Ferris is Really Sick

Once again, John McCain has put out another attack ad on Democratic Presidential hopeful Barack Obama. But instead of attacking him on not visiting injured troops or not having enough experience for the job of Commander-in-Chief, the McCain campaign is attacking Obama for . . . . being a celebrity comparable to the likes of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Here is the ad.

We all know that politics is driven by personality and that negative campaigning has and will always be present in Presidential politics. Even though this type of campaigning does not reach the level of 1828 in which then-President John Quincy Adams was accused of surrendering a servant girl to the Russian Czars, the attacks from the McCain campaign have come with more severity and frequency within the last few weeks.

I will leave alone the fact that many Republicans are not as excited about their candidate as are the Democrats. I will also not touch statements made by former Nixon and Ford speechwriter Ben Stein who called McCain's trudge for the Presidency "uninspiring" and "the most pathetic campaign he had ever seen in his entire life." That's pretty bad given his company.

This is quite a different tone from the one a few months ago when John McCain pledged to run a clean campaign. Anyone who knows anything will tell you that a statement like that comes from someone who is pretty naive when it comes to Presidential politics especially when the main arguments about his opponent involve knowledge and experience.

But back to the ad. Mr. McCain has made the comparison of Barack Obama as a world-wide celebrity such as Paris Hilton and Britney Spears coupled with visions of foreigners chanting his name, waving our flag, and showing more positive energy about our country then we have seen in quite some time. The ad then tries to tie Obama's celebrity status with his stance of no-offshore drilling and the possibility of him being high-taxing liberal.

With this ad, McCain has gone from the traditional mudslinging level of campaigning to the high school level. Anymore, McCain is reminding us not of his anti-establishment stances or his Maverick political style but rather the "popular" cheerleader complaining about how she did not win Prom queen. The only problem is, McCain's campaign is so unorganized and lacking of a message that he can't even get on the Prom court.

The truth is that this election will not be won on McCain's terms, it will be based on whether or not the public feels comfortable with the Illinois Senator. It is Obama's to win or lose and that frustrates McCain even though it is crystal-clear where the problems lie. McCain's speeches with an audience are lack-luster and his humor often times seemed forced almost to the point where you aren't sure if even he understands the joke. He also comes off as short-tempered and highly explosive which reminds me of the old man sitting on his porch yelling at the neighborhood children to get off of his lawn. Lastly, McCain has made so many shifts in his campaign staff over the past few months that it hard to figure out who is in charge of who.

In a year that seems to look disastrous at best for Republicans, McCain is trying to throw any bit of mud at Obama but nothing is sticking. Hillary Clinton's "kitchen sink" strategy had more of an effect on Obama who struggled to clinch the Democratic nomination because of a strong late surge from the former first-lady. McCain is looking for anything but is still coming up short. Even though we are still over 90 days until the election, the prospects do not look good for the Arizona Senator.

Obama is giving speeches to record numbers that we have not seen in more than a generation and drawing comparisons to the likes of Kennedy, Reagan, and in some circles Lincoln (as far-fetched as they might be). Meanwhile, in the midst of an unpopular Presidency and scandals galore throughout Washington, John McCain is left standing in front of a full classroom of Republicans asking, "Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?" Only time will tell if the GOP responds but for right now, Ferris is really sick indeed.