The Politics of Desperation
So it is that a certain presumed Republican nominee for the November Presidential race has deemed it necessary to resort to petty juvenile cracks directed at a certain presumed Democratic nominee’s celebrity status. The aforementioned Republican nominee has further seen fit to involve the names and likenesses of Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, no less.
John McCain’s campaign manager Rick Davis was quoted after the commercial spot was released as saying “the focus on events and activities is much more something you would expect from someone releasing a new movie than running for President.”
Perhaps the McCain camp is simply not able to grasp the idea that we live in a different world than the one in which McCain was taken as a prisoner of war. We live in a fast paced, modern society in which all people in the public eye – no matter what form that position takes – must evolve along with the society they represent.
It appears to me as though John McCain’s age is his biggest obstacle in this election season, and even my devoutly Republican partner (gods help me) admits that he is too old to be the President of the United States. Still, instead of making fun of his opponent for having the attention of the world he may want to instead take a few notes.
It should come as no surprise alas, that Ms. Hilton would have something to say about the whole thing, and surprisingly her response was quite well articulated.
Kudos to Paris Hilton for having the most honest and entertaining political commercial of the 2008 election season.
Take that, bitches.
August 8th, 2008 at 9:00 am
McCain has repeatedly demonstrated in this campaign that neither he nor any of his subordinates truly understand how modern marketing works, and it’s stopped being funny to laugh at it.
Case and point– his campaign’s recent attempt to make the tire pressure gauge into a modern Carter Cardigan Sweater. It’s utter fail. On face value, you can see why the idea might have looked good. There are similarities between Carter telling people to turn down the heat and Obama saying that proper tire inflation would obviate offshore drilling. The problem is, however, that nobody in McCain’s camp seemed to understand why the sweater thing backfired.
Carter looked dippy in that sweater, and as he wasn’t qualified to dictate fashion, people didn’t want to do it for fear they’d look dippy, too. That was the capstone to people’s frustrations– everything sucks, and now we have to look like dorks, too. Say it a’int so, Jimmy. Say it a’int so.
But a tire pressure gauge is a fairly neutral item, fashion-wise, and I daresay it might have even seemed somewhat appropriate. There’s nothing quite like ranking out a straight, macho guy by suggesting he doesn’t know how to maintain a car.
Ever watch a boxing match, and one of the pugilists gets hit really hard and, while he’s not down, he’s certainly no longer in the fight? Just pathetic flailing and wandering around the ring? That’s kinda how McCain looks to me these days.
I can’t believe your parter is a Log Cabin Republican. I thought those were just make-believe, like elves, goblins, and Eskimos.
August 8th, 2008 at 10:01 am
“I can’t believe your partner is a Log Cabin Republican. I thought those were just make-believe, like elves, goblins, and Eskimos.”
Alas he is. Of course he is several years my senior and has a lot of life experience and (to his credit), does not live a typical gay lifestyle. Love is a many splendored thing, it seems.
As for your comparison to the Carter thermostat suggestion, KUDOS TO YOU. I hadn’t even considered that one but it is a prefect analogy for this situation as was your explanation of the difference between the two.
Thanks for the comment, Rhett!