Soccer Dad

How negative?

There's a new National Journal bloggers' poll out about how negative the Republican national convention would be. I was intrigued by the title Right, Left Disagree On Ripping Obama. I figured, gee I must be in the minority of the roc bloggers as I didn't think the convention should be that negative. Boy was I wrong. It's the loc bloggers who argued that the GOP should be more negative, albeit for reasons I disagree with like "That's the only the thing the GOP has is fear and smear."

Anyway here was my take (I figured that the convention should be no more than 25% negative.)

I really think that McCain needs to limit the negativity. Last night McCain offered Obama a gracious congratulations. In response Obama's campaign manager David Ploufe answered with a petulant complaint that McCain ought to be that gracious all the time. That was followed this morning with the graceless "mayor of 9000" comment. If this continues and the Obama campaign maintains its petty nastiness, it will continue to erode the candidate's aura of being an avatar of a new kind of politics.

Anyway since the poll came out, Gustav has changed the focus of the convention, so it won't be a traditional convention. And I'd also point out that Sen. Obama has since criticized whoever issued that "mayor of 9000" remark restoring some class to his campaign. I have to give Sen. Obama credit for another classy move here.

I had planned to link to this about a different question and may still revisit it later. Noemie Emery had a list of reasons why she figures that the rejiggered Republican convention will help McCain. Here's #7:

Takes McCain from a setting in which he's uncomfortable (partisan leader of a partisan army) to one--national leader rallying a country in crisis--which suits him much better.