The Mendacity Of Hope

I haven't been pleased with the McCain campaign, although I think it hasn't been foolish; he's just following a different strategy than I would have. (He's aiming for Independents; I'd have taken an educate the voters and let the chips fall where they may approach. But he may be right. He has to flip PA.)

Obama's campaign, meanwhile, fascinates (and horrifies) me on three counts.

1. There are the teeming masses who find the promise that he'll fix our souls (and help us with our gas and mortgage bills) appealing.

2. Obama's rhetoric (which mostly masks what he'll actually do) is an imitation of McCain.

• Tax relief for the middle class? That's Reagan-Bush-McCain. You have to look closely to find what Obama is actually proposing is a payroll tax rebate to people who aren't paying any taxes, paid from money that's supposed to go into the Social Security fund. Plus, he favors letting the Bush tax cuts expire, so there's a massive tax hike on everyone right there.
  
• Why is Iraq not an issue? Because McCain was right. Where do we imagine Obama got the idea of a "surge" in Afghanistan? Borrowing a successful McCain strategy.
• Repudiation of Russia's invasion of Georgia? McCain's first reaction was "we're all Georgians now." Obama went for moral equivalence until McCain's stance shamed him out of it. (Although I think Congressman Nadler tells us what Obama really thinks.)
  
• Energy independence? That was McCain's issue. McCain called for offshore drilling, and Obama, who'd opposed it, suddenly allowed as how it should be part of the mix. McCain called for an "all of the above" approach to energy independence, and Obama discovered clean coal and nuclear --at least in his rhetoric (reality otherwise).
• Controlling government waste? C'mon, that's been McCain's mantra and bailiwick for 30 years!
• Bipartisanism? Ditto.
  
• Even running against Bush is something only McCain has ever actually done!
  

In many ways Obama has been an adept McCain mimic.

3. Finally, there are the astonishing campaign promises. Forget what conclusions we draw from his actual proposals, look at what Obama and his campaign say in their own words.

• Guaranteed tax hike on employers! The new Robin Hood economy will take from you (or from anyone who might hire you) to give to our party base through wealth redistribution. Guaranteed lay-offs and price hikes ensue! Guaranteed business flight overseas!
  
• Guaranteed skyrocket in electricity costs! Using the power to tax to bankrupt clean coal and nuclear plants.
• Guaranteed foreign policy crisis in the first six months! From the lips of the VP candidate.
• Guaranteed cowardly novice making cowardly novice mistakes! (Thanks, Congressman Nadler!)
• Guaranteed tax-payer funding of abortion and rollback of any limitation whatsoever on abortion!
  

Astonishing. The man is running on death and taxes and this is considered "hope."