10-28-2008, 10:04 AM
http://www.reuters.com/article/blogBurst/p...2YFzDsa7MJ1CblL
Former Bush speechwriter David Frum predicts McCain loss and GOP meltdown Powered by BlogBurst
POSTED: Monday, October 27, 2008
The following blog post is from an independent writer and is not connected with Reuters News. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not endorsed by Reuters.com.
In an opinion piece that appeared in the Sunday edition of the Washington Post, David Frum opines that not only will Senator John McCain lose the presidential election but he will also drag the Republican Party down with him.
Who is David Frum and why would he predict such a gloomy outcome? David is a Neoconservative Canadian import who was a special assistant to President Bush, a Resident Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (which sold us the wonderful Iraq war) and also one of Bushâs speechwriters. He coined the phrase âaxis of evilâ but when his wife, Danielle Crittenden, boasted of that in an email, Frum became a âformer speechwriterâ for reasons that are unclear. One thing is certain; Frum is still loyal to the cause.
Frum takes the McCain team to task for some strategic missteps that are obvious to anyone who is paying attention. His comments on McCainâs running mate are interesting:
Frum wrote:
So in August, McCain tried a bold new gambit: He would reach out to independents and women with an exciting and unexpected vice presidential choice.
That didn't work out so well either. Gov. Sarah Palin connected with neither independents nor women. She did, however, ignite the Republican base, which has come to support her passionately.
No surprise there, we have seen the ignition of âthe baseâ across our nation and right here on Digital Journal. Plenty of good Americans were praising Sarah before they really knew her position on actual issues. Frum mentions that the downside of picking Palin was that it alienated voters in the middle. If weâre to believe recent polls, more and more voters have serious reservations about Palin and her positions.
What I find most interesting about Frumâs piece is that it telegraphs the real concerns and agenda of the Grand Old Party (GOP). Letâs follow Frum and read between the lines.
McCain's awful campaign is having awful consequences down the ballot. I spoke a little while ago to a senior Republican House member. "There is not a safe Republican seat in the country," he warned. "I don't mean that we're going to lose all of them. But we could lose any of them.
Itâs too true. Representatives like Republican Michelle Bachman are in danger of losing their seats. Fortunately, no one is after (openly gay) Democrat Barney Frankâs seat. Sorry Barney.
In the Senate, things look, if possible, even worse.
The themes and messages that are galvanizing the crowds for Palin are bleeding Sens. John Sununu in New Hampshire, Gordon Smith in Oregon, Norm Coleman in Minnesota and Susan Collins in Maine. The Palin approach might have been expected to work better in more traditionally conservative states such as Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia, but they have not worked well enough to compensate for the weak Republican economic message at a moment of global financial crisis. Result: the certain loss of John Warner's Senate seat in Virginia, the probable loss of Elizabeth Dole's in North Carolina, an unexpectedly tough fight for Saxby Chambliss's in Georgia -- and an apparent GOP surrender in Colorado, where it looks as if the National Republican Senatorial Committee has already pulled its ads from the air.
Oops, now weâre getting somewhere, but letsâ read further.
Every available dollar that can be shifted to a senatorial campaign must be shifted to a senatorial campaign.â
âWe need a message change that frankly acknowledges that the Democrats are probably going to win the White House.
Former Bush speechwriter David Frum predicts McCain loss and GOP meltdown Powered by BlogBurst
POSTED: Monday, October 27, 2008
The following blog post is from an independent writer and is not connected with Reuters News. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not endorsed by Reuters.com.
In an opinion piece that appeared in the Sunday edition of the Washington Post, David Frum opines that not only will Senator John McCain lose the presidential election but he will also drag the Republican Party down with him.
Who is David Frum and why would he predict such a gloomy outcome? David is a Neoconservative Canadian import who was a special assistant to President Bush, a Resident Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (which sold us the wonderful Iraq war) and also one of Bushâs speechwriters. He coined the phrase âaxis of evilâ but when his wife, Danielle Crittenden, boasted of that in an email, Frum became a âformer speechwriterâ for reasons that are unclear. One thing is certain; Frum is still loyal to the cause.
Frum takes the McCain team to task for some strategic missteps that are obvious to anyone who is paying attention. His comments on McCainâs running mate are interesting:
Frum wrote:
So in August, McCain tried a bold new gambit: He would reach out to independents and women with an exciting and unexpected vice presidential choice.
That didn't work out so well either. Gov. Sarah Palin connected with neither independents nor women. She did, however, ignite the Republican base, which has come to support her passionately.
No surprise there, we have seen the ignition of âthe baseâ across our nation and right here on Digital Journal. Plenty of good Americans were praising Sarah before they really knew her position on actual issues. Frum mentions that the downside of picking Palin was that it alienated voters in the middle. If weâre to believe recent polls, more and more voters have serious reservations about Palin and her positions.
What I find most interesting about Frumâs piece is that it telegraphs the real concerns and agenda of the Grand Old Party (GOP). Letâs follow Frum and read between the lines.
McCain's awful campaign is having awful consequences down the ballot. I spoke a little while ago to a senior Republican House member. "There is not a safe Republican seat in the country," he warned. "I don't mean that we're going to lose all of them. But we could lose any of them.
Itâs too true. Representatives like Republican Michelle Bachman are in danger of losing their seats. Fortunately, no one is after (openly gay) Democrat Barney Frankâs seat. Sorry Barney.
In the Senate, things look, if possible, even worse.
The themes and messages that are galvanizing the crowds for Palin are bleeding Sens. John Sununu in New Hampshire, Gordon Smith in Oregon, Norm Coleman in Minnesota and Susan Collins in Maine. The Palin approach might have been expected to work better in more traditionally conservative states such as Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia, but they have not worked well enough to compensate for the weak Republican economic message at a moment of global financial crisis. Result: the certain loss of John Warner's Senate seat in Virginia, the probable loss of Elizabeth Dole's in North Carolina, an unexpectedly tough fight for Saxby Chambliss's in Georgia -- and an apparent GOP surrender in Colorado, where it looks as if the National Republican Senatorial Committee has already pulled its ads from the air.
Oops, now weâre getting somewhere, but letsâ read further.
Every available dollar that can be shifted to a senatorial campaign must be shifted to a senatorial campaign.â
âWe need a message change that frankly acknowledges that the Democrats are probably going to win the White House.