Texas and Ohio and the California Shore

The title of the post is a line from an old Phil Ochs song called "Power and Glory" and I can't help having it run through my head as Hillary and Obama prepare for what may be the final showdown in Texas and Ohio.

If Clinton doesn't figure out a way to stop, in those two states, what appears to be developing into an Obama juggernaut over the last ten contests, I think she's toast. I find it hard to believe that the so-called Super Delegates are going to go counter to the apparent will of the Democrat rank and file and give her the nomination. I think that would be the kiss of death against McCain.

So then what? Obama vs McCain, youth and charisma vs age and experience? What's the old saying? Oh yeah, "Age and deviousness will overcome youth and talent every time."

While I don't necessarily hold to that in general, the Republican and Conservative strategists have demonstrated over and over again a talent for manufacturing phoney issues and selling those issues to enough of the American people to tilt national elections. I don't blame the strategists for doing this as much as I blame that segment of the American people who are dumb enough to repeatedly buy this. I guess Lincoln was right when he said that you can fool some of the people all of the time.

Would you like me to take a guess at the manufactured phoney issue this time around? Obama has said that he would, with no preconditions, enter into talks with nations with which the U.S. has been traditionally at odds including Syria, Iran and, just recently, Cuba. Even Hillary Clinton balked at this and criticized Obama for being naive.

I can hear the right wing demogogues already parlaying this into a "placing America at risk" theme as if somehow talking was the same thing as painting a big target on your chest.

The best thing that could happen for the prestige of this country is the election of Barack Obama. I think almost overnight this would repair some of the damage of the Bush years. Repairing the rest of the damage could take decades assuming it can ever be repaired.

Electing a Republican that continues the Bush policies, especially with respect to Iraq, will be an unmitigated foreign policy disaster and, if such an electee pushes forward on things like constitutional amendments banning abortion and gay marriage, the result could well be a domestic disaster as well. I'm not at all certain that this country can survive another Conservative Republican Administration.