A Second Hand Conjecture

photo: Tim Kelley

After getting obliterated in the Potomac primaries, new polling shows that Barack is beating Hillary Clinton in next week’s Wisconsin vote too. In light of becoming the frontrunner, Obama now appears to be further orienting himself toward the general election, and away from a contest with Hillary that is rapidly taking on the appearance of a petty squabble.

State of the Union grabs the relevant portion of Obama’s speech:

John McCain is an American hero. We honor his service to our nation. But his priorities don’t address the real problems of the American people, because they are bound to the failed policies of the past. George Bush won’t be on the ballot this November, but his war and his tax cuts for the wealthy will.

[snip]

And I admired Senator McCain when he stood up and said that it offended his “conscience” to support the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy in a time of war; that he couldn’t support a tax cut where “so many of the benefits go to the most fortunate.” But somewhere along the road to the Republican nomination, the Straight Talk Express lost its wheels, because now he’s all for them.
(State of the Union)

It looks like Obama will attempt to employ the successful Clinton/Morris strategy for dealing with Dole’s impressive record. By intentionally praising the historical McCain, he can make him look anachronistic. When coupled with the inevitable political contradictions that arise from any lengthy residence in the Senate, it can be a potent attack (as Bob Dole found out).

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As governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney oversaw the implementation of state-wide universal health care, something that he touts as a major accomplishment on his campaign website. In fact, after signing the legislation into law, Romney penned a an Op-Ed for the Wall Street Journal extolling the virtues of the health care plan, even going so far as to hold it out as a model for other states to follow:

And so, all Massachusetts citizens will have health insurance. It’s a goal Democrats and Republicans share, and it has been achieved by a bipartisan effort, through market reforms.

[...]

Will it work? I’m optimistic, but time will tell. A great deal will depend on the people who implement the program. Legislative adjustments will surely be needed along the way. One great thing about federalism is that states can innovate, demonstrate and incorporate ideas from one another. Other states will learn from our experience and improve on what we’ve done. That’s the way we’ll make health care work for everyone.

Of course, many think Romney’s “accomplishment” is nothing to write home about, especially during a Republican primary race: (more…)

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