John McCain's handlers must have had the self-proclaimed maverick on valium for first Fight-Night, aka the Presidential Debate, which the Arizona senator had clearly wanted to phone in, at least up until early Friday afternoon, when the curtain mentally obfuscating the senator's thinking lifted, making it clear that failure to appear would appear not Commander-in-Chief-like, but coward-like, as in a fighter's refusal to - well, come out- fighting.
During the 90-minute mostly tepid round between Senators O'Bama and McCain, the war-hero wore his indefatigable "Father Knows Best" mask, as he bore on, rhetorically and literally. Senator O'Bama missed several opportunities to pound and hold his opponent against the ropes over the fact that most American lives are worse off after 8 years of Republican Machiavellia.
You have to admire McCain, though: he has an uncanny ability to claim victory in the face of defeat. Listening to him, one would think all his Administration's decisions wafted attar of roses. Monday-morning quarterbacking is always a useful too, but revisionist history-
telling is even more powerful, and McCain is a master of both.
The reputation of McCain's temper being well-reported, one has to pity the poor staffer whose lot it was to inform him that, regarding Henry Kissinger's remarks about Iran, yesteryear's statesman did indeed go on record (ABC News, 9-15-08) as advocating meeting with Iran without preconditions, and also, at - ahem- a high, if not presidential level.
While McCain charged O'Bama with not attending a single meeting of his supposed subcommittee, it turns out the committee was actually that of Senator Joe Biden's, O'Bama's running-mate, and O'Bama attended 1 of the 3 actually held. McCain, au contraire, chairs the US Armed Forces Committee, and failed to attend even 1 of 7 meetings held. In the final analysis, the American people don't care about posturing, but in results. And this is where the Republicans excel - taking a minor issue, muddying the facts, making a mountain out-of a mole-hill, then claiming the high ground.
McCain also misspoke on the matter of his voting record, claiming he had voted against the deployment of US Marines in Lebanon. Here he gets partial credit: McCain was not yet a senator when the vote was taken in 1982. In 1983, he did vote against the resolution to extend the troops stay in Lebanon for 18 months, during which time the horrific terrorist attack against the Marine barracks took place.
But to give the devil his due, McCain came to the Lehrer Round loaded for bear. His composure, his overt and subliminal messages -skewed as the facts may be - and his relish in going for O'Bama's jugular, harping on O'Bama's judgment/experience (or ostensible lack thereof) undoubtedly found a home in the hearts and minds of those already on-board with the Republican dream, albeit one that is increasingly a nightmare.
Contender O'Bama acquitted himself admirably, despite being surprisingly slow to come out swinging in the early rounds. Once in the ring, however, the Illinois senator displayed some artful footwork, with command of actual facts. McCain, on the other hand, reached into some deep well of "stories-too good-to-be-true, so I'll wish them into folklore" status, even attributing General Dwight Eisenhower (Ike) with having written a compelling letter of resignation on the eve of the D-Day assault on Normandy, a letter that was never really penned.
The subtext of this anecdote being that, just as Ike would have stepped down, had the Normandy mission failed, he, John McCain, should he fail at an equally great task
as Commander-in-Chief, would Resign As President.
And there, left on the University of Mississippi's stage, was the undelivered KO on the canvas, the unspoken consequence of such altruistic patriotism: A Sarah Palin Presidency.
Now, there's a sucker-punch to take your breath away.
