
 |
|
Nov. 20, 2009
Nov. 19, 2009
Jonathan Tobin: ADL Crosses the Line with Report Bashing Obama Critics
Nov. 18, 2009
JWisdom.com: The (Jewish) Dating Game
with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff (8 minutes)
Nov. 17, 2009
Steven Emerson: How Does the 4th Amendment Impact Terror Finance Investigations?
JWisdom.com: If Frank Sinatra married Edith Piaf
with Rabbi Y.Y. Rubinstein (2 minutes) Life lessons from what would be regarded as the most inappropriate lyrics ever sung
Nov. 16, 2009
JWisdom.com: Deconstructing faith
with Rabbi Warren Goldstein (9 minutes)
Nov. 13, 2009
JWisdom.com Sarah's subjective reality
with Rabbi Sroy Levitansky ( 6 minutes)
Nov. 12, 2009
JWisdom.com Does God get tired?
with Rabbi Harvey Belovski ( 5 minutes)
Nov. 11, 2009
JWisdom.com Marriages are not made in Heaven
with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff (VERY fast 15 minutes)
Nov. 10, 2009
Michael Doyle: Author of book exposing CAIR ordered to remove supporting documents from Web
JWisdom.com If the creation so loudly shouts the existence of the Creator, why aren't more people believers? with Rabbi Naftali Brawer (9 minutes)
Nov. 9, 2009
Mark Steyn: Shooter exposes hole
in U.S. terror strategy
JWisdom.com It's never too late to
have a happy childhood with Sarah Chana Radcliffe (5 minutes)
Nov. 6, 2009
JWisdom.com Zero to 1/60th: How
to Empower An Hour with Gavriel Aryeh Sande (7 minutes)
Nov. 5, 2009
JWisdom.com Hidden Hints: Unlocking
Faith & Prayer with Rabbi Jay Yaacov Schwartz (10 minutes)
Nov. 4, 2009
JWisdom.com When God played peacemaker
With Rabbi Sroy Levitansky (5 minutes)
Nov. 3, 2009
JWisdom.com Are you are closet idolater?
With Sara Yoheved Rigler (10 minutes)
Nov. 2, 2009
JWisdom.com Abraham's Strange Change
With Rabbi Yitzchok Fingerer (5 minutes)
|
| |
Jewish World Review
Sept. 8, 2008
/ 8 Elul 5768
Romancing the vote
By
Debra J. Saunders
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
The 2008 Republican National Convention had too much in common with the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston. That's where presidential candidate John Kerry talked endlessly about his military service - to the point where people would joke, "Hey did you know that John Kerry served in Vietnam?" Nor did Teresa Heinz Kerry the Massachusetts senator's heiress second wife set delegates on fire. By that convention's end, the crowd clearly lacked gusto for their nominee and the campaign ahead.
Last week in St. Paul, the Republican convention dwelled too long on McCain's POW status and, yes, he is a true hero and McCain's wife didn't seem to connect with the delegates. There was less hoopla after McCain's speech than after that of his running mate, Sarah Palin.
Like Kerry, John McCain seemed stuck in the past. He didn't talk about America's future as much as he should have. His campaign team made the convention too personal too much about McCain, too little about his vision on how he would govern.
The best political speeches start at Point A and end up at Point C, D or even E. There is an argument, a purpose, an attempt to persuade.
In his speech, McCain, like too many politicians, served up a jumble of letters, embellished with cutesy sentences that served as shorthand for the larger arguments he failed to articulate:
"All you ever asked of government is to stand on your side, not in your way," for small government.
"We're all G-d's children, and we're all Americans," for the immigration debate.
"We are going to stop sending $700 billion a year to countries that don't like us very much," as a stand-in for a foreign policy discussion.
This does not serve him well. There are voters out there who wonder: If McCain is elected, will his emphasis be on economics or social issues? What are the things he thinks government should do, and what can it not do? What, if anything, does McCain have to offer to Libertarian-leaning Republicans?
McCain has advocated cutting corporate taxes to create jobs. But he doesn't make the case. He uses one statistic that America's business tax rate is the second-highest in the world and leaves it at that.
McCain surrogates frequently dismissed Barack Obama, saying America doesn't need dramatic speeches. Maybe America doesn't need them, but McCain does. He ought to think of the next eight weeks as a first date. It's not enough to throw out a series of pickup lines. You have to throw in a little romance. And you don't spend dinner talking about yourself.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment JWR contributor Debra J. Saunders's column by clicking here.
Debra J. Saunders Archives
© 2008, Creators Syndicate
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Michael Barone
Dave Barry
Tony Blankley
Andy Borowitz
David Broder
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
John Fund
Frank J. Gaffney
Lloyd Garver
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Lewis Grossberger
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Nat Hentoff
David Horowitz
Laura Ingraham
Cheri Jacobus Jeff Jacoby
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ed Koch
Ch. Krauthammer
Michael Ledeen
John Leo
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Dick Morris
Bill O'Reilly
Jim Mullen
Clarence Page
Kathleen Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Jonathan Rauch
Celia Rivenbark
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Pat Sajak
Debra J. Saunders
Culture Shlock
Roger Simon
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Bob Tyrrell
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
Lisa Benson
John Branch
Gary Brookins
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holber
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Chan Lowe
Ranan R. Lurie
Jimmy Margulies
Rick McKee
Michael Ramirez
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Ed Stein
Danna Summers
John Trever
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters

How 2
Lori Borgman
The Savvy Consumer
Elder matters
Fixit
Dr. Peter Gott
GET A JOB! by Marty Nemko
Richard Lederer
Tech Maven
Every Monday Matters
Nutrition Myths
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
How Stuff Works
|