Dem Ticket sweeps Series 4-0!

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

October means two things to me: the Worlds Series and presidential debates.  So to borrow a sports metaphor, the Democratic ticket of Obama-Biden swept the presidential debate series 4-0.  Break out the brooms!  None of the games were even close, with snap polls and focus groups of undecided voters declaring the Democratic team the decisive winner in each debate by more than a 2-1 margin.

Greg Mitchell at Editor & Publisher Final Debate: Obama Wins in Polls writes: 

Four and out? A sweep for the Democrats? It could have followed the same script as the past three encounters: Obama or Biden win on points and demeanor, pundits call it a draw anyway, polls mock the pundits by showing an easy win for the Dem.

"In the first presidential debate, second presidential debate and vice presidential debate, more uncommitted voters said the Democratic candidate was the victor.

And tonight’s results have, by a wide margin, made it a clean sweep." CBS Poll: Uncommitted Voters Say Obama Won Final Debate

CNN, CBS, MediaCurves, the focus groups, all showed the same results. Obama won big. 

Obama dramatically improved his favorable number with the Stan Greenberg undecided focus group from 42 before the debate to 72 after. McCain dropped from 54 before to 50 after. Obama’s unfavorables dropped from 42 to 22. McCain’s, however, rose from 34 to 48. And, this was a focus grouped that was undecided, but started out leaning towards McCain. Greenberg focus group: Decisive win for Obama (Note: The CNN poll also noted a drop in McCain’s favorable rating).

GOP pollster Frank Luntz, who hosted a Fox News undecided focus group, said that "Early in the debate these people thought McCain was doing better, by the end of the debate Obama seemed to finish better."  Four of the undecided group decided to vote for Obama, none for McCain.  "This is a good night for Barack Obama" said Luntz. Frank Luntz Focus group: This is a good night for Barack Obama.

All in all, these debates have been a humiliating defeat "my friends" for the Republicans, no matter how much their spinmeisters in the McMedia try to spin their defeat into victory.  It is no wonder why so many Republicans are so angry at McCain and Palin rallies – their team does not have the skills or ideas to compete.

There are two dynamics at play here.  First, the very essence of John McCain’s being is his "McNasty" personality.  That’s the "real McCain."  His sneers, sarcasm and contemptuous behavior towards his opponent (the "bug eyes" thing last night was way over the top – h/t to Daily Kos for the graphic) turns off voters. Voters simply do not like candidates who behave badly and display an obvious anger management issue.  As David Gergen at CNN commented last night "He looked angry. And it was almost an exercise in anger management up there for him to contain himself."

And former Sen. Tom Daschle commented last night, "2/3 of the American people think [McCain is] an angry candidate, and for 90 minutes, he tried to convince the other third."  He succeeded.

As I have written before, using Sarah Palin as his attack poodle was a serious mistake.  Female politicians simply cannot be used as an attack dog in a campaign.  The public, particularly female voters, really do not like it.  Hey, I don’t make the rules, that’s just the way it is in the real world.

The second dynamic at play here is one that Republicans and their allies in the McMedia have yet to acknowledge.  This is fundamentally a change election, what is sometimes referred to as a wave election, in which the dominant political philosophy of an era is replaced by a new political governing philosophy.  Movement conservatism which has dominated our politics since coming to power with the so-called Reagan Revolution in 1980 is in its final death throws. It is an intellectually and morally bankrupt ideology (hell, George W. Bush just nationalized the banking system, that’s socialism).  Conservative pundits like George Will and David Brooks have hinted at the demise of this ideology in recent columns, but they have yet to accept that their time on the stage is over. There is a new political paradigm coming, and the voters are going to deliver the final death blow to movement conservatism on Election Day. This election will be at least as comparable to 1980 in terms of political significance, if not the ultimate "wave election" standard of 1932.

Conservatives like to say that conservatism never fails, conservatives fail conservatism.  In other words, they will blame John McCain for being an imperfect candidate and not being a "true" conservative who was capable of delivering their conservative message.

On the contrary, John McCain sacrificed his last shred of integrity and decency to hew to the conservative ideology of his party in this campaign, and it is that conservative ideology which voters are now rejecting.