Obama Should Treat Palin Like a Four Letter Word

I just finished watching an Obama speech in New Mexico and noticed something very interesting.  He did not make any mention of Sarah Palin.  He did not use her name or even refer to her as the governor of Alaska.  Instead, he just focused on McCain and his own message.  I am not sure if he decided to do this on purpose or if someone in his campaign has finally grew a brain.  Regardless, if he continues this strategy, I would bet money that he will end up in the White House.

Now wait a minute, a presidential candidate should be allowed (and expected) to talk about members of the opposing ticket, right?  Yes, Obama has every right to discuss why he disagrees with McCain and Palin.  Furthermore, he is 100% justified in pointing out what he perceives are the shortcomings of both candidates on the Republican ticket.  However, I feel that Obama is MUCH better off treating “Palin”  like a four letter word for the remainder of his campaign and should limit his use of the word as much as possible.

Why should the Obama campaign take this approach?  To begin with, he is not running against Palin, he is running against McCain.  Before the current election, the vice-presidential candidates had never received one-tenth the amount of press that they are receiving during this one–even when Dan Quayle wrongly corrected a student concerning the spelling of potato.  In addition, by not wasting time on Palin,  Obama will have more time to focus on his message, which I feel will ultimately benefit him.

However, there is a more important reason for Obama to effectively ignore Palin.  Quite simply, the attacks on her (even if they are based on facts) are not working.  Palin has proven that she is covered with teflon when it comes to diverting criticism.  Let’s face it, if you are into politics like I am and monitor it daily, you enjoy watching each side battle over each issue.  I find it entertaining to see how each campaign is able to respond to each others claims and how they are in a 24/7 spin mode.  However, I think that many Americans could not care less about the Bridge to Nowhere and similar issues and are probably sick of hearing about them.  This group of people is not made up of die hard Republicans nor Democrats and might be undecided how they will cast their vote.  It is my opinion that this important group (those who don’t really enjoy politics) is more likely to view all the press attention/scrutiny directed toward Palin as an unfair “witch hunt” and be strongly turned off by it.  As a result, when  Obama directly criticizes her, he risks being lumped in with a perceived unfair press.

It is not enough for Obama to stop constantly mentioning Palin.  His supporters need to follow suit.  Everytime I turn on a political talk show and have to listen to the exact same talking points against Palin, I gaurentee that Obama has just lost 100 votes.  So listen up Obama supporters and Mr. and Mrs. Liberal Media.  If you want to see Obama in the White House, you will have to stop spending more time covering Wasilia’s Main Street than Wall Street, stop the redicioulous debate over the difference of putting a plane on ebay vs. actually selling it on ebay, and stop debating the timetable of when Palin decided to be against the Bridge to Nowhere.  And if your name is Lindsay Lohan, just keep quiet about your political opinions until after the election