8/22/2008
I see that the media is trying to make the most of the fact that Senator McCain has no clue how many condos his wife Cindy owns. The Wall Street Journal discusses Obama’s new use of Senator McCain’s gaffe, but gives some balance to the whole story. But there are many other articles which are not quite so balanced, harping on the issue and glad to have — it seems to me — something to criticize the senator for at last.
But the media and political junkies tend to have less perspective on what resonates with most Americans. Politico, the same paper that initially asked Senator McCain how many homes he owns, to its credit reported yesterday that all the homes are actually owned by his wife, Cindy.
So, the question becomes, will Americans really look upon this whole gaffe as a real issue? It seems to me, as I’ve said in previous posts, rather a desperate flailing after any issue that might slow Senator McCain’s growing momentum.
And perhaps it’s an attempt to move past the embarrassing performance that Senator Obama gave during the debate last weekend. Certainly, that was an uncommonly poor performance for Senator Obama, but not unexpected when you consider that Senator Obama rarely takes unscripted questions, while Senator McCain takes them every single day.
At the very least, this whole issue of Cindy McCain’s homes is not something that is going to give Senator Obama much mileage. Senator Obama himself is both wealthy and successful, and his 1.5 million home in Chicago — boasting four fireplaces and a new wine cellar — is located in one of the most sought-after neighborhoods in the city. And there is no denying the fact that Obama bought the home with the help of Tony Rezko, who was recently convicted on no less than 16 counts of fraud. It makes me wonder at the level of desperation on the part of the Obama Campaign that they would risk opening up such a quagmire to score a few points against Senator McCain.
Neither candidate looks like they are struggling economically, but, of course, Obama is searching for something, anything, that will stick to Senator McCain and give Obama something to attack him with. This is, if you think about it, the best thing to come up on Senator McCain so far.
And that should worry Obama’s political operatives. If that’s the best you can do, then you’re in BIG trouble come November.
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