Back in 2000, when the Bush campaign spread rumors about John McCain fathering an illegitimate "black baby," I actually was appalled and felt bad for him. Bush did not hesitate to use the race card in a southern state and I thought it was despicable.
However, the days of feeling bad for John McCain are over. I have no more sympathy or compassion for John McCain, and even less respect. His POW card has been played one too many times, and his determined effort to smear Barack Obama now that he has no real issues to run on, is reprehensible. As for his republican base, they are among the most vile of human beings, spreading email rumor after email rumor about a decent young candidate who dared to be ahead in the polls, dared to challenge them, dared to be more popular than they are.
Since the beginning of this race we have seen:
emails insisting Obama was Muslim
emails insisting Obama was the anti-Christ
emails insiting Obama was a terrorist sympathizer
emails insisting Obama was a baby killer
ads tying Obama to a 1960s radical
ads tarnishing Obama's former church and pastor to make Obama look like a black radical
ads dishonestly saying Obama wanted to teach "comprehensive" sex education to kindergartners
Now we hear Sarah Palin insisting Obama "pals around with terrorists" and saying he is unfit to be commander in chief because he noted that we had bombed civilians in Afghanistan (for which the military has now apologized) and for wanting to conduct diplomacy with Iran (which five former secretaries of state have called for). Palin setting herself up to judge Obama's credentials, when her foreign policy credentials consist of viewing Russia from Alaska, is of course ludicrous.
Of course, none of these assertions about Obama is true, and both Palin and McCain know it. But when you are a dishonorable and dishonest person, what do you care? Ever since Richard Nixon and then Lee Atwater, the Republicans have been the masters of smear, sleaze and dirty tricks.
Republicans Sarah Palin and John McCain fit right in; they are the most despicable of human beings, and they have dishonored themselves forever.
When they lose this election, McCain's political career will be over, but Palin - now that she's had a taste of the limelight and fired up her Joe six pack followers - will likely want to run again. Once Obama is elected, and even before if possible, it is important for the Democratic Party to destroy her political career. She is a dangerous vacuous woman, without a conscience, and she could do terrible damage to this country.
