Carpe Datum

The Victim Card

It took me a couple of days, but now I finally remember why the Wesley Clark comments about McCain are such a big deal. He was on a Sunday show, and the moderator was asking him about Obama's lack of experience vs McCain's, etc. The transcript of the exchange is here:

SCHIEFFER: Well, you -- you went so far as to say that you thought John McCain was, quote -- and these are your words -- "untested and untried." And I must say, I had to read that twice, because you're talking about somebody who was a prisoner of war. He was a squadron commander of the largest squadron in the Navy. He's been on the Senate Armed Services Committee for lo these many years -- how can you say that John McCain is untested and untried, General?

CLARK: Because in the matters of national security policy-making, it's a matter of understanding risk. It's a matter of gauging your opponents, and it's a matter of being held accountable. John McCain's never done any of that in his official positions. I certainly honor his service as a prisoner of war. He was a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands of millions of others in the Armed Forces as a prisoner of war. He has been a voice on the Senate Armed Services Committee, and he has traveled all over the world. But he hasn't held executive responsibility. That large squadron in the Air -- in the Navy that he commanded, it wasn't a wartime squadron. He hasn't been there and ordered the bombs to fall. He hasn't seen what it's like when diplomats come in and say, "I don't know whether we're going to be able to get this point through or not. Do you want to take the risk? What about your reputation? How do we handle it" --

SCHIEFFER: Well --

CLARK: -- "publicly?" He hasn't made those calls, Bob.

SCHIEFFER: Well -- well, General, maybe he --

CLARK: So --

SCHIEFFER: Could I just interrupt you? If --

CLARK: Sure.

SCHIEFFER: I have to say, Barack Obama has not had any of those experiences either, nor has he ridden in a fighter plane and gotten shot down. I mean --

CLARK: Well, I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president.

SCHIEFFER: Really?

That last comment by Clark is apparently a really big deal, and I understand why now: it has been a long time since the wingnut crowd has had a chance to play the victim card. It's hard to do when your candidate is trying to sell himself as being a tough, strong war hero who scares the terrorists. I mean, to whine about someone else criticizing you comes off as weak, so it's a fine line.

Fortunately for McCain, the traditional media is giving lots of opportunities for wingnuts to cry about how awful and mean those nasty Democrats are. It's really pathetic. I mean, what Clark said is fundamentally right. It isn't an insult. It's just a simple fact.

And after some of the things Republicans have said about Democratic war heroes, like John Kerry, it boggles the mind that they would be genuinely offended. I mean, seriously, this is the party of the purple heart band-aid at the 2004 convention, the Swift-Boat party, and now criticism of someone's war record is verboten? What a sad joke.

Even worse, the joke is on America if it works.

Posted by Observer at July 1, 2008 11:41 PM