I wrote a post yesterday about Barack Obama's infomercial, but it got lost. I hate it when that happens!
Basically, I said that Obama tried to present himself as a new Ronald Reagan. He didn't use those exact words, mind you, but his inspiring appeal to family, Americanism, tax cuts, fiscal responsibility, and the average American evoked that image. At the same time, his talk about all those new programs he would create was not Reaganesque at all. That was Clintonesque.
Rather than attacking John McCain, Obama is working extra hard to distance himself from liberalism. He sees a need to repeat over and over that he is for tax cuts, since he's confronting a strong political current that views the Democrats as tax increasers (since, well, that's what they are).
I said in my post that I never felt about any Democratic Presidential candidate the way that I feel about Barack Obama. I like this guy! He tries to inspire us. Like Reagan, he's a master at stagecraft. Obama appeals to the part of me that wishes real life were like the West Wing or Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. John McCain tried that approach when he picked Sarah Palin as his running mate--a woman with a compelling story rife with populism and taking on city hall (and winning). But that strategy is fizzing out.
I don't think the world will necessarily come to an end if Barack Obama is elected President. Because he is popular with much of the world, he may be able to rebuild bridges with other countries. And his charisma could inspire and motivate Americans in hard times, as Reagan's did.
Of course, on the foreign affairs deal, he may alienate people if he chose to bomb Pakistan without its permission. That's something George W. Bush would do. Wait, it's something George W. Bush is doing! (I know I defended it, but we've not yet seen its full fallout in terms of our relationship with Pakistan.) And yet, Obama has a soothing, rational personality, and that may serve him well on the international front.
But I will still vote for John McCain because Barack Obama has a record as a tax increaser, and we don't need more taxes when the economy is doing so badly. And Joe Biden didn't make me feel better when he defined rich as anyone making over $150,000 a year!