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Obama, McCain Bookend the Boomer Age

In 1988, the Republicans seeking the presidential nomination wrestled to portray themselves as the true heir to Ronald Reagan. It is telling that none of the Republicans seeking the nomination today claim to be the heir to George W. Bush.

This year's Republican candidates do not want to be associated with the deficit spending and pork-filled budgets of the Bush administration nor its four years of recklessness and incompetence in Iraq. Given all their rhetorical attacks against Washington, one would think the GOP contenders were running against a sitting Democrat, rather than campaigning to succeed a two-term Republican president.

Much has been written about the Republicans' "Reagan nostalgia" and how, while each of the major GOP candidates might appeal to one component of the old Reagan coalition--social, economic, and defense conservatives--none can replicate Reagan's unifying appeal.

But Reagan didn't win by just unifying the GOP. He needed independents and even Democrats to win in both 1980 and 1984. Granted, part of his electoral success was due to the weak candidates on the other side, but Reagan--who was a lot more pragmatic than the current nostalgia suggests--genuinely appealed to many Democrats in a way that GOP candidates before or since could not.

Republicans seeking a candidate who embodies Reaganesque characteristics might want to keep in mind one of Reagan's strongest qualities: his electability at the national level. There is currently only one candidate who is attractive to independents and Democrats as well as Republicans the way Reagan was, and that is John McCain.

McCain has a strong and consistent conservative voting record on abortion and guns, has always been one of the smarter hawks on Iraq, and has a long record of voting for fiscal responsibility. While his "maverick" stances on torture, immigration, and campaign finance reform have earned the ire of some in the GOP base, they signal an independence of thought and policy that appeal to voters outside the party. And no other candidate can match McCain's record of personal courage, honor, and integrity. With a solid choice for VP that would allay concerns over his age, McCain could be the most formidable GOP candidate in November.

If the Republicans are moving into 2008 haunted by--and trying to forget--the Bush-Cheney legacy, the Democrats are being increasingly stung by their own previous White House incumbent. Bill Clinton's recent finger-wagging tirades are unbecoming of a former president, and he is proving to be an embarrassment rather than an asset to the Hillary Clinton campaign.

Bill Clinton is in a tough position. As one of history's most skilled and effective politicians, it is understandable that he would campaign hard for his wife. But as a former president, it is also expected that he act with a certain level of decorum during his party's primaries. His red-faced attacks on Obama and the press are undermining his standing within his party and perhaps especially with African-Americans, who truly revered him.

Hillary Clinton already comes to the table with high negatives in the national polls. Her husband's actions may further diminish her electability in November by reminding voters that America was as polarized under Clinton as it is under Bush today.

Unlike Reagan, Bill Clinton never won the majority of the popular vote: In 1992, he received only 43% of the vote, and in 1996, he won just over 49%. By contrast, Regan won 50.7% for his first term, and a whopping 58.7% of the popular vote for his second term. If the Democrats want to win back the White House in 2008, they will need the votes of independents and even some Republicans. It is as yet unclear how Bill and Hillary expect to do this if she is the nominee.

On the other hand, what has been so enticing about Barack Obama--and so terrifying to the Clinton camp--is the Illinois senator's potential to appeal beyond the traditional Democratic base.

Obama represents a new generation in American politics, and that's part of what makes him so attractive. He can sit back and speak positively of Ronald Reagan--and in the process drive some Democrats apoplectic--because his worldview is not constricted by the prism of partisanship that grew out of the culture wars. He is not tarnished by Vietnam or the other intense fights of the 1960s--fights that were rehashed ad nauseam in 2000 and 2004. He did not come of age during the civil rights era, but after it. Unlike Jesse Jackson, his approach to race is not shaped by the scars of Selma and Memphis, and unlike Bill and Hillary, his approach to party politics is not shaped by the battles of 1968 or 1972--or even 1998.

Ironically, McCain--the oldest candidate and the sole Vietnam vet in the race--does not seem to be handicapped by the past, either. Unlike Bush or Kerry, Giuliani, Romney or the Clintons, McCain, who was imprisoned in the Hanoi Hilton, missed the culture clashes of the '60s. Perhaps his horrific experiences as a POW gave him a perspective on life that enables him to transcend the pettiness of partisan, ideological politics.

Obama, with his youth and freshness, and McCain, with his age and wisdom, bookend the '60s generation that has brought so much turmoil and angst to American politics of late. Not surprisingly, they are also quite possibly the most electable candidates of their respective parties.

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Related Topics: election 2008 | mccain | obama |

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