Who Should Be the Focus in Denver?

The most immediate polling following the selection of Senator Joe Biden as Obama’s running mate showed no bump for the new ticket, but that should not be a surprise.

Right now, this election is all about one man: Barack Obama.

And for the Obama campaign to leave Denver on a wave and win in November, this election must be about another man: President George W Bush.

In 2004, then Democratic nominee, Senator John Kerry and his team decided to have a positive convention, with no attacks on President Bush.

The Obama campaign should not make that same mistake.

Following the positive Kerry Convention, the Republicans spent their four nights pounding John Kerry,

McCain plans to do the same.  Obama must beat him to the punch.

And for this convention, that means putting the spotlight on President Bush and putting John McCain in that spotlight with him.

Certainly, this convention is an opportunity for the American voters to learn more about Barack Obama – to better understand who he is, what he values and more specifics about what he wants to do.

But more important than that, the Democratic convention must spend as much time defining John McCain as it does Barack Obama.  And by the end of Thursday night, when Obama gives his acceptance speech on the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I have a Dream” speech, American voters must be both more comfortable with Barack Obama and more uncomfortable with John McCain.

And that discomfort must come from joining Bush and McCain at the hip.

With all eyes on Denver, this is too significant an opportunity for the Obama team to mistakenly walk the Kerry convention path,

This convention cannot be just about Barack Obama.  It must be the introduction of a two-headed Republican – McCain/Bush.

Posted by Bernie Campbell on Monday, August 25, 2008
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