Obama: Change focus immediately, or lose

Two weeks ago, I spoke incredulously of John McCain's surprise choice for his running mate, wondering out loud what he had been smoking that prompted such a move. Then I looked back at what I had written about on this blog in the 14 days since, and the answer was as obvious as the Alaska midnight sun: Three of my four past posts have been about Sarah Palin (four of five, if I count this one).

It doesn't matter what issues concerning Palin those posts discussed; the fact is, they were about her. The same is true in the mainstream media. I visited CNN's Political Ticker blog on Sunday morning and saw that five posts in a row were fully focused on Palin (many more if I counted the ones in which she was mentioned at length). This, my friends, is precisely what the disgrace from Arizona was betting on and hopeful for when he chose the no-name governor of Alaska: someone who would take the focus off of his corpse-like presence and his offerings (or, more accurately, lack thereof) as a candidate for the highest political office in the world.

McSame — pardon me, McCain — knows that he is not an attractive choice for the presidency, particularly this year. He knows he cannot win based on his policy proposals, which mimic those of the incumbent. He knows he will not win if Obama successfully (and rightfully) ties him to the disastrous tenure of George W. Bush. He knows that, standing on a stage beside the young, trim senator from Illinois, he'll appear as though he just crawled out of a coffin. So, in retrospect, his veep choice may have been the smartest move McCain has made in this campaign: Pick a woman (in an effort to fire up Hillary Clinton supporters and feminists) who panders to the GOP base and carries just enough baggage in her political career and family life to ignite distracting hostile debate and criticism that can be turned around and used to play the even more distracting "victim-of-sexism" card (even though most of the scrutiny placed on Palin has nothing to do with her gender).

The resulting dubious benefit for McCain: People aren't paying attention to him and his pathetic platform. The resulting dismal consequence for America: an ongoing irrelevant discussion about anything other than the critical issues facing our nation in this critical election year.

To be blunt, Obama's campaign has responded foolishly to this phenomenon. They've waged continuous attacks against Palin — not McCain — which is like pouring gasoline on an inferno. Most recently, they've accused her of lying about her involvement in "the bridge to nowhere" and her trip to Iraq. Yes, Palin no doubt has lied — but again, this doesn't matter. What matters is that the spotlight is staying on the 44-year-old hockey mom from Alaska, which is precisely what McCain wants. Obama can win if he shifts the focus away from Palin (who offers nothing as a veep candidate but makes an excellent political ploy for Republicans) and back to the real issues and his opponent's record. But if he does not do this right now, he will lose in November. Please mark my words on this.