Time to take the pen out of Dobson's hand

"Dr." Dobson has decided to write a fictional letter to his followers about what life will be like in 2012 under President Obama. If you need a good laugh you should go on his website and read this letter. My question is very simple, if you keep on trying to scare people with an imagined future, are you afraid to talk about reality? Obama is a Christian man who showed the courage to visit Rick Warren's church and speak openly and honestly about his beliefs. Obama does not need to "scare" people into voting for him by writing some fictional letter about what the future looks like. People tried to scare me about Clinton in 92 and what happened to our country? We had eight years of peace, he balanced the budget, enacted welfare reform, the economy boomed, crime went down, abortion rates went down and the stock market went way up. Almost the EXACT OPPOSITE of what I was told came true. Now, the same old playbook is being used against Obama. McRage is trying to scare people about the economy (he is a socialist) war and terrorism. At what point do you stop being afraid of some imaginary future and look at the facts?

Somebody's got a case of the Mondays

Hey folks, I have to say that today I was feeling a little bit down. I know, I know, Obama is up by eight points in the polls and we are only eight days away from the election. I just felt like I had a case of the Mondays. I was watching a live feed this morning on Fox awaiting governor Palin's speech when out bounced a beaming blond ray of sunshine to brighten my day. It was my favorite little conservative, Elizabeth Hasselbeck, sent out to warm-up the crowd! I almost dropped my bagel, I was so excited to see her! Unfortunately, it is frowned upon to turn on the T.V. to watch the View at ten a.m. at the old real estate office so I do not get too see as much of the fearsome five-some as I would like these days. (Just on the days my Dad is up in Mammoth) I had a big smile on my face as Elizabeth took the microphone amid a thunderous round of cheers and catcalls from the audience. She immediately launched into a harangue about how the fuss over the "frugal" you know "joe-sixpack" Palin spending $150,00 was just a SEXIST charge trumped up by the media. Now for little Elizabeth to charge that the focus on Palin's own imitation of Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman spending $150,00 on Rodeo Drive while the economy craters is enough for me to spit bagel pieces all over my room. I wanted to tell Elizabeth that her entire career was due to SEXISM! She became famous on the television show Survivor for wearing tiny shorts and pulling up her T-shirt to show off her tan abs. She cleverly spent her time in front of the camera prancing around in a cut-off T-Shirt. Elizabeth left behind her lucrative career as a "shoe designer" (seriously) for the bright lights of Hollywood. She is famous, like so many women and men, for one thing, being attractive! Elizabeth complaining about sexism is like Paris Hilton complaining about the paparazzi. Or it's like Arnold complaining about racism against Austrian bodybuilders. Or it's like McCain complaining about using images of his P.O.W days. (see losing to the Huckster and he suddenly remembers an illiterate Vietnamese prison guard drawing a cross in the dirt) They all owe their careers to the very thing they now profess to be against. As I sat there watching my little goose-stepping blond I was struck with one thought, does Elizabeth have a political career in her future? You betcha!!

That kool-aid sure is getting around

Another day, another prominent Republican announces he is voting for Obama! (and I am not talking about my brother, Mikey will announce soon) Now some of you may be wondering why I am blogging like Paris Hilton on the downside of a coke binge but it is because this race is almost over and I have so much to say. I love how people tell me not too drink the kool-aid and "fall" under the spell of Obama. As if I am some simple-minded naif who is transfixed by the image of a slender mocha colored man on my television. So I thought I would put together a little list of people who have "drank the cool-aid."

Today, it was the former REAGAN (the I chi) Solicitor General and noted conservative thinker, Charles Friend who came out and said that he was voting for Obama. What caused this prudent man to vote for Obama? He said it was "the choice of Sarah Palin at a time of deep national crisis."

We can add this humble servant of THE GREAT RONALD REAGAN to the growing pile of real conservatives who are voting for Obama. Just this week, William Weld, former REPUBLICAN governor of Massachusetts who endorsed Mitt Romney in the primary (that was a few months ago folks) came out and said he is voting for Obama. Joining him was another former REPUBLICAN governor, Anne Carlson of Minnesota, who said she is voting for Obama.
We also got news that 32, I repeat 32, major newspapers that endorsed Bush in 2004 have all decided to endorse Obama in 2008! Including the Chicago Tribune which has not endorsed a Democrat since the 1800's! I ask you, at what point do you dig your head out of the sand and admit that maybe, just maybe the President should be held accountable for his actions? Hold strong, you 12 per centers who think he is doing a good job! Maybe it is you who think W is a good President who are perhaps drinking the kool-aid? No, no, it can't be, 88% of the country must be wrong.

Follow the money

The McCain-Palin ticket has become so absurdly stuck in the past that they are now comparing Obama's tax plan to communism. The facts are that if you make under 250,000 (attention Joe "I'm not really a plumber") you will get a tax cut! Now facts do not matter in this mythical end of days land that Palin is living in. Palin can call herself "joe-six pack" and "an average American who loves Wall-Mart" but spends 150,000 on a new wardrobe and $20,000 on a Hollywood make-up artist. If Palin's strength is that she is so "real" and she is "just like us" why does she need to spend $150,000 for on clothes? Why does this woman need a makeover if she is so real? She seems to be spending money like one of those Hollywood elites.......hmnnnnn. Maybe she can use the money to buy Fonzi's old leather jacket.

Here are the charges that have so far failed to stick against Obama:

1. Socialist ideas on the economy. Did not work so now it is Communist ideas
2. Friendly with terrorist. An easy trick to fool and awe the rubes (like the lions at the MGM casino) until it is revealed that the board he sat on was founded by a Republican ambassador who served under the GREAT Ronald Reagan. Reagan is the I chi, he is the sum of all wisdom.
3. His pastor "hates America". Even though Rev. Wright is a Marine who served his country in Vietnam (unlike Bush and Cheeny) Fox plays guilt by association. Until McCain's pastor starts hating on Catholics
4. Who is the real Obama?

I can tell you who the real Obama is:

He is the next President of the United States!

P.S. The great country of Ireland has ALREADY starting paying off money to those gamblers who were wise enough to bet on an Obama presidency. Remember, always follow the money.

Strange Days Indeed

I just got back from taking a trip to four states in four days and have a few interesting observations from life on the road:

I landed in Chicago where I asked our cab driver if he was excited that his Senator would be the next President of the United States. He told me the race was not over, that McCain would win, and he was voting for him. I told him that I admired McCain's service to our country and asked him why he was voting for McCain in 08. He told me that he really liked Sarah Palin, thought she was cute, and wanted to take her to dinner. As I left the cab I told him it was nice talking politics with him and wished him well. Oh, did I forget to tell you that he was black? I thought it was all about race............hmnnn

In Houston I was seated next to the superintendent of Anchorage public schools. Now you don't get to be superintendent of schools on your looks or flute playing abilities alone so I figured this woman was really smart. I told her that I read her name tag and saw that she was from Alaska. She said, "you want to ask me about Sarah Palin, she is exactly what she seems." I asked her what that was and she said, "she is a nice person, very personable, but there is no substance. She does not think deeply about issues and has a lack of critical thinking." I asked her how many times she has met Palin, "Oh she said, I have been in dozens of meetings with her and I have watched her work up close. She is not ready to be President."

While I was traveling the former Republican Secretary of State (2000-04) came out to endorse Obama as did the former Republican Press Secretary. This is unheard of in my political lifetime and is one more mark on how inept the Bush administration has become. As usual the non voting, non military serving, criminal drug addict Rush came out and LITERALY screamed that this was all about race. This surely gave comfort to the non-thinking but if this was all about race, as Rush told us it was, why did Powell not endorse Alan Keys or Jessie Jackson or Al Sharpton? Hmnnnn.......thinking makes my head hurt.

I met and was able to speak with Dan Rather in Houston. I asked him his thoughts on the race and without missing a beat he said that Obama would win. He than went on to tell some public speaking stories from his early days where he followed "las vegas dancing girls." Needless to say that in those good ole Texas days those events were men only.

In Oklahoma, maybe the only solid red state left, I saw a giant billboard on the side of the road that said, HELL IS REAL. I could only think of my brother and wondered why not paint, GOD IS LOVE.

So, all in all it was a good week, the Raiders won, I met Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed) and Dan Rather, Obama is up by 5 points in Colorado, two more former Bush employees are voting for Obama, and best of all, after countless hours talking at Dodger games, family gatherings, and on the phone, MY BROTHER IS VOTING FOR OBAMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, if I could only get my cool surfer uncle to help save trestles..............ah, a man can dream.

Time to cancel your subscription to the Wall Street Journal!

Well, it looks like that damn liberal media is at it again today! In the noted liberal paper, the wall street journal, the rabid partisan Peggy Noonan (who has written two glowing books on Reagan) came out and wrote an article called "Palin's Failin"

Peggy Noonan wrote today:

"In the end Palin candidacy is a symptom and expression of a new vulgarization in American politics. It's no good, not for the conservative and not for the country. And yes, it is a mark against John McCain, against his judgment and idealism.

I could not have said it better myself. Thank God we have such brave conservatives who are putting their brains ahead of their hearts. God Bless Peggy Noonan.

3 facts about Joe the Plumber

Last night McCain conducted a national love affair with a man named "Joe the Plumber." I thought my television was broke and I was watching some bizarre gay version of the bachelor. It seemed as if McCain was competing for Joe the plumbers last rose. McCain mentioned Joe the Plumber over twenty times in ninety minute debate! The McCain campaign saw the clip of Joe the plumber talking to Obama and impulsively jumped all over this unknown entity to use as a symbol of the working man. Once again McCain spontaneously decides to use a guy as a symbol for his campaign without being vetted. (sound familiar? You betcha) So this guy gets mentioned over twenty times in a debate watched by over fifty million people yet the McCain campaign does not even know who this guy is. As always, we must look to the facts to find out who is Joe the Plumber:

1. Joe owes back taxes
2. Joe is not licensed
3. Obama's plan would cut Joe's taxes

Once again we have a brazen, impulsive move that backfired on the McCain campaign. What team of monkeys is running this campaign?

Grumpy old men vs. Cool hand Luke

Last night we saw an angry 72 year-old man try to pick a fight with an calm, intelligent, rationale, and eloquent 48 year-old . Obama treated his opponent with class and respect. He refused to take a shot at Palin, even though she was just indicted for abuse of power, and conducted himself in a congenial manner. John McCain just seemed angry, he continued to interrupt Obama, roll his eyes while Obam was talking, and behave as if the line for the Apple-bees early bird special was just to long. Now, all the people who wanted McCain to get tough might have loved this performance but they were going to vote for McCain anyway. Behaving like a cranky old man just does not move swing voters. I was struck by how much McCain was patronizing, he did not laugh, he sneered. He did not talk or have a conversation with Obama, instead he was condescending. Contrast that with how Obama behaved towards McCain. Obama was cool, he was calm, he was polite. Obama was able to compliment McCain (for standing up to Bush on torture) and to thank him for his service to our country. Obama never once made faces, used air quotes, or was sarcastic. Perhaps this explains why so many intellectual conservatives or voting for McCain. They do not like the childish games and baseless smers that are coming from their side and have instead decided to vote for the candidate who they feel will be the best person for the country.( I know this idea sounds strange) I have been following politics avidly since Mr Carraway, (6th grade history teacher in 88) showed us all three Bush vs. Dukakis debates. I have never seen so many writers, thinkers, commentators, Bush White House employees, etc. come out for the other party's candidate. If you want to vote for McCain that is fine, but a thinking, rationale person must question and reexamine their long held beliefs. Oh, and that is a good thing!
Here is the evidence: Remember these are all people who are thinking conservatives and voted for Bush, like yours truly-

1. David Brooks said in response to McCain putting Palin on the ticket "McCain threw away standards and experience and prudence by this pick."
2. Charles Krauthammer said "Palin was not ready for prime time"
3. David Frum (Bush speechwriter) said "Palin has thoroughly, and probably irretrievably, has proven she is not up to the job."
4. Kathleen Parker (writing in the national review) said Palin was "clearly out of her league" and "urged her to bow out."
5. George Will slammed McCain for his "fact-free slander, his substitution of vehemence for coherence and boiling moral ism."
6. Peggy Noonan (a favorite writer of Susan) said she was unsure of who she was voting for and said "ahh, umnn, I'm thinking it through. " She was also caught saying, when she thought her mike was off, that Palin was a "joke and a lightweight."
7. Wick Allison ( former publisher of the national review) wrote Bush has "produced financial mismanagement, the waste of human lives, the loss of moral authority, and the wreckage of our economy......Obama is almost the ideal candidate for this moment in history.
8. Christopher Hittichens (a giant intellect who spent years defending the Iraq War) said, "the Republican party has invited not just defeat but discredit this year, and both its nominees for the highest offices in the land should be decisively repudiated."
9. Christopher Buckley (Natioanl review columnist and son of William Buckley) said, "Obama has the potential to be a good, perhaps even great leader, and so, for the first time, I'll be pulling the democratic lever in November."
All of these quotes can be sourced from today's L.A. times.
All of these thinking conservatives must make you reexamine your long-held political ideology. If you want to vote for McCain go ahead, I did not start this blog to get anyone to change their minds, all I want you to do is think! I am curious as to what my readers think about so many conservatives going for Obama. Why did they not go for Kerry, Gore, or even Clinton? I look forward to your responses:

That damn liberal media and all those facts make my head hurt

Hey folks, it is over! Call me in three weeks because I am taking a victory lap around the country. Republicans are turning on each other quicker than Sammy the Bull turned on John Gotti. Today Matthew Dowd, Republican strategist who was in charge of W's relection, (Susan cover your eyes) came out and said "palin is unqualified." He went on to call McCain's pick a "gimmick" and said that Palin "is a net negative" to the ticket. When a Republican pointed out that Palin seemed to energize the base he said, "it is like Halloween candy, you get a sugar rush but you feel awful the next day." Looks like someone has been reading my blog! I just wonder, at what point do you admit that McCain has put a fundamentally unqualified person on his ticket in order to appeal to the evangelical base? How much more evidence from Republicans do you need? How many traitors, like Bill Kristol, does the Republican party have left? Governor Palin did not even apply for a passport until last year! My former English teacher, the memorable Al Borne, used to tell us that the problem with stupidity in American could be attributed to "a lack of curiosity." Palin has a very serious lack of curiosity about the world. I also have a few facts for those of you who apparently have no standard for what makes a bad President. (cuz i voted for him and he must be good!)

When Bush leaves office this is his legacy:

1. The largest federal deficit in American history
2. The longest war in American history
3. The costliest war in American history
4. The worst economy since Hoover (29-33) and the Great Depression
5. The greatest failure of banks, financial institutions, mortgage companies, accounting firms, energy firms and insurance companies since the Great Depression
6. The failure to catch the greatest terrorist of the 21st century for over seven years
7. Invading a country because they had weapons of mass destruction and a failure to find any evidence of weapons of mass destruction
8. Having your V.P. assure the American people that "we would be greeted as liberators" as we now enter year five of a civil war
9. Firing your Defense Secretary in the middle of two wars
10. Hurricane Katrina (Brownie, you're doing a heck of job)

I ask you, in all seriousness, what would Bush have to do for you to consider him to be a bad president? What standard do you have for a bad president? Or is it possible that your ego will not allow you to admit that you made a mistake? I made a mistake, twice!

BTW I had a very interesting conversation with Britt last night. He was way more conservative than I was,(he voted for Bush twice) and he to is voting for Obama. (because he is smart) He put this thought in my mind last night: Here is part of our conversation:

"Riles, just think of all the great Presidents we have had. You know, Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Wilson, Kennedy, Reagan, could you see Palin next to this list?"
We laughed so hard I was crying at the very thought of it!

The dark and evil Woods Foundation

The play, The Crucible, was one of my favorite plays to teach because it dealt with two things that every kid was familiar with, gossip and slander. I would begin teaching this play by explaining how the worst thing to be called in the Puritan world of the 1600's was a witch. The Puritans had a tenuous hold on the new world and lived in a state of constant fear. They were fearful of being killed by the Indians, starving to death, dying of strange diseases, and most of all they were terrified of the ghost and witches who inhabited the strange and limitless forest. They lived in a world where witches could convert you and steal your soul for the devil. I would than explain that in the 1950's the worst thing you could be called was a communist. Communism was a real threat to America and a nuclear war seemed imminent. I explained to my class how people would practice nuclear bomb drills in school and millions of Americans built bomb shelters. I would than ask my class what is the worst thing you can be called today? ( I did this from 2001-2008) They all said the worst thing to be called was a terrorist! We would talk about how devastating this charge could be and how dangerous words are. Little did I know that the losing candidates in the 08 election would stoop so low as to label Obama a "friend" of a terrorist. So, for the purpose of looking at both sides, I decided that Obama is indeed someone who I should not trust because he served on a board with William Ayers, noted 60's terrorist. With my new found logic I will not trust anyone who served on any capacity with Ayers. So, because we must have intellectual integrity, here is how I see the world.
Obama, serving as an elected state senator, was on the board of the Woods foundation from 1999-2002. It is very important to look into the history of this devious group because we all know that noted terrorist, William Ayers, was serving on this board. The woods foundation had a stated goal of reducing poverty in Chicago and was founded by a noted REPUBLICAN AMBASSADOR under the great RONALD REAGAN! Oh my goodness! How come Hannity never told me this? On this nefarious board sat noted conservative businessman as well as democrats. This conspiracy was bipartisan! These traitors will stop at nothing to fool the American people! Sometimes the conspiracy's get so deep that I curl up in a ball crying and dream of Elizabeth Hasselback telling me it is all going to be O.K. I know what you are thinking, but Sarah Palin told me Obama was a bad man because he was on this board with a terrorist! How could good anyone not in bed with terrorist be on this board! If I was on this board I would throw acid in Ayers eyes and boil him alive while condemning him to hell. How could REPUBLICANS and a friend of the great Reagan be on this board with Obama and Ayers? If Obama "can't be trusted" because he was on this board than what does it say about all these Republicans and especially the founder? Oh, wait a second, Ayers never talked about his connection to the weatherman and was working as a professor of education because he was NEVER CONVICTED OF ANYTHING AND SEDVED NO TIME IN JAIL. But Obama should have know what this man did forty years ago when Obama was eight years old! Yes, my friends, Obama should have stuck a knife in his belly and screamed out, "I hate you dirty terrorist." You know what, my father was on the board of the Beach Cities Health District, I better find out who was on that board! I don't know if I can trust him!

Like an old man trying to send back soup at a deli

So ends the once proud political career of John McCain as he gives in to a sickening display of smearing Obama and engaging in guilt-by-association tactics. A man who promised to campaign with honor and dignity has become a mere shadow of of the once honorable man who ran a clean campaign in 2000. The smear tactics have the intellectual equivalent of a sixth grader spreading rumors about his teacher. It is unbelievable how low McCain has gone in his desperate bid to become president of the United States. He did not have the courage to attack Bush after the Bush campaign launched a vicious smear against his own family but he blames Obama for an attack that was launched when Obama was eight years old. I remember how all the conservatives were so outraged when Arnold was smeared in the L.A. times because his father was a member of the NAZI party. For all of you readers who are "scared" by Obama because of this Ayers nonsense I have a few things for you to consider:

All of us, and I mean all of us, have associated with people who have committed horrible crimes against humanity. If you do not have the moral courage to admit this to yourself than I would remind you that we associated and socialized with child-molesters for years. If you find this outrageous that associating with a child-molester could possibly reflect my character than I would encourage you to buy a dictionary and look up the word hypocrisy. As we have seen by the sickening blood-thirsty crowds at McCains rallies words do indeed have an impact. People are now calling Obama a terrorist, shouting out for him to be killed, and a woman today said she did not trust him because he was an Arab. So what can you do? Call, e-mail, or write the McCain campaign and tell him to stop slandering Obama. I wonder, for all of my Christian readers, what would Jesus think? Please have the intellectual honesty and integrity to be honest with yourself and stop the vicious lies and character slander. Who have you associated with that can be used against you? Very troubling...........
P.S. I encourage you to go back and read The Crucible.

The wink of desperation

John McCain is running on a slogan of country first. We all love John McCain for his service and sacrifice over forty years ago in the Vietnam war. He has written three books, appeared on countless T.V. shows, made two runs for President, is a weekly caller to talk radio, has sold his military story to a Hollywood studio, married a millionaire heiress who used her fathers money to finance his first run for congress, so we all know that John McCain is an extremely ambitious man. He ran a clean campaign in 2000 against W and was clobbered in the South and admitted the many times he lied to get votes. (he is on the record saying he only supported the confederate flag being flown to curry favor with South Carolina whites) So McCain has built his entire Presidential run in 2008 saying he puts "country first." But is his selection of Sarah "you betcha" Palin really putting the country first?
Think about it this way: When a man who is in his fifties or sixties realizes that he will not live forever he establishes a family trust to give his children and grandchildren the best life possible. All men at some point realize they are mortal and the wise and prudent thing to do is to appoint an executor of your family trust who is smart, capable and knowledgeable. In terms of Presidential politics you pick your V.P. because you feel he or she is qualified to step in and execute the duties of the President. Call me crazy, but I want a serious, studious person with a depth of knowledge who can properly execute the office. We have a 72 year-old candidate who picked a governor who represented less people in her state than when Obama did when he was a state senator. This pick was a selfish, desperate move by McCain to turn out the lunatic fringe. If McCain wins, and God forbid something happens to him, this winking clown would be President. I honestly do not know how any INTELLECTUAL person could possibly think this woman is qualified to be President. I am curious as to what all the Republicans think of the real conservatives who have publicly come out against Palin and said she is unqualified. Why would McCain put the country in this position? He did it because he is desperate to win. People claim they like Palin because "she is just like me." I do not someone who is just like me to become one heartbeat away from the Presidency. I want an intellectual man or woman who has spent a lifetime thinking, debating, and examining their positions. I do not want a V.P. who thinks that if they smile and wink when they repeat empty slogans than they are doing a good job. I had a good friend call me today, a life-long Republican, who told me today he is voting for Obama. I asked him what put him in Obama's camp and he said he was appalled at Palin's vocabulary and how the Republicans were spinning her idiocy as "folksiness." I respected his honest opinion and I feel that many people felt the exact same way.

Bye bye Michigan

Politics is just like baseball. Some people show up to eat ice-cream and do the wave (which my brother loves) and some people show up to watch the game within the game. They pay attention to the pitch count, the defensive shifts in the outfield, and appreciate a hitter who can foul off bad pitches. This week in politics was akin to watching a fascinating but low scoring baseball game while people in the stands were bouncing around a beach ball and screaming at the outfielder 400 feet away. The fans in the stands who love the wave were frothing this week over Palin and the debate and were looking forward to this one the way a cub fan looks forward to next year. But the real political fans were looking to the great state of Michigan. John Kerry won Michigan by three percentage points in 2004 and yesterday McCain pulled up stakes and ceded the state to Obama. This is a real turning point in the campaign, not the winking sideshow farce that was presented to the American public last night. Here is why McCain quitting in Michigan is such a big deal:

1. Michigan has 27% or registered independents. If the internal polls in Michigan show 70-80% of the independents breaking to Obama get ready to call him Mr. President.
2. McCain is pulling his T.V. ads in Michigan. Television is the most effective way to communicate with your audience. If he is pulling T.V. he is in trouble EVERYWHERE!
3. If you quit in state where Kerry won by only 3 points you are in serious trouble.
4. There will be no October surprise. If all that team Clinton could come up with was Obama's pastor saying bad things about America, there is nothing there.
5. McCain will become increasingly more desperate and erratic as his polls continue to slide.
6. More real Republicans will continue to point out the McCains decision to put Palin on the ticket was selfish and reckless. Thank God we have honest people such as George Will, Peggy Noonan, Bush speech writer David Frum, conservative intellectual Farid Zakaria and many more who can give their honest opinion.

It's over folks, oh, here comes the wave!

Push polls

"If you knew that John McCain had a black baby would you be more or less likely to vote for him?" It was this exact phone call that was made all over South Carolina in 2000 that torpedoed John McCains candidacy for President of the United States. The Bush operative in charge of these despicable calls, a member of Bush's paid staff, Tucker Eskew, was responsible for this horrible, racist smear on John McCain. McCain was so furious at the Bush team that he went on the record and said Tucker Eskew, "has a special place in hell awaiting him in the next world. " The McCain family adopted a young girl from Indonesia and were raising her in Arizona. This kind and decent act was re-payed to him with members of his own party who used this adoption to beat his brains out in South Carolina primary as Bush went on to win the state by 24 points. McCain was so angry, and rightly so, that he refused to speak with Bush for weeks and seriously considered the idea of running with John Kerry in 04. After being a victim of this racist assault just what does McCain do when he decides to run again in 2008? He goes out and hires Tucker Eskew! I guess hell will have to wait. As McCain emerged as the front-runner in the 08 race, thanks to the Huckester and Romney splitting the evangelical base, he became an increasingly desperate 72 year-old man. McCain began to shrewdly manipulate and use his image as a war hero (allowing pictures of him as a p.o.w. to be used for the first time) to change course and grasp at the elusive last straw, victory. McCain shifted his tactics, kissed his integrity goodbye, put his finger up to gauge the wind, and went deep down in to the Bush white house to hire people who eight years ago buried him and danced on his political grave.
With the dark forces of politics at his back McCain abandoned his core beliefs and went on the attack against Obama. He has repeatedly smeared him, questioned his intelligence and mocked him. He crafted the slogan country first, becoming the first nominee ever to imply his opponent is not a patriot. He hired A-list political operatives who crafted images that mocked Obamas popularity, tried to make an issue of lipstick on a pig, and told us Obama wanted sex education for kindergarteners. Why would McCain do this? Because the American people believe that these people are the "best" at what they do because it works. These are the same people that thought Jonnie Cochran was a good lawyer because what he did worked and a double-murderer is on the golf course. These people have become so steeped in greed and Social Darwinism that they no longer distinguish between integrity and achieving. All that matters is winning the election. Lincoln Chafee, the former GOP senator, who with McCain voted against Bush's tax cuts and drilling in Alaska, has said about the new McCain, "he made a pact with the devil." He has said, "sadly, sadly it is McCain who has flip-flopped, McCain is putting himself first."
It reminds me of the famous line:

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?
Mark 8:36