And the winner of the Democratic Presidential Primary…John McCain

Perhaps it was inevitable.

Campaigns that focused on the issues, that discussed policy, were bound to disintegrate into personal, negative attacks once the stakes were raised.

But remember how energizing it was for Democrats in January?   Turnout numbers in Iowa and New Hampshire were shattering records. Activists were enthused by the entire field of candidates, boasting that any of the top tier would provide contrast to the failed Bush years and would win in November.

Now, we’re down to two and the hopes of moving forward unified have been shattered.  There’s no more talk of “whoever becomes the nominee is fine, we’ll come together in November.”  Now, there are legitimate concerns whether the recent tone and tenor of these campaigns are solidifying their supporters at the expense of future party unity.

As we saw in Pennsylvania, Republican nominee John McCain has been the winner in the recent Democratic primaries – and that might be the case in Indiana and North Carolina as well.

McCain has been able to take his road show to areas where his support his weak, staying above and outside the Democratic fray and simply reaping the benefits.  Meanwhile, Clinton and Obama drive up each other’s negatives, weaken each other within the party base, and soften their support among independents.

And McCain sits on the sideline watching Christmas come early.

It is time for Democrats to start focusing on the general election, a general election that seemed much more like a sure thing five months ago than it seems now.  A general election that will seem even less of a sure thing if this nomination fight continues into June.

This started off being the year of change.

Somewhere along the way, change got lost. 

Both the Clinton and Obama campaigns now seem like every other campaign we’ve ever seen.

And all the while, the winner of each Democratic Primary continues to be John McCain.

Posted by Bernie Campbell on Monday, May 5, 2008
Permalink: And the winner of the Democratic Presidential Primary…John McCain