Old politics

Will the Democratic race--now essentially a two-person affair--turn into an old-fashioned slug-fest, in which the candidates focus more on each other than on the issues? I hope not, for several reasons. For one thing, such a development would diminish the level of debate about the nation's problems and its future, and that is vitally important.

Then, too, such a trend would favor the Clinton campaign, not least by inducing Barack Obama to get off of his platform of focusing on the shape of our national debate and down into the muck. That would diminish him and his appeal. It's hard to stand above the fray when your opponents are getting down and dirty, but it's probably the only way for him to win. And it can work; Obama's friend and supporter, Gov. Deval Patrick, refused to go negative when the Republicans tried to savage him in 2006, and he won going away. Granted, he had a weak opponent, but his huge margin showed that voters appreciated the way he had kept the campaign focused on his goals.

Already there's a building controversy over whether the Clinton camp is engaging in subtle appeals based on race; you may recall that Hillary made reference to the efforts of Martin Luther King, but finished by saying that "it took a president," to get the civil rights laws of the '60's enacted. A Clinton supporter said that Obama could not "shuck and jive" his way to the presidency. And Bill Clinton got flak for saying that Obama's account of his opposition to the Vietnam war was "a fairy tale," a remark that was interpreted by some as a reference to the Illinois senator's effort to become President.

It is more than passing strange that the Clinton camp should be accused of racial insensitivity--Bill Clinton was often referred to as the first black president--but these kinds of things happen in campaigns. It's one reason why campaigns are a kind of war game for the presidency--a test to see which of the candidates is up for the job.

The worst thing for Obama would be to get involved in this kind of stuff. If the Clinton camp gets itself embroiled in questions, let it take the heat from black voters. Obama needs to keep to his agenda, not get dragged into petty squabbles.

(Disclaimer: nothing in this post, or any other post on this blog, represents inside information from any campaign; TONE doesn't have any of that. Nor does TONE speak for any campaign; the opinions expressed here are solely those of the editor, and all comment and criticism should be directed to and at him.)