Legal Commentary

Mike Murphy Could Be Obama's Salvation

By Big Tent Democrat

Who is Mike Murphy? Well you have seen him bloviating on Meet the Press all the time as the GOP operative though he has always operated as sort of a "maverick" GOP operative. So why do I say he could be Obama's salvation? Because the NYTimes says he advised McCain to do this:

Mr. Murphy urged him to tone down his attacks on Mr. Obama and stop coming across as so angry. He recommended that Mr. McCain concentrate on running as a reform candidate to strip that issue from Mr. Obama . . .

More . .

Of course Murphy gave the DUH advice that McCain should distance himself from George Bush. But the toning down his attacks on Obama part is terrible advice for McCain. McCain needs to make Obama the issue in the campaign, just as George Bush made John Kerry the issue in the last Presidential campaign.

And as for "reform" as the magic bullet issue, this is the biggest shibboleth in the history of politics. Reform NEVER wins an election. EVER. And this one is no different. Obama will argue day after day that McCain is running for Bush's third term. McCain should argue that Obama is running for Jimmy Carter's second term. That Obama is Carter, Kerry, and Dukakis in a better package. But Mike Murphy does not get that. Mike Murphy thinks he is Bruno Gianelli.

In the end, most people vote against a candidate, not for one. This is a Democratic year. John McCain needs voters to vote against Barack Obama if he is going to have a chance to win.

By Big Tent Democrat, speaking for me as a political pundit only. I hope fervently McCain brings Mike Murphy on to steer his ship. Murphy is the Republican Bob Shrum, he never wins elections.

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Full post as published by TalkLeft on May 24, 2008 (boomark / email).