McCain's Mistake

It's pretty clear from reading this blog (both of you who do, I thank you) that I am supporting John McCain in the upcoming election. Well, actually that's not accurate. I'm not supporting Barack Obama, and I don't want to throw my vote in the garbage can. So, I'm stuck with McCain. However, John McCain looks a little foolish right now. He's suspending his campaign because of the nationwide financial crisis. He's trying to call off Friday's debate. Both of these are bad...really bad...moves. First, although the financial crisis is a big deal, it's not something that should stop a campaign. Candidates have campaigned during far worse. Second, calling off the debate (or trying to) makes McCain look unprepared. I get what he's trying to do. But it still makes him look silly.

I don't think McCain is in any way afraid to debate Obama. In fact, McCain is the one who asked Obama to do a series of ten town hall meetings where they both talked about their positions on the issues. Obama refused. I think McCain is trying to win people over by saying that "we shouldn't be going about business as usual during a time like this." This is simply wrong. That's exactly what a president needs to and must do. When we're at war, the president still has to take care of domestic business. When there's a domestic crisis, the president still needs to be aware of what's going abroad. When there's a hurricane in the Gulf, the president still needs to be aware of a potential terror threat in D.C. That's what presidents do. They multi-task. And I, for one, am disappointed that McCain appears unwilling to do that.

Does this mean I think McCain would be a bad president? No. I just think, this week, that Obama looks more prepared. That's the first time I've said that, and I hope I don't have to say it again.