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McCain Suspends Campaign
Almost as soon as it was over, John McCain left the forum. It was a golden opportunity to meet people and press ahead with his agenda, but he walked away. Maybe he was unable to cope with his loss. I'm not going to declare he lost the debate. That's immaterial. But he needed to generate a moment when he rose above Obama. He needed a big hit. He failed last night and he knew it.
It seems to me that the charge against Obama of being an elitist was completely dissipated in those last few minutes of air time after the debate. The Obamas took the time to shake the hand of everyone there, it seemed. They actually had their arms around people and smiled for pictures. The people approaching them did not seem intimidated. They seemed comfortable and calm as they asked the Obamas for a moment of their time to smile for the camera.
People absorb more information from what they see then from what they hear, and it all looked good for the Obamas last night. It was an opportunity to smile and glad hand through the crowd. This was a very easy crowd. There were no baies to hold. They came to hear the candidates talk. They were interested.
Typically, no one loves the crowd more then a politician, but McCain actually displayed contempt for the crowd, and his campaign was closed for business almost as soon as the debate was finished. The moment he walked away, he suspended his campaign. He knew the debate was over as was his campaign.
Comments (1)
I watched the debate on c-span and thought in the post debate they were being biased by showing only Obama before I realized McCain has left the building. Maybe he just could not stand another minute sharing the stage with Obama. You are right that this was a blown opportunity for him- I mean surely he knew that he was in a room full of undecideds.
October 8, 2008 3:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
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