanced view of the world and tend not to see things as being clear cut black and white.
    Perhaps that’s true nowadays, but the British empire was hardly built on nuance — it was built on rather stark self-assurance among the Brits that they could and should conquer lands and rule peoples. Not much nuance in your actual empire-building. In fact, seems to me the introduction of nuance led to the demise of the empire and (as noted above) Chamberlain’s idiocy. Happily, Churchill disdained nuance, saw things pretty much in black and white, and Britain held firm against the evil of Nazism.

    We also prefer to keep our personal morality to ourselves rather than enshrining it in law.
    I call bullpoopie. For one thing, your monarch is head of an Ecclesial Communion that owes its existence to a decision of personal morality by the monarch. But even more generally, personal morality includes such foundational principles as “murder and theft are wrong.” Morality is never purely personal — it necessarily includes how you act toward others, which immediately steps into the realm of civil law. The British, through the common law process and legislation, have long enshrined personal morality into law.

    Also, we tend to be more outward looking
    With the largest economy on earth, no country is as outward-looking as the USA. We’re always looking for how to break into new markets and expand our business ventures.

    – something to do, perhaps, with all the wars European countries have engaged in with each other at various times over the past 2000 years and the realization that understanding our neighbors leads more realistically to living peacefully with them.
    The longest unfortified border on earth is that between the US and Canada. Since the War of 1812 we have not warred against our northern neighbors. The lack of war in Europe among traditional enemies can likely be attributed more to the emergence of democracy than to “greater understanding.” Democracies simply do not war against each other.

    But go ahead, suppose you’re so much more sophisticated and advanced than us isolationist, warmongering, backward hicks.

    I’ve always loved Kevin Kline’s short riff in A Fish Called Wanda:

    Oh, you English are so superior, aren’t you? Would you like to know where you’d be without us, the US of A, to protect you? I’ll tell you. The smallest [effing] province in the Russian Empire, that’s what! So don’t call me stupid, lady. Just thank me! ‘Thank you for popping in and protecting us!’ If it wasn’t for us, you’d all be speaking German!
    (Singing)Deutschland, Deutschland ?ber alles

    • Crowe

      This was supposed to be a response to greatbrit’s comment, but in my attempts to get it posted in spite of the rash of “500″ errors, having clicked “respond to this” got undone, somehow.

      • youthgrunt

        I would like to see Governor Palin make a quick trip across the pond (before the election) to visit with Prime Minister Thatcher.

        • NohOne

          Don?t forget, a majority of us over here in ?Hick Town? USA share 1776 (that is 2000 ? 224 if you don?t have a calculator on hand) of that 2000 years of war with you. In the 224 years since we broke away, we have had wars just like you have ? some of them were even against you. Look up the years 1776 and 1812, both prompted by actions of the British. Yes, we do look at things as black and white, because they are. We don?t like it when others kill us, or try to destroy our things that we work damn hard for. But rather than let others continue to kill us or destroy our things, we put a stop to it. If you don?t like us fighting back, then tell those who do these things stop, because, as we know, they are so willing to listen to reason. We also like to stick up for those who are treated unjustly. Not because we want to have control over others, but because it is just the right thing to do. Be it helping those in Kuwait, parking a battle ship off Georgia, or getting rid of the Taliban. And if the world doesn?t care about a 1,000,000 (that is 1.000.000 for you) people being killed at the hands of Saddam and his pathetic little snot children, we do care. It could be said that it is a disgrace that the US did not step in earlier. And, even though we lost a large number of our heroic sons in a war that was unpopular with the people, we are happy to step in and help you and the rest of Europe numerous times ? yes, us saving your asses was unpopular just like the current war we are fighting. In fact, it could be said that we have a more broad understanding and hatred of war than you do, being that every single one of us is from a variety of places on this planet. So we have 1000s of years of knowing war from the viewpoint of 100s of countries.

          As for morality, there is morality in law everywhere of free countries. Murder, theft, rape, and more are all morality choices. Some people do not have those same morals, and when they break the laws/morals of society, they are punished for it. Yes, there are some that try to push bad ?morals? on others over here. There are many lefties over here that are screeching that Palin should have aborted her child with Down?s Syndrome. This is something that we want to stop, but those who think that Europe is the greatest place on Earth, the left, want to force their morals on others. So yell at them, specifically, not the whole country. You also cannot say that you do not make ?morality? part of your law, especially when your top judge says that Shia law should be included in the British legal system.

          The fact is, there is great hypocrisy from the Europeans. They sit there and tell us that they don?t like our policies towards our neighbors. And sometimes they take actions. Isn?t that the Europeans dictating to us how we should act, which you argue against? It will be a great day when all the world?s leaders sit down and sing a big Kumbia (sp?). But there are people out there that do not want that. And some of them may not be neighbors, but internal. How long did you fight with the Irish? How many 3-11s do you need to have? How many film makers need to die simply for standing up against how women are treated in one particular group? How many riots over a cartoon? How many riots over not being allowed to wear head scarves? And so on, and so on, and?

          One of my biggest problems with Obama is that one of his campaign slogans is Hope. The American way is not to hope. It is to do. To take action. To make things right. To provide opportunity. Not hope that maybe, somehow, from the grace of the false messiah and chosen one himself, they will just magically work themselves out in the end.

          But I apologize for us not being, as Rudy put it, Cosmopolitan enough for you.

  • Rod_Patrick

    and McCain is the star maker.

    My take of RushBo:

    1. Bush in passing to confront 9/11, the last of the old Republican Party.

    2. McCain is the man that no party can fully claim as theirs alone… Country First.

    3. Sarah represents the future of New Republican Party.

    Rush himself (add one for myself) violent disagreed in item #2.

    Bush Rush and I both agreed that the Republican Convention is just being “honest” and true.

    Country First before Party… that’s where we stand today. And I’m a proud Republican.

    • MrMosis

      As I said in a comment earlier, I don’t see how the level of normal activity (as evidenced by current new content levels- very minimal) could explain the performance problems. Although a large number of “read-only” hits could explain site performance problems, the site is not currently being Drudged (or Slashdotted for that matter), as far as I know.

      That is not to say that the current problems mean the site is under attack, necessarily. In fact a HTTP 500 is not usually an overload error, although it could be depending on the configuration and design of the site. I would think it could just be an out of control process on the web or cache server… or maybe database connectivity issues being realized by freaked out HTTP-related processes- any number of possibilities, many of which could have been triggered back when the traffic was so overwhelming. (although that would be surprising- for no one to have rectified the situation by now)

      so… maybe it’s DoS? hmm. Anyway, this will probably not get through.

      • John_Wayne

        I gotta tell you though, the political theatre that goes on in the House of Commons is incredible entertainment. If I could, I would establish one for our government just to keep our citizens amused. I spent 2 yrs in the UK and love your country. I wish you the best. This is the USA and we borrowed a lot from you folks across the pond, but came up with a system that works for us. Sometimes it frustrates the Hell out of me, but it has worked so far. However, I don’t think it will survive if we go much farther down the road to Socialism. That is the road our lefty Democrats are determined we take. Too many of us will revolt, and we are allowed to own guns over here (2nd Amendment, don’t yoy know)

  • BeerCanDave

    I will want to see the actual poll results then rely on anecdotal evidence.