On the unprecedented sea of troubles we find ourselves sailing, it is understandable that Barack Obama is turning out to be somewhat less than a seasoned, confidence-inspiring ship’s captain. It may well be that leaders of no smaller caliber than Abraham Lincoln or Jesus Christ are called for. John McCain does not meet this standard discernibly better than Barack Obama.
I think McCain would have been better only in the sense that he would have, hopefully, not done anything about the economy, global warming, or health care, which would be very much better than what is happening now. And he would have picked a somewhat better nominee for the Supreme Court.
On foreign policy he would have been tougher. Would that have been better? Or worse? It probably wouldn’t matter much one way or the other. Obama and Hillary have proven that America’s reputation and power in the world have nothing to do with the personalities of those in power, contrary to the opinions of the Bush haters, here and in Europe. Iran, Russia, China, India, France, Germany, the UK, etc. They are all going to do what they are going to do, no matter who is in the White House.
At this point, with the media attacking everything McCain said or did, painting the economy in the gloomiest possible terms, showcasing the war dead in Afghanistan every night, and printing daily columns of Sarah Palin’s grammatical circumlocutions, McCain’s poll numbers would be tanking even faster than Obama’s currently are.
I do think that a McCain/Palin victory would have been preferable, policy-wise. On the other hand, having Obama in the White House, and Pelosi and Reid in charge of the Congress, has its advantages. It is very educational, and may very well prove the undoing of the Democratic Party. Oh, this is what they do when they are in control! And it is beginning to look like cap and trade and government health care are not going to happen anyway. The economy is going to be bad for many years to come, no matter what anyone does. Now the Democrats will get the blame. So, it’s kinda the best of both worlds.