John Mccain was respected for his maverick streak. He spoke his mind and that’s the reason he stood out in the republican herd. People felt he was authentic even when they disagreed with him on policy. His 2000 presidential fell apart because of the sleeze tactics of Bush’s campaign. The lesson that Mccain learned from this experience seems to be that he would align himself with the hard right because that seemed to deliver victory to George W Bush. The point he is missing is that Bush was one of the hard right; he had to court them but he did not have to change his views to appeal to them; they were already in sync. Mccain on the other hand has to depart from his real personality to appeal to the hard right conservatives.

Mccain has pandered to the Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson’s so much that he killed his maverick streak all together. His straight talk express had derailed. I don’t see it getting back on track. Not only has he tried to court the right to appear socially conservative; he is also trying to woo the billionare exec’s by reversing his stand on tax cuts. He does not seem authentic anymore. He is trying to be somebody he is not.

Trying to present himself into what his campaign thought people wanted was one of the primary reasons John Kerry lost the 2004 election. He tried to be comfortable talking religion when it was very clear to people he was not. He tried to portray himself as pro-gun by wearing the camouflage outfit and hunting a duck. This was not him and everyone who watched knew it. People were turned off by these antics and it made him less authentic. He would have been better of if he stayed true to himself. Mccain is treading similar ground that John Kerry did in 2004.

In the end people want their leaders to be real. They want to believe what their leaders say. People are much smarter than the politicians give them credit for. When John Kerry wore his hunting gear with a duck in his hand, everyone who watched knew it was fake except Kerry and his campaign. Politicians in their bubble feel that these stunts would make them appeal to a demographic who prior were not favorable to them. What they do not understand is that all people including the demographic they are trying to win understand that the candidate is faking it. This desperate pandering even turns off people who ardently supported them in the beginning. Departing from the candidate’s true personality is a loose-loose situation. Nobody wants to be be lied to.

Mccain loathed the Christian right and now he is their best friend. He may have been conservative on social issues but that was not what he talked about; they were not high on his priority. Now he is in favor of reversing Roe v Wade and against gay marriage. He is in favor of legislating his religious beliefs. He is back tracking from his opposition to tax cuts.

The appeal that Mccain had among moderates is waning fast. He is not able to convince the social conservatives that he is one of them and as president he would be championing their causes. The hard right don’t trust him Trying to woo the right wing base has antagonized many of the centrist/independent/moderate voters who were truly his base. John Kerry’s campaign disaster was a model from which Mccain must have learned instead of emulating.

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This entry was posted on Monday, February 26th, 2007 at 10:31 am and is filed under Politics, 2008 Race. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.