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GOP Glee Over Obama Problems
by The Associated Press
Posted: May 5, 2008 - 10:30 am ET
(Washington) Republicans can hardly contain their
glee as they watch Barack Obama battle through a rocky period. And why should
they?
Nothing else is breaking the GOP's way this year.
But, at least now, the Democrats' political phenom is tarnished, and, if he
defeats Hillary Rodham Clinton for the Democratic nomination, he will enter the
general election campaign not only bruised and battered - but also carrying
baggage as he faces Republican John McCain.
"We've had a rough couple of weeks. I won't
deny that," Obama said Friday.
The Illinois senator has repeatedly had to
address - and repudiate - the ranting of his bombastic former pastor, the Rev.
Jeremiah Wright. Obama has continued facing questions about his relationship
with indicted Chicago businessman Antoin "Tony" Rezko. The candidate's
patriotism has been questioned. So has his readiness.
On the eve of a critical Pennsylvania primary,
Obama caught flak for claiming that small-town folks are bitter and thus cling
to guns and religion. Then he turned in a lackluster debate performance. He
ended up losing that primary to Clinton in part because he didn't attract enough
white, working-class voters.
Now he finds himself in the midst of competitive
contests in two more states. Losses Tuesday in Indiana and North Carolina would
further weaken him. Even if he manages to hold off Clinton in those and the
final primary contests, Obama would essentially limp to the nomination.
"The bark is stripped off him a little
bit," said Reed Galen, a Republican who worked on President Bush's
campaigns. "Are the folks on the Republican side of the aisle happy to let
Hillary do that? Absolutely."
Among Republicans and Democrats alike, Obama's
turbulent time is raising questions about why he can't seem to put away Clinton
after a 16-month primary fight and whether Obama - in his first hard-fought race
- is prepared not only to go up against McCain this fall but also to withstand
the rigors of the White House.
Republicans hope Obama will be damaged goods come
the general election and McCain will have a stronger shot at hanging onto the
White House in an extraordinarily difficult political environment. Most
Americans disapprove of Bush's job performance and think the country is on the
wrong track, while the Iraq war continues and the economy bears down on - if
it's not already in - a recession.
The GOP now sees a glimmer of light - a variety
of Obama vulnerabilities they can try to exploit if he is the nominee.
One prominent Democrat who backs Clinton
recognized as much.
Last week, Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh raised the
possibility that the GOP will use Obama's association with Wright to try to
destroy his character in a general election as the pro-Republican group Swift
Boat Veterans for Truth did to Democrat John Kerry in 2004. Said Bayh: "I'm
sure the far right will be out there trying to do the whole `Swift Boat'
thing."
Already, Republicans are testing a theory that
Obama could be a liability for Democrats down-ballot, running ads in special
congressional races that linked the Democratic candidate to Obama in hopes of
helping the Republican candidate. It didn't work in Louisiana. The Democrat won
Saturday.
Phil Musser, a Republican strategist who backed
former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's GOP presidential bid, said of Obama's
woes: "These are very damaging self-inflicted wounds and may heal over with
a lot of happy talk at the Democratic convention, but may be re-exposed in the
fall campaign."
Indeed, GOP operatives are intently watching the
Democratic primary fight to see how to push Obama's buttons. They also hope
Obama's missteps and losses have alienated key general election constituencies -
or at least planted negative impressions with them that will last into the fall.
"Each time that Clinton racks up a victory
in these blue-collar-type states, it shows that Obama's really losing the Reagan
Democrats, which gives Republicans great comfort and a great strategy - go after
those Reagan Democrats," said John Feehery, a Republican who formerly
worked for then-House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.
Democrats dismiss any notion that the damage will
be lasting. They counter that six months is plenty of time for Obama to bounce
back, and they argue it is unrealistic to imagine Obama would have gotten
through his first ever rough-and-tumble campaign unscathed.
"It hasn't been a great couple weeks, but
some of these problems were going to emerge anyway, and it's better that it
happened now than in the fall," said Mark Mellman, a Democratic pollster
who worked for Kerry's campaign and is unaligned in the primary. He said Obama
has gone through a "learning period" and that will benefit him in fall
if he is the nominee.
Added Erik Smith, a Democrat and former aide to
Dick Gephardt: "There's something to be said for getting this stuff behind
him, and not having any October surprises."
©365Gay.com 2008
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