McCain's lost battle
- 5 Nov 08, 05:51 AM GMT
John McCain - the veteran war hero - finally gave up the fight on an Arizonan lawn, under a cloudless night sky, by gently swaying palm trees. In front of him of a crowd of several thousand party supporters applauded.
After weeks of sometimes stilted speeches, John McCain spoke well, with a tired, slightly croaking voice. There were several boos from the crowd when he mentioned Barack Obama's name. He silenced them with a quiet "please".
"This is an historical election and I recognise the specific significance it has for African-Americans."
"Although we have come a long way from the old injustices that once stained our reputation (as a country) the memory of them still had the power to wound."
"America today is a world away from the cruel and prideful bigotry of that time. There is no better evidence of this than the election of an African-American to the presidency of the United States."
Some in the crowd cried as the truth set in, that their man had lost. They told me they wished Barack Obama well, but they said the better man had lost. Some expressed a concern for the direction in which they now believe their country will be taken. They don't believe Barack Obama is strong enough for this job. They don't see any evidence that he has ever been tested.
Then they began to file away, into the night. Some to drink at the gatherings they had hoped would be celebrations. Some simply headed home. The party is a thousand and more miles to the north, in Chicago, under another clear sky. There, people will wake up to a brave and fresh new world full of possibilities. Here, when the sun rises over Arizona, many will shake their heads, and fear for the future.
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I’m Matthew Price, following John McCain’s presidential campaign. My colleague, Gavin Hewitt, is doing the same for Barack Obama.
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Comments
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McCain's campaign will be remembered for this graceful and heroic concession. I wish him well for his continued Senate leadership.
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A truly magnificent speech, even better than Obama's acceptance speech. This was the real McCain. Many, many of us are wondering: where was this McCain during the election? This is a guy we could have voted for. More gracious in defeat than most people could be in victory, focused on service, and aware that there is one and only one America, and we are all in it together.
This is what the Real America is all about. Are you paying attention, Gov. Palin?
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Certainly gracious and heartfelt but nowhere near Obama's for me. Obama's will go down in history as one of the great speeches - visionary and inspiring.
Here in Amman, the sun seems to be shining more brightly this morning. I teach in Queen Rania's school and the children are walking around wishing each other a 'Happy Obama Day'. Says it all really.
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A fantastic speach from McCain,truely heartfelt and sincere, I wish him all the best of luck in the senate and hopefully we shall see him in an active role within the new administration.
A great, heroic American
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Thank you, John McCain, it graces him to be magnanamous in defeat like this.
It is good that Obama is to be the next president, and also good that McCain is indicating his recognition of the way the world is changing.
All very positive.
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I've just watched John McCain's concession speech on (British) TV - the man was gracious and dignified and should be congratulated on the message he gave out to his supporters and the world at large. Although i felt that Obama was the better candidate (and i'm pleased at his victory) i can't help wondering how much closer the race would have been if John McCain had conducted himself throughout his campaign in the same manner he graciously conceded defeat. I hope he continues in this vein to inspire his fellow american politicians to act in a spirit of mature and constructive co-operation - there must always be hope
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McCain was gracious in defeat and is an inspiration for many. How he conducted himself should be taken as a shining example by leaders everywhere on how to deal with loss and how to be the better person in your worst hour.
Obama should look to McCain and learn from McCain's vast experience in Washinton. Obama would do well to appoint him to a prominent position in his administration - what better way to reach out to 'one United States of America'?
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Why have this pessimistic final sentence and Matthew Price's miserable face on your front page? Lighten up! It isn't Dubya!!
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John McCain. A true American patriot. Poorly supported and badly advised. Shackled to the corpse of the Bush administration and blamed for a recession not of his making.
Under the circumstances was the "other guy": black, white, male or female ever going to lose?
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As a very patriotic black Briton, I have to say, I am so jealous of Americans today. I really don't think that this could happen in the UK, not yet.
The United States just reminded the world of how unique it is. I sincerely hope that the rest of the world looks towards the States, see why it is so different and more successful than the rest of the world, and try to emulate it's successes.
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To a casual observer Obama was always going to be favourite simply because John McCain was George W Bush in disguise - old-school thinking, old-school talking....a man who played on his Vietnam experience and simply always gave the impression of a war-monger to me.
America had already had too many years of cowboy approach - why on earth would they want a President who was simply going to continue the trend of war. His final nail in the coffin for me was the comment that he could see the current conflicts going on for 100 years and he would not give up or bring troops home until Binladen was captured.
Whether you agree with that or not he succeeded in conjouring up an image of George W...and America and the world do not need another section of history dedicated to , pretzel choking, public gaffs and a President who seemed incapable of making decisions for himself.
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This is the real MacCain we see in this concession speech - positive and patriotic. No less inspiring than Obama's victory speech.
It would have been good to have Mac Cain and Obama as running mates - alas this is not possible(?).
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The grace and magnanimity of John McCain's speech was marred by the mean-spirited boos from many of his supporters, when he mentioned Obama. He was clearly hurt by their reaction. He lost, more because of the sour, mendacious, bigotted republicans it was his task to lead than because of any shortcomings of his own.
I am reminded of the t-shirt slogan "Lord Jesus, save me ... ... from your followers".
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Congratulations to Obama. I like what I see of the guy and hope he can deliver.
My feelings on McCain are mainly of frustration. I wish the McCain of 2000 could have been in this election instead of what we got. However I feel the GOP smear tactics that won Bush the nomination then, and encouragement from his campaign team this year led him to believe he had to fight dirty to win. The Muslim/Arab/Not-American/Socialist/Terrorist nonsense was disgraceful, and I do not believe that the real McCain would have put up with that kind of campaign. Indeed there was one moment where after hearing a woman at one of his rallys call Obama an Arab, McCain took the microphone off her, told her to sit down, and then admonished his supporters saying that they had nothing to fear from an Obama presidency. This was the honourable man I believe John McCain to be.
Clearly he was told off by his campaign managers as after that point he was telling everyone that they should be afraid!
I think that one moment was telling, as until his concession speech it was the only real sight of what I think of as the 'real' McCain that we got. I think if he had stuck around he might have done a whole lot better last night.
I hope Obama does offer McCain a position on his staff, as I feel the real McCain has an awful lot to offer.
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McCain should never have stood as a candidate.
He looked uncomfortable with negative campaigning, he was obviously uncomfortable with the opinions of many of his supporters and team, and looked like he hated being anywhere near the very nasty Palin.
His speech at the end was superb. His supporters simply did not deserve him
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bluejay60 wrote:
McCain's campaign will be remembered for this graceful and heroic concession. I wish him well for his continued Senate leadership.
Personally I think it will be remembered for its intense negativity, untruths and gaffes as well as the final nail in the campaign's coffin, the pick of VP.
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As an Englishman looking at the Election results on the Map of America, the divisions look like the Confederate war, Who knows 'The south may rise Again'..
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This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the House Rules.
I am so proud to be an American today! John McCain conceded graciously-more like the John McCain of old. His biggest mistake was Sarah Palin and not realizing that US demographics have changed. I sincerely hope he can get over his anger and help with the work ahead.
Barack Obama ran a well orchestrated campaign and deserves to win. He engaged all types of people, giving us hope and getting us involved in our government again. He is a man of the times. I am proud that I supported him as an independent voter.
He will put together an excellent, bipartisan cabinet and expect us, the citizens, to stay involved. He will encourage people around the world to unite against the threats to humankind. This is the dawning of a new age for our world!
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McCain was indeed incredibly gracious in defeat, and admirable for it. Perhaps a little too gracious? I wouldn't have minded if he expressed a little frustration over the result, and piling the blame on himself I think is unfair.
Sarah Palin proved to be incredibly divisive, and damaged McCain's campaign in the long run.
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I went to bed last night content that even if John McCain came up with the surprise of the century, then the world would be a better place. Today, I thought his speech was really very moving and represented the generous, magnanimous America we have all missed for so long. But the day belongs to Obama, and rightly so. How inspiring to be an American today; never has the term United States of America been more appropriate.
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McCain's speech was moving in a way I never expected. I have renewed respect for the man, though I do still think the best man won.
I think we need to learn from this election over here in the UK. Change is possible... we need to find ways of engaging all of those who have become disillusioned with the government and our political processes. We live in an amazing country with amazing potential. We can and should tap into that. The status quo can change here too.
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Excellent news about Obama!
Americans - you are truly great!!!
Congratulations!
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McCain seems like a decent guy. However, the world will breathe a sigh of relief that he's not POTUS. Not because of him but because of his choice of VP. She is a scary woman and the thought of her acting as POTUS is too frightening for words.
Matt Damon put it perfectly - does she really believe that dinosaurs and humans co-existed 4, 000 years ago? We need to know if she will have the nuclear codes.
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Umm "mancroft" I think it was because of Obama's economic policies of the redistribution of wealth, taxing the wealthier and a drive towards a more leftist, collective approach that got him in. In fact I for one think all the Rupert Murdochs and neo-cons yelling that Obama was a Communist only helped - that website you linked to only made me more excited about Obama's presidency - LONG LIVE MARX.
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To all the men and women who work on the elections polls during the elections of 2008. We were the ones who saw the history of the real United States. We told each other stories of the past and we saw the hope in the eyes of the first time voters and the joy of the old who really understood what the real U.S was all about. My heart kept the word and the word was my joy. There was a real change. God bless each and every one of us because we saw the true meaning of a new beginning and future. To those women and men. We saw the change.
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What a day for the whole world! McCain showed the true spirit of America. He acknowledged his mistakes which deprived him being the victor today. McCain is such a mature President that America never had.
It seems to me from the way McCain accepted defeat that he was teleguided in his speeches during the campaign and never was himself untill after defeat.
McCain rejuvinated passion and love for himself as against the hate and despising remarks "he was asked to use" against Obama.
Palin was another sore spot in McCain's campaign.
I wish Obama all the best.
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From what I heard of his speach it sounds like this was the McCain from before the campaign.
It would have been interesting to have seen what the result would have been if McCain campaigned as himself rather then try to be the candidate the republican party wanted him to be.
On the BBC coverage last night many people said that anyone but McCain and it wouldn't have even been close, yet the McCain of before the election seemed totally different from the McCain of the election.
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What an impressive speech from McCain. I think he would have been an amazing president but I'm delighted Obama and the the Democrats won.
I honestly believe Obama could be the best thing for global politics for years.
How do you recruit Islamic extremists against "Western Devils" who have democratically elected the son of a Muslim?
Similarly I hope this will dispell the myth that you cannot acheive anything if you are born black. A lot of young men now have one less "mind forged manacle" to rail against. A chisel has been taken to that prevasive chip borne on so many shoulders.
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I dont quite get it.
The media highlights Martin Luther King's famous speech in which he said "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character".
So why is almost everyone hailing the election of America's first black President, thereby underlining his colour as an electoral issue?
I hope that Mr Obama has been elected for the "content of his character" and his political programme, not his colour.
Any nation that truly claims to be non-racist should be totally colour blind.
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The key to Obamas future as president is to examine the last twenty months or so and the challenges he has calmly risen to and overcome with dignity and intelligence.
No other election in modern times has captured the imagination of the world quite like this one and the USA can be proud of what it has done this day. A USA that leads by example, with thought and diligence in its actions offers new possibilites for better relationships around the world, Obama is the man do this and the man to give hope to all the citizens of the world.
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McCain did not deserve to have Palin as a running mate. Her nomination was a nasty piece of work by those in the GOP who did not wish him well. Her public personna , appealing to the
least worthy human attributes, made his defeat inevitable.
.
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As I said (or have attempted to say) on Have Your Say, this is a sad day not only for America, but for the whole world.
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For once the americans have managed to convincingly vote in probably the right person.
The differences?
Obama was an inspirational talker - let's hope he is as good at deciding the way forward and then leading the US towards regaining world respect - at the minute there is probably more relief out there than conviction.
His campain strategy and demeanor led people to believe what he said - his problem will be delivery.
McCain seems an honest straight talker but he never convinced on stage and seem quite frail. Far too old to lead a country and utterly flawed in desperately appointing the Alaskan wolf.
He blew it - he deserves a rest and could be a good conscience leveller if he were invited to contribute in some way to the new administration.
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While Obama has received an overwhelming majority in the Electoral College, the popular vote is somewhat closer, something like 52% to 47%, which represents a very good performance by McCain.
Not only this but the US lost a lot of credibilty when Bush was elected the first time with a minority of the popular vote.
Surely it is now time for the USA to change its electoral system. It may have been valid in the 18th century, but is certainly not valid in the 21st, and certainly does not give a correct impression of the election.
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I am concerned that one madman, one gun, one bullet can destroy this one moment of success and bring America to its knees.
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The people of Ameria can now sit back, relax and regret their decision for the next four years.
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McCain's speech last night was truly the "Maverick" John McCain. The man who used to say what was right, even if it wasn't towing the party line.
I hope this is a sign of things to come from him. A return to who he really is: a moderate. I hope he starts to distance himself from "the party of ignorance" that the Republicans have become, with Palin as their new leader. I firmly believe that the Republican leadership sabotaged him from the get go, and that their true intention was to unveil their new "W" [Palin] to the world. Unfortunately for them, nobody's buying what their selling anymore.
Cheers to Obama! Our new leader, our new voice! I really wish I could describe the spirit of jubilation here in the States. It's indescribable and unprecedented.
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I don't think Obama was voted in purely on his race.
Take away all the racial hype and you had a choice between an educated, Havard graduate, lawyer with experience of leading communities and boroughs and a vietnam war vetern with deep psychological scars from years of torture in captivity. It was a good choice for all the change and race and inspirational stuff but the ONLY choice to help America out of its problems - with a complex recession you need an astute, intelligent lawyer - not a soldier.
The irony is I think America ended up voting Obama in because they wanted to make history based on his race and what they've ended up doing is voting in a man with the required ability and intelligence to start sorting out the mess over there.
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It's a shame that McCain didn't win. He came across as someone who would have changed the face of republicanism. A decent man.
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@24
Matt Damon and yourself fail to understand the truth.
You have my sympathy and prayers
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I agree with you moneygran1. This shows that race and skin colour is clearly still an issue, if it is being focused on like this.
Does the colour of his skin really matter?
I've been listening to the radio all morning and repeatedly heard people saying that only white people can say this kind of thing, that white people don't get the racism faced by black people and therefore don't get how momentous this is.
Such a shame that an intelligent, crowd-rousing leader is reduced down to the colour of his skin.
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McCain's speech said everything about the man - gracious, humble and a great servant to his country. He had the GOP nomination in the wrong election - after 8 terrible years of Bush and against a candidate who has filled so many americans with hope. I have no doubt McCain would have been a good president - likings to the Eisenhower presidency I imagine. I do hope Obama gives him a cabinet post - hot sure where though due to their massive foreign policy differences.
However Obama must deliver - he has promised so much and he now has at lest 4 years to show his metal. I am quietly confident but we know what happened with Jimmy Carter so hopes must not be too high - especially with the economy as it is. America and the world must give Obama time to find his feet before laying on the critisms. The media will be a baying wolf waiting to pounce on the first Obama mistake - it shouldn't, and neither should the Republicans. Now is the time for America to show it is ready to lead and behave morally again. The time to start is now - I await in quiet anticipation.
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Obama carefully avoided all of the difficult issues and stuck to the popular mantra of "Change" without trying to define it. He hit the GWB connection hard. Hs team used race to deflect any valid criticism of the few policies he enunciated as "racially motivated comments". He enjoyed virtually a free ride into the White House from the press who fawned over his every word and gesture..
All we can now do is wish him and the USA the best for the next 4 years, the world really needs Uncle Sam to be strong.
Jeremiah Wright's new mantra must be "God Save America"!
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Excellent news. For the first time in almost 50 years, the United States has a president everyone can be proud of. And I'm a US citizen who thinks Reagan was a pretty decent president, but not exactly a man for all people.
Classy exit by McCain, the man America should have elected eight years ago. History will be kind to him.
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This election is a reminder of what makes America truly great. On balance I thought McCain would make a better president, but he was hampered by his choice of Palin and sadly began campaigning negatively, presumably on the advice of some within his party.
However, I wish that in Britain we could have politicians of such stature, one a great orator, the other gracious in defeat. Once more, a remider of what makes America great.
William1957
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McCain's speech was wonderful and captured the very essence of 'Country First'. What a shame to pull out your best speech as you concede.
However going with that slogan, he shot himself in the foot selecting Sarah Palin. Already on a sticky wicket from the present incumbent, he was fighting her as much as Obama by the end.
Taken together, the two closing speeches show America at its best. Congratulations.
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I think the last sentence of your blog must be due to the stress of staying up all night. Why did you say "shake their heads and fear for the future"?, surely Americans (I'm an Arizonian) have been doing that for a long time already. What Obama gives us is at least the chance to think that things could be better!
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As a British observer, and having listened to both Obama's and McCain's speeches, I think the US was lucky to have two such fundamentally decent men to choose between. That Obama was chosen decisively will mean much around the world. All the best to him and to the US for the future.
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Scooblakhan - "How do you recruit Islamic extremists against "Western Devils" who have democratically elected the son of a Muslim?"
According to his remarks during the campaign Obama has never been a Muslim so being the son of a Muslim will mean nothing in that context.
"Similarly I hope this will dispell the myth that you cannot acheive anything if you are born black."
He is 'brown-skin' or 'coloured' but he is not "black", ask any African. He has achieved what he has done through his eloquence and ability to convince people that his intentions are genuine. That should be his support not his skin colour, it is long past time for everyone to stop bringing up that non-issue.
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I'll readily confess, I 'liked' neither candidate during the election, but there was a level of cognitive dissonance between what I was seeing from Mr McCain, who I was thought was a statesman, and not the strange soundbiting creature I was seeing on various news channels. There were flashes of the McCain I seemed to remember. The man who silenced the crowd when Obama was accused of being an 'A-rab', and the man who gave a great speech last night (the impromptu parts being better than the scripted ones) was the McCain I remembered.
Would things have been different if the GOP spinners had had less power and McCain had been allowed to use his undoubted skills? Who can say? I think that McCain, and America would have been better served to have allowed the man to be the man, rather than play to a marketing composite of the 'typical Republican voter'.
To have the hubris to respond to Mr McCain's speech, the failure was not his, but the GOP spin doctors. They spun the plate out of the stadium.
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I'm glad to see the real McCain back. I'm glad that Obama was elected too. Isn't it strange that the Democratic party, which supported slavery, has now become the true heir of the party of Abraham Lincoln, as so much of the Republican party effectively repudiated his heritage.
If, after a much needed holiday, John McCain can now resume his campaign against corruption, graft and pork-barrel politics, he too can play his part in a better future for the US and the world. Hopefully to ensure that "government of the people, for the people, by the people shall not perish from this earth".
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McCain's campaign will be remembered for its incompetence and meanness. But above all it will be remembered for insulting U.S. voters (and the rest of the world) by suggesting that someone as palpably unqualified as Sarah Palin should be within a heartbeat of taking over as leader of the free world. Ask yourself as you admire his admittedly elegant concession speech whether you can remember any other such speech. Politicians are remembered by the decisions they make - ask George Bush.
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I shed a few tears for John McCain after his speech - not because he had lost but because I saw the REAL John McCain gaining back his humanity and dignity after being someone who wasn't him at all - don't forget he said that the fault lies with him and no one else - that takes guts, courage and honour, just like his military career.
I wish him and his family well and I have no doubt that he will do his best in helping President Elect Obama restore America back to health on all fronts because, as they say, he has his work cut out !!
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Reading all the comments - good and not so good for Obama, the truth is we don't know what we are getting. He is a rousing orator, but so was Churchill and Hitler - choose your own route. Time will tell. I wish the guy well, but I can't help thinking that he cannot be a messiah, nobody can. It comes in with cheers and often leaves with tears. To all his supporters, me included, be realistic.
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its been about 130 years since the slave trade was banned in the usa and 40 years since the black people can vote and have the same rights as the white people i think this week was alot for first like the first black f1 champion lewis hamltion and now the first ever black president barrock obama and now its time for change no more rednecks in charge good luck obama and good luck to mccain to what ever he those from now on i thought i would never see a black president in my life time good luck obama and bring change like you said.
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If we had seen this McCain instead of the stilted, political hack pandering to the religious Reich "base", this election might have been different.
Also, nominating Sarah Palin as his VP running mate was one of the greatest political blunders in American history. Rarely have we seen anyone in politics behave in a so determinedly stupid manner.
America IS finally emerging from its long nightmare. The people have realized that what we have been doing is not working and it's time to stop.
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I am very relieved that McCain didn't win. I'll grant that he is a true gentleman, but, in years to come, Obama might just be considered a great man.
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How long do we have to wait before just one person congratulates Obama for winning the 'race' for presidency based on issues rather than 'race'. Why must everyone focus on his becoming the first African-American president. Sure, this is an important milestone, but this is very blinkered.
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Is it my imagination or did McCain - deep down - know that he wasn't the right man for the job this time? There was something oddly unconvincing about his rhetoric in the latter weeks of the campaign that betrayed more than just the knowledge that he was likely to lose. It was almost as if in his heart of hearts he recognised that today America needs someone like Obama and that his time had come.
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I may have little or no respect for Palin, but it seems to me that bringing her on board helped to rouse undecided voters into action, thereby helping to ensure unprecedented public involvement and interest. She had her uses!
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Like many have said McCain did not deserve Palin as a running "mate" (does he actually know her?). The sad thing is that she has probably delayed the appointment of the first female president by decades. This single issue should be investigated to see who in their right mind thought she was a fit and proper person to be potentially run the most powerfull nation on earth.
McCain may not have deserved to have lost but the world is a far safer place today because of his defeat.
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Good speech from McCain. One last word from an old soldier.
It's just a pity he and his team behaved so badly during the rest of their campaign, and made so many mistakes.
But that's exactly why the GOP need to spend a term or two in the political wilderness, so that the foul stench of Bush has time to fade.
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re #50 and several others.
Of course colour/race should not be an issue. But THAT's the issue....despite the legislation, despite everything that has happened before and since the Civil Rights movement over 50 years ago there are still substantial numbers of US who are racist, xenophobic and bigoted. Obama's election shows they are gradually being ground down ( or perhaps just dying away).
We Europeans now need to show the same courage ( eg Italy has just one black MP)
McCain was generous and civilised in defeat: but I guess his politics remain the same.
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"Here, when the sun rises over Arizona, many will shake their heads, and fear for the future."
I also fear for the future. In one TV debate, Barack Obama said that troops would be withdrawn from Iraq from day one of his presidency. That would turn Iraq into another Somalia, and the Somalia of today was created by the previous Democrats regime.
Barack Obama has threatened to bomb Iran, which has had years to prepare for an American attack, and invade Pakisan which has nuclear weapons. Those are dangerous policies which pacifists in the Democrats will surely not support. He wasn't present to vote for the Iraq war, so nobody can really be sure that he wouldn't have voted for it.
If Barack Obama hadn't been elected, the race card would have been used by some to explain his defeat. Those racists today are saying that he is the first black president, not that he is the 44th US president. I don't remember it been in the news in 2000, that George W. Bush was the 43rd white president.
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I think neither candidate seemed to put across their aims and how they would change America. Obama made good inspiring speeches with no real detail. McCain just criticised Obama.
Although obviously in the UK we don't get as much detail on the policies.
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@vanmartin - "As a very patriotic black Briton, I have to say, I am so jealous of Americans today. I really don't think that this could happen in the UK, not yet."
Let us hope that one of the things that this does is show that there is no glass ceiling for an ambitious black person in either country. Make sure you are well educated, work hard and you too can achieve your ambitions.
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I finally agree with the popular saying that only change is constant.I never believe tha Americans wil ever voted any black man into the white house,to me,the white house means the has belong to the white folks.Will Obama meet the expetations of the Americans?Or this is another story of putting a square peg in a round hole.
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In 4 years time the world will look bacvk at this day and will either say 'what a good day for mankind' or 'that is where it started'.
I do not believe McCain or his party wanted to win, had the McCain who made is concession speech been the same man who headed his race for office he would have won easily. No the time was right for a non white or female president and McCain's party knew that.
However on the subject of first black president, is his mother not white (Ann Dunham), therefore is he not as much white as he is black? Or has he chosen to forsake his white heritage to ride the black ticket to the white office?
On the subject of the black ticket. Most non white americans have voted for this guy on the belief he will transform his lives and give them a worlds of milk and honey.
On the other side his white voters have voted for him in the hope that because he is only half white they will get through the next 4 years with some rights, respect and world left in the US.
I wonder which group will turn against him first. The amount of debt he has to deal with and the costs of his promised reforms make less sense then a labour party budget, He will never deliver what he promised, mass riots in the US are about 2 years away.
God help us all.
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He made a better job of concession than campaigning.
Why did they burden him with Palin? That was a terrible decision. Cynical and ill-judged. A desperate attempt to woo female voters straight after the passing over of Hillary as VP nominee.
It was a terrible judgement call by a party which seems unable to move on from a "nasty" view of the world. And Bolton's venomous response to anyone trying to point that out on the BBC items summed it up. That old "spin and patronise" attitude towards the electorate. The electorate were smart enough to see what a nasty, profiteering person she was. I wish to never hear anything more from her on the US' national political stage ever again.
Fnally, I hope Obama does well - he has a lot of expectation placed upon him.
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I think it's sad that people are using a half black man who was raised by a white mother after his father abandoned him, as a way to spread their multicultural motives. I went to a school that had hippie teachers where we played bongos in English lessons instead of anything useful, so that I had adult education to make up for them wasting my time. South Africa was a great country until those types put pressure on to ruin that country by removing the white leaders.
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Historic - not because he is part black. No it is historic because America now has a socilicist, communist as president. Welcome to Europe, America!
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Nothing's to be scared of. All the american have to be accepted the fact that Obama is their president, no matter wether they like it or not. I don't want to see the US dividing into white and black area. I really do hope they can work and live together, dont want to see diversion.
I understand many american don't support or accept Obama as their president, but million and million od people do, even people from other countries want him to be the president.
As I've saying so many time, no matter who is the next president, the global economy won't change anything. It's done and dusted. There's nothing he can do about it.
Get behind Obama, to be honest, I don't support neither McCain or Obama to be the president, but it's reality, we all have to face to truth.
Hopefully there won't be any trouble in the streets and schools across the US, I don't want to see racist attack because Obama is their president.
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I truly hope this is a precedent for the future, perhaps another blighted part of this countries history will be the wrongs done against the indigenous folk, North American Indians. Hopefully the new President in waiting will fully utlise these and other minority peoples talents whilst in office. Not forgetting those on the Republican side who gave messages of support to Mr Obama.
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What is not to understand. Hussein Obama's entire platform is entitlements, give aways. Take from the rich and give to the poor. Abortion, gay marriage. Thought police - civilian military. America will crumble under his heavy hand.
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Did anyone else thing that Mrs McCain was no help to her husband? Their body language throughout the campaign showed a couple completely unable to "connect" with each other - two very independent individuals rather than a couple. It might have been better for her not to have campaigned with him at all.
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epeeist
There's no chance we can see a black PM in the UK. I am sure if there's a black candidate in a large baclk community, he will be elected becasue all the black people will vote for him, there's no way you can change this pattern, this's their pride, they all want to see this happen. In the end, a black or asian PM? No chance, unless there're over 50% of black or asian living in this country. It's just not right.
Look at this, will you accept a white guy to be africian president or a British born Chinese as our PM? By the way, I am Chinese too, but I dont or will never accept a Chinese to be my PM even he/she was born in this country. It's just not right.
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A momentous day indeed. I think McCain was always going to struggle to throw off the Bush legacy, but when he picked Palin as his running mate, he'd pretty much sealed his fate. Having said that he does seem to have been less of an abrasive character in the election that some former US presidential candidates have been.
Obviously America will, in certain areas, be a divided country. I don't know if this could happen, but wouldn't it show a certain unity of purpose if Obama offered a post in his cabinet to McCain?
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The more I learn about Mccain, the more I realize that Mccain is a great American. Obama has won an historic election, but he is a great American yet.
From the onset I supported Obama, but I grew indifferent to his inevitable victory towards the end. I think Mccain throughout the campaign stuck to his free-market values. That became the key. Obama was willing to be the whatever-works president. It seems that at this point people in America feel that they have to move left, become more like a social democracy. Partially, the collapse of the free-market model (recently) may have stimulated this movement towards left. In other words, ideals didn't matter anymore and Obama projected himself to be the perfect man in that sense. My fear is that now the American backlash against republicans might result in a more communitarian, goverment-oriented future. Not necessarily would Obama's seemingly genuine concern for the people translate into other members in the goverment. Corruption can become rife if that happens.
Also, democrats now have the house, senate, and the president. On the other hand, the republican party has turned into a union of neo-cons, which makes it nothing like the historical party who fought for self-reliance and inidividualism. So perhaps something might good actually might come from this and the party has an opportunity to reform itself.
I think the negativity in the Mccain campaign was pretty much exagerrated. His campaign was political, but Hilary's was much more. Mccain could have run a much more negative campaign in order to win but he kept his integrity and character. His final speech sums it up for me, a lot of humility and integrity. These last two words are the same reason why I feel he didn't want to come too bombastic in the debates and suffered as a result.
This is coming from a Muslim American who is convinced that Mccain had no semblance with George Bush. He was a maverick and his tax policies were not an alignment of his policies with Bush's, but a firm belief in freedom of economics.
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My country Zambia held its presidential by-elections on 30th October 2008. In a country of around 12m citizens and 4m eligible voters, only 1.4m voted and it took around 3 days to compile the results and declare the winner. The swearing-in of the new president was done within 2 hrs of the declaration and he has full instruments of power! Naturally, the vanquished are crying foul. What a fallacy our system is when compared to that of the US. Viva Obama
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I am glad McCain lost (or Obama won if you prefer), not because of anything about McCain himself but because the party he represents contains the people who booed when he mentioned Obama. Those were supposed American democrats (small d) and patriots booing the President-elect of their country. McCain should have said a lot more than "Please" to them. He could have explained the consequences and responsibilities of democracy to them or perhaps just pointed out that "the people have spoken".
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Obama's election success is not the first time it has been shown that anyone could be President of the USA. George W. Bush's election in 2000 showed that. Even incompetance was obviously no bar to high office.
***
Obama's true skill - his prime qualification for the job - is the ultimate definition of leadership:
"A true leader is one who inspires others to lead".
Obama is in the tradition of Churchill who said of the British victory in World War 2, comparing his countrymen to a lion, "I was merely called upon to give the roar".
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He is as good a choice as Barack but his choice for VP was what let him down, that is what made a big difference between a close fight and a one sided affair.
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McCain has to be the most decent Republican candidate in decades. A fair man and a good man. But ultimately he was too closely associated with Bush Jnr, whom history will rightly remember as a pariah and a disgrace.
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A gracious and heroic concession by McCain and a rousing, inspiring acceptance speech by Obama. To be honest the world was going to be a better place today whichever man won - not least because Dubbya has finally gone!
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Why pick out the bizarre disparaging line as the heading for your blog? Yes, it may apply to "many" in Arizona and indeed many millions elsewhere will be disappointed, but let's rejoice in the fact that democracy has worked, and hope the nation will support and give its new president time and respect. As many have commented, huge respect is also owed to McCain. The fairest, most honest and dignified US election in my memory (some gross blunders notwithstanding). Let the UNITED States continue to exhibit that dignity in the coming years.
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Why do I keep hearing people call Obama a communist? Jimoyer, why do you say that?
Please look up the definition of communism and you will see that it has little or nothing to do with Obama's policies and beliefs.
P.S. Please also me know how many countries in Europe are communist.
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"Yes we can!" The common thread running through Obama's victory speech, and the clearest indicator yet that McCain should have gone with Bob The Builder instead of Joe the Plumber.......Lofty for Secretary of Defense
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Moneygran (comment 30) hit the nail on the head.
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McCain chose Palin. He created the risk she might become the most powerful person in the world if he popped his clogs. He did that to boost his campaign. That was utterly reprehensible (unless he really is so dumb he didn't realise). Whilst we can breath a sigh of relief (s)he lost, it is still worrying about 40% (+) of the US electorate think Palin is fit to be VP. Let us hope that when the dust settles, those who were willing to risk that will say OMG, OMG did we nearly do that? OMG, OMG, OMG,OMG,OMG,OMG..................
(And by the way, my natural leaning is towards the Republicans.)
Rob Slack
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McCain sealed his political death warrant when he moved to appease the republican base rather than seize the middle ground. This process started way back in the campaign before the primaries had even started. He started talking the tired language of the republican far right "god, guns" .. and garbage. He put the final nail in his coffin when he chose Palin as his running mate. He could have taken far more independent votes with either Whitman or Lieberman.
America has spoken and America has rejected the religous fundamentalists and cold war warriors. The republicans need to return to rational politics based on ideas rather than a culture war they have already lost.
I, for one, am ecstatic, that the republican far right are in shock today. Good, these people wished to deny rights to those who do not share their dark age values. The pain they feel today is some recompense for the misery they have caused others.
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"McCain's campaign will be remembered for this graceful and heroic concession. I wish him well for his continued Senate leadership."
And his reliance on smear tactics.
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Mr. McCain reminds me of the house of King Charles I, who was more dignified and graceful in his defeat, than in his victories.
I canot help feeling that if the republicans had a more charismatic vic president (like Bobby Jindal), they would have had got more votes.
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There are a number of parallels with what happened when Tony Blair became Prime Minister. His running mate (Deputy PM John Prescott) was kept out of the way as much as Senator Biden has been, to give the appearance of a forward-thinking party with a charismatic leader who will appeal to young and disillusioned voters.
A decade plus on and the UK is in a hole, Blair has long since gone and perhaps the country is now even more anti-politicians than they were pre-Blair.
The fixed terms of office in the US may stop some of the paralysis that the UK has from happening over there, but I do get the feeling that the honeymoon period will be short for Obama, as people will realise there are no magic solutions, money will be spent in billions without tangible reward and the country will grow more divided.
It is a shame that such a great and dignified statesman as John McCain had to follow the discredited Bush administration which meant America denied themselves the chance to have one of their best Presidents ever (and possibly the worst Vice-President). I hope he continues to be a voice for all things good about the Republican party and reforms it to make it electable in the future. As his mother is still going strong at 96, there should be many productive years left in him.
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I am a brit and have always followed the US elections closely. Indeed, it is a damn sight more interesting than the elections we have in the UK.
I have always favoured the Democrats and have been contemptuous of the motives and the methods of the Republicans during elections. This time, it was different. Until Sarah Palin's nomination as VP, my loyalties were split. I saw JM as a very honourable man with the best interests of his nation at heart.
SP's subsequent lack of knowledge, total ignorance, blatant lying, the aiming of cheap and nasty slurs at OB, caused me to gravely question JM's judgement. It seemed the whole tone of the GOP campaign after that descended into gutter electioneering.
Last night's speech by JM showed what this remarkable man is capable of when speaking from the heart. He was compassionate, generous, intelligent and erudite. He would have been an outstanding candidate had he chosen a better VP and resorted to a more positive form of electioneering. I greatly appreciated the remarks he made about the past bigotry that stained his nation. One hopes that the words and the deeds of these two candidates will come to reduce the bigotry that still exists in the southern states, at future elections.
On a final point, I wish the media would stop referring to BO as a black or an African-American president. He is a supremely talented, intelligent and capable man who, I am sure, will serve all of his people well.
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I have no idea how Price gets a paychek from the BBC his reporting is awful.
By the way 47% of the vote total was for McCain, 52% Obama, so while I am glad Obama won, all the talk of a new America is crap. After 8 years of Bush it was still a tight race - so what does that tell you about appetite for change?
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Obama has saved us from global conflict.
All McCains speeches were about 'fighting'. Yes, protect your citizens, but there are more ways to do that than killing others you perceive might be a threat.
Add to that the gun toting, hunting hockey mom, and the world could have become very dangerous very soon.
Interesting to look at the political map of who won which states. A centre with two coastlines...as others have said, an inward looking and an outward looking country.
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@84
Is your name an intruction?
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@72
So you think that the US now has a socialist, communist President? Do you think he will ruin the economy under a mountain of debt, pour public subsidy (your taxes) into failed financial institutions, nationalise the banks, leave your country's national debt in the hands of the Peoples Republic of China - that sort of thing?
So who is the socialist? Obama or Bush?
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Barack Obama is a great man who will be a great president. He will rescue America from the turmoil George Bush created. I personally feel lucky to be alive at the time that the first non-white president of America was elected. John McCain was competent too, but everyone knew that the better politician would win - and he did!
Good Luck Obama!
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This was a very good election for the Republicans to lose, as the US faces more challenges than at any time since WW2.
McCain's concession speech was his best moment since he was persuaded to pick the pitbull.
There may be a tendency amongst Democrats to hope that Obama will face Palin in 4 years, because she appears intellectually inadequate. I think this is a mistaken view and that Palin could be a force to reckon with. She has the backing of a religious movement, which is sweeping all before it.
This side of the pond, we tend to view US religion as somehow laughable, rather than dangerous. For example, Premillenial Dispensationalism (aka rapture-ready hordes waiting to be wafted up to heaven before the Second Coming) has been the butt of numerous jokes.
The New Apostolic Reformation, which claims Palin as one of their own, is not just the fastest growing movement in Protestantism worldwide. As a "post-denominational" religious phenomenon, it seeks converts across denominational boundaries, including Catholicism and Judaism. Rather than targeting individuals, it concentrates its efforts on churches. Flip a pastor and capture the whole congregation.
So far the NAR has all but escaped media scrutiny. Some will have seen or heard of the Jesus Camp documentary, shaken their heads at an isolated example of intimidatory indoctrination verging on child abuse and filed it away with all the other stories of religious excess.
Some will know of the scandal involving the former head of the National Association of Evangelicals, ex-pastor Ted Haggard, who was featured in a Dawkins TV series.
Some will have seen the viral videos featuring Palin being anointed by the "witchfinder general" Bishop Muthee.
However, the 3 examples given above barely scratch the surface of the radical ideology, which fuels this relatively new, but already well-entrenched movement.
Keywords : dominionism; third wave; latter rain; spiritual warfare; spiritual mapping; C. Peter Wagner; Joel's Army.
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@37
The decision that Americans would most regret for the next four years is the one to sit back and relax.
As Senator McCain observed, one of Obama's great achievements was inspiring ordinary citizens to participate. Americans worked the campaigns, donated money, and voted in record numbers. There may have been a victory tonight for one candidate and his party, but there was a much larger victory because individuals reclaimed their voice in the democratic process.
America -- and the world -- face enormous challenges. Our work is just beginning.
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anybody who thinks Obama is black is very mistaken, Obama is an American through and through who just happens to be black and that's why he won. When we get an ethnic politician who represents the country as a whole and is not just trying to do his ethnic brothers a favour then maybe we will see a black PM in the UK too
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It is a really sad thing to say, but i think that the only thing that would have kept Obama from being bumped off by the elite that wont like him, in the same way it happened to the kennedys, would have been if he had have chosen Hilary as VP as she would have been an even worse result.
As it is these elite can carry out whatever plans they have safe in the knowledge that Biden will take over and can be manipulated.
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McCain's speech was as inspirational as any that Obama had made. Not a born orator, his final remarks were less rhetoric and more a true glimpse into a man that has never failed to put country first- gracious in defeat, humble in his final (and in my opinion finest) hour, and epitomising strength in what most would consider a devastating moment.
A lesson on humility, in defeat, McCain showed the true spirit, which those in his inner circle all knew existed, inside a man who had been simply burdened by being leader of the wrong party at the wrong time. Unsurprisingly, McCain praised his new President who he declared he would now loyally serve, but surprisingly, the crowd 'booed'- jeers that emphasised more than ever that his supporters did not deserve him as their leader.
The real John McCain shined 8 years ago when he should have beaten Bush to the post of Republican nominee. Knowing that if McCain won in South Carolina, he would have most likely won the nomination, Bush embarked on a campaign of disgusting lies and deceit. Phone calls and flyers were made that depicted McCain, not as a war hero, patriot and family man but as a psychotic traitor who fathered a black child out of wedlock in an illicit affair. The truth was that his 'black' daughter was a child that he had personally paid to have evacuated to the US for medical treatment from Bangladesh, and who he subsequently adopted out of the generosity of his heart. When McCain refused to discuss the issue in his campaign as a matter of principle, as often the case, the strength of lies resonated greater than the silence of the truth. South Carolina was lost, McCain never recovered that year, and the rest is history.
Fast forward 8 years to 2008. Leading the wrong party, pressured to pick the wrong VP, supported by the very President that betrayed him in 2000, and running against Obama- a once-in-a-lifetime opponent, McCain, always a brave combatant, tried, but could fight no more.
As an Obama supporter myself, I just hope he can rise above the politics, see the good in McCain, and give him a Cabinet posting to do justice to an ageing soldier determined to serve his country one last time.
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#101 Chris
A pretty good overview.
Not all of us find it merely comical, since the idea of the US becoming an expansionist theocracy is a very dark joke, in the way a cherry bomb with a smiley face painted on it is.
The world would do well to remember Pascal's comment, "Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction."
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I estimate there are 40% of Americans who vote who will always vote Republican and 40% who will always vote Democrat.
Where the other 20% go is what decides the popular vote - but not the electoral college.
A liberal Democrat can make more inroads into Republican heartlands than a conservative Republican can on the coasts and cities. While a Democrat taking Texas is a long way off, this is a trend that will continue as the cities of the plains grow, populations migrate there, and the Democrats get an ever increasing foothold.
No Republican can win the Whitehouse from the Right. Traditional wisdom said no Democrat could win from the left. Obama's exact position on the spectrum continues to be debated, but it's clear to me that the long term future of the electoral map is going to be Blue unless the Republican base makes a radical shift to the centre.
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Obama may be the better man by a margin, but he leads the better party by a mile.
The democrats cheered when Obama spoke of McCain, the republicans booed when McCain spoke of Obama.
Obama is the man for now, I only wish McCain had had his chance in the place of Bush these past 8 years.
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McCain's graciousness in defeat was admirable, and as many have noted, had the 'Mac' of the final week shown up early on, gloom would have descended upon Grant Park last night.
McCain did a pretty remarkable job under terrible circumstances, capturing 46% of the popular vote. Electoral vote wasn't close, which is a testimony to the wisdom of the Electoral College system. The states spoke, and the result was decisive. Blessedly, the 2000 nightmare was not repeated! It will be interesting to view the county-by-county map, and compare it to previous years. But every vote counts, as Obama and company understand that nearly half the country profoundly distrusts him.
The turning point came in September, when McCain voted for The Bailout. Had he just called it what it is, irresponsible and unconstitutional, voted 'No' and gone back out at full throttle, the result would likely have been different. As it was, he left those Republicans who stood fast against folly hung out to dry, and handed both houses more firmly to two of the most vitriolic leftists of our generation.
In the meantime, proceeds from The Bailout are being used by banks to (I'm shocked!) buy up other banks, and reinforce capital positions. None to be lent to either business or consumers. They'll be back for more, along with GM, who wants money to buy Chrysler, and the states, who want Federal cash because they don't want to admit they over-reached and bloated their own governments. Wait for it...the New York Times will be in line as well, too big to fail, and a true loyal foot-soldier of the Left.
Obama must prove to the world that he means the high-flown rhetoric, that he is not one more myopic Jimmy Carter (or sociopathic Bill Clinton) and, that having ascended to the office from the hard left, he can rule from the center, respecting the still-conservative values of the huge majority of the nation.
He has much work to do.
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#60 I agree! I don't want to push the idea too far, but perhaps they were a bit like David and Jonathan: one whose time had come, and the other (equally decent and honourable) who found himself tied to a regime whose time was over, and who - even as he fought - recognised the other guy's worth and timeliness. I'm glad Obama won, but gosh I admire McCain.
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#10. "As a very patriotic black Briton, I have to say, I am so jealous of Americans today. I really don't think that this could happen in the UK, not yet. The United States just reminded the world of how unique it is. I sincerely hope that the rest of the world looks towards the States, see why it is so different and more successful than the rest of the world, and try to emulate it's successes. "
----
Ok, I'll bite...
If an educated, eloquent black man ran for PM in this country in a straight race against AN Other, then by the same token that liberal Europeans are overwhelmingly adoring of Obama, that candidate would win by a landslide. Remember 200,000 people attended an Obama rally in Berlin. They knew hardly anything about him or what his policies were. And of course they couldn't even vote for him.
One reason the Obama success won't happen in Europe, or not in the same way, is because the U.S. Presidential race more resembles the jockeying for power of old-style monarchs than an election in the rest of the democratic world. Personality and patronage matter more than policies. You could say it all comes out in the wash, and Congress is usually a fine institution, but I'm not in the least bit jealous of the Presidential system, I'm instead baffled by 'our' sycophantic approval of it.
As a liberal European I wouldn't have voted for their man anyway but the Obama critics have a point when they note how much funding he received from his 'aristocratic' supporters (the 'liberal elite'). Then of course the opposition were ruinously self-destructive and stupid into the bargain.
I concede you also have a point, the U.S. reminds us quite often of how unique it is, as outlined above, and also by failing to have a female head of state in its entire history.
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His concession speech was the Real John McCain? I don't doubt its reality; however, it is merely an element of, scarcely *the* real McCain. It cannot erase or absolve an incoherent, small-minded, mean-spirited, dangerously inflammatory candidacy and campaign ... also very real. And 'tested'? Yes, he was fiercely tested as a P.O.W., but it would be unfair and unrealistic in the extreme for that kind of experience to trump all other 'tests.' This campaign season contained its own big tests: choices of VP, debate performances, responses to the opponent's accusations, ability to develop and maintain a coherent message and tone, and to respond in a coherent way to the economic meltdown. Much was revealed about each candidate in the ways they replied to these challenges. McCain failed these tests ... Obama not only passed, but actually matured during the process (surely a good sign?).
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In Flagstaff, Arizona, the downtown area was awash in celebrations last night. The sidewalks were crammed with people. Dancing, honking horns, screaming. In other areas strings of firecrackers were blown off. Returning home five blocks away, we could hear the revelry clerly inside our home.
While McCain prevailed in Arizona by 9% points, Coconino County--where we are located--went for Obama by almost 16% points over McCain. So I wouldn't make too much of the blogster's "many will shake their heads and fear for the future." It's more nuanced than that.
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John McCain is undoubtedly a reasonable man. The thing is, most politicians are. Out of the 4 on show only Palin has shown herself to be a bit of a low-life. I have known many politicians over the last 25 years, both national and local, and they tend to be community spirited people putting something into society. So it is a real outrage that politicians get spoken of in the same terms as pedos, murderers, drug dealers, con artists and all other sorts of social rubbish. But it is the spin doctors, campaign managers etc behind the scenes that are the real dark forces in politics today. McCain felt uneasy with their strategies, yet he obviously did not have the final word.
The trouble is, it is those who seek the highest office without the interlectual power to make it on their own, who so totally submit themselves to the strategies of these dark forces, like Reagan, GWB and maybe in 2012 Sarah Palin, who perform best, and often successfully.
I never forget the shear front in which Bush accepted the presidency in 2000 after the Republicans had done everything in their power to stop all the votes being counted in Florida. You would have thought he had just won an overwhelming mandate. Would McCain have stooped so low. I doubt it.
While I am here, can I say how pleased I am at the turnout for the election. Certainly Obamha had a lot to do with this. I think also, many American realised that it may have been down to them not voting that allowed GWB to get in, and in no small way they are just as responsible for getting him into the White House as those that voted directly for him. There are no neutrals in elections.
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McCain's graceful concession speech did redeem his honour to some extent, but he should also be remembered for his mean-spirited campaign of lies and innuendo.
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I noticed that when McCain gave his speech, many booed for Obama. WHen Obama gave his acceptance speech, there were no boos when McCain was mentioned. Very telling. Eight years of negativity and fear-mongering is finally at an end, and as a US citizen who has gotten pretty sick it, I'm celebrating! Cheers!
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#60 - Is it my imagination or did McCain - deep down - know that he wasn't the right man for the job this time? There was something oddly unconvincing about his rhetoric in the latter weeks of the campaign that betrayed more than just the knowledge that he was likely to lose.
I wondered this too, during this past month of the campaign. Remembering the McCain I voted for in the 2000 primary, I wondered if he wasn't appalled by the hate his campaign had stirred up, but by then felt trapped in it, almost needing to ride it out to failure to prove it wouldn't work as a winning strategy (if he had fired his campaign staff in mid-stride and still lost, the RNC would have blamed him going off their script for the loss and never looked at themselves for the cause of failure). In terms of him accepting all the loss for blame upon himself in his concession speech, I believe it's justified. He was running for president, a position of supreme leadership. As the Republican nominee, he was the head of the Republican party. They may have pushed him into a mold he didn't fit into; they may have insisted he would lose without forcing himself into that mold; they may have threatened him with the loss of the "base." But in the end, it was his decision to go along with them; he could have stuck to his guns and refused to be compromised. He didn't. Therefore, it was his own fault that he lost.
That said, I was very glad to see the old McCain freed from his self-imposed bondage at the end of the night. I only hope he tries to do a bit more to repair the artificial fear (they now believe Obama will declare himself dictator - seriously!) among the Republican party faithful that was kicked up by his campaign.
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#65 - Barack Obama has threatened to bomb Iran
??????
I think you are a bit confused on exactly who made this particular threat.
"Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran" (sung to the Beach Boys' Barbara Ann tune) is not a quote from Obama.
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#70 - And Bolton's venomous response to anyone trying to point that out on the BBC items summed it up.
Bolton is a living example of all that is wrong with the Bush administration. How ANYONE with ANY kind of brain could take someone that abrasive and close-minded and put him in a diplomatic position boggles my mind.
In terms of positions, Gore Vidal was just as bad an example from the left, but at least he wasn't a formal representative of the U.S. (and I hope he never is).
I do want to congradulate the BBC video staff on putting up with these two with a politeness they certainly did not deserve.
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#75 - Take from the rich and give to the poor.
And this is bad because ...?
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#78 - I don't know if this could happen, but wouldn't it show a certain unity of purpose if Obama offered a post in his cabinet to McCain?
It can't really happen, but has nothing to do with disrespect for McCain.
The Cabinet are the heads of departments in the president's branch of government. In order for the president to effectively govern, they must be chosen from people who have the same vision as the president. Choosing a cabinet of excellent but not loyal members was the root of the weakness in Jimmy Carter's presidency. I don't believe Obama will make that same mistake, given the way he conducted his campaign.
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What a wonderful world this is this morning. A new day is dawning not only for the US but for the whole world. George W. Bush has made this world a much more frightening place as he made enemies out of neutrals and neutrals out of friends. It will take Obama time but he will inspire us all just a John Kennedy did in the early 60`s. I hope that the Republicans have learned their lesson that the type of hate politics that Sarah Palin showed in this campaign is not the future of US politics. John Mccain`s speech was great and shows us that he was very uncomfortable with the direction that his advisers insisted on. To see the joy and tears of so many African-Americans last night was priceless and their pride is our pride.
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I listened the past night to the BBC Worldservice to the speeches of both Sen. McCain and Sen./Pres. Elect Obama.
Sen. McCain finished the campaign in a very honorful, generous and loyal speech.
Pres. Elect Obama demonstrated the charisma and leadership America needs so much.
Let's hope, as too often happened in past with American Presidents, that no extremist or trigger happy nutcase harms this new President of America.
I wish him well.
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RE the us election good luck to the winner he will need it he had a good campaign and seems a nice man.i am sorry senator mcain lost because he had the experience to be president will senator obana has not.i feel mrs clintons remark about the phone call during the night is true and she would have been the person most suitable to be her partys candidate. a clinton obana ticket would have been the best for her party.re senator mcains v.p choice i am afraid she helped lose him the election.so good luck to president obana but president mcain would have been a better choice for the u,.s.a and the world.
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McCain's concession speech was certainly gracious but the idea that his often unpleasant, growling, policy-free campaign was somehow not the 'real McCain' is patently absurd. Candidates are responsible for their own campaigns. And in this ultimate test of character and principle the US electorate found him wanting.
Obama's election symbolizes how far the US has matured since the beginning of the civil rights movement. But to those who think a man of his background and colour could not achieve the same here, the evidence of polls taken both in the UK and all over Europe suggests the contrary. A home-grown Obama, it seems, could win office in every western European country. After the greed and oppressive militarism of the Bush years, the world looks very favorably on this remarkable victory. Expectations are high and Obama will not find it easy to fulfill them. But he now has as much power as any one person can have to steer his country and the world towards a kinder, more inclusive, prosperous, and peaceful coexistence. We should wish him well and, in whatever way may be granted to us, do our best to further the hopes that he embodies.
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As I was watching the election night coverage, I was appalled by John Bolton’s (former US Ambassador to the UN) response to Katty Kay’s analysis on Palin. I didn’t think that her analysis was off or even one-sided, if anything, Katty Kay has always been more than generous to the McCain campaign in general. I do agree that Palin played a huge factor in McCain’s defeat; arguing otherwise is an absolute denial of the facts. It is true that Palin energized the base during her nomination but her history of abuse of power and her controversial one-sided views contributed to the downfall of McCain’s campaign. It doesn’t take scientist to determine that, polls showed how skeptical Americans were about her ability to perform, not only as Vice-president, but also as President in case of a tragedy. Sarah Palin was not the main factor of McCain’s defeat but she sure contributed to this. Calling reporters “IGNORANT” and blaming the media for the Republican Party’s candidate demise is inappropriate, rude, and out of touch. Comments such as the ones made by Bolton can be compared to the rambling of a bitter drunk; I have great respect for Katty Kay and for her unbiased coverage of the election from beginning to end.
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Yes, #126, Bolton exemplifies everything unpleasant about the US. His extreme xenophobia and arrogance born of US exceptionalism are what the voters have implicitly repudiated.
Whether he believes his own poisonous rhetoric is a moot point, but it is clear that international relations will benefit from his absence.
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Kadoogan (9.51 this a.m.) says
"Indeed there was one moment where after hearing a woman at one of his rallys call Obama an Arab, McCain took the microphone off her, told her to sit down, and then admonished his supporters saying that they had nothing to fear from an Obama presidency."
This is not how I recall this exchange. True, it was more honourable than many of McCain's lines, but what he said as he took the microphone from his supporter on 11th October was, "No Ma'm, he's a decent family man." The implication was that that was somehow in contradiction to being an arab or a muslim. Obama is neither of those things, but the McCain mindset still suggests that if he had been, he could not be a decent family man.
Either McCain allowed his over-enthusiastic team to edit out any moral scruples he may have had, or possibly he never had them in the first place. Clearly his wife, in the election day photo as she ruffled his hair, had learned to say nothing about whether or not it was thinning.
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To the enlightened mind who posted #75...
"What is not to understand. Hussein Obama's entire platform is entitlements, give aways. Take from the rich and give to the poor. Abortion, gay marriage. Thought police - civilian military. America will crumble under his heavy hand."
Taking from the rich to give to the poor? How about taking BACK from the rich? You defend a group of people who have made virtually no contribution to the common good. Do they pay their share of taxes? Er... no. Do they thrust the burden of paying for this government onto a swiftly disappearing middle-class? Er... yes!
But you go right ahead and back them anyway... maybe you can get some scraps from their table. You can sneak some while their attention is on how they can steal your pension money to buy that yacht they want.
Thought Police? Did you even read what "The Patriot Act" was, before you blindly went along with it because they told you that you would be safer? The Bush Administration is the single biggest violator of our basic freedoms in the last decade.
Civilian Military. Golly... sounds like you described Homeland Security to a tee.
Abortion? Is anyone pulling a child from your womb? No? Then it is not your right to choose, is it? Didn't think so.
Gay marriage? Are these gays forcing you to watch what they do in the privacy of their homes? No? Then quit worrying about how they live, and focus on why you seemed to be so threatened by them. Any therapist or someone who took Psych 101 can help you there.
The American people have spoken, and this country no longer wants or needs Reagan-era economic and defense policies... it's time to wake up and smell the 21st Century.
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Whilst I think the white population of the US made a great effort to be objective with their votes I am left wondering are there (m)any non-whites who voted for McCain?
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'Yes we can' and 'yes we did'.
McCain lost the campaign because he made the election about 'himself': he thought he was owed this post, unlike Obama, who made the election about the country and the economy.
McCain concession speech was generous (although his supporters at the Biltmore, were not (listen to the difference in the crowd at Obama's acceptance speech)). What do you expect after agreeing to have a clean campaign - he did the exact opposite. Further, he did not have strong, well-thoughtout policies that the people were looking for.
He based his campaign on scaremongering and mud slinging. Obama did not!
The selection of the 'superficial Palin' as VP was a gross miscalculation and showed poor leadership and judgement on McCain's part.
The US electorate made their choice and it was A Damn Fine Choice!
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I stayed up and heard both speeches. McCain's was aptly conciliatory though wasted on a good part of his boorish audience.
Obama's was dry, technical and almost bereft of of rhetorical power. Far from being an excellent speech, it was a drab and damp squib. Considering how well he had spoken during the campaign that was a surprise.
Not that this really matters. Obama is an unexceptional President-Elect save in one very important respect. I hope that he will have a powerful, positive impact on the attitudes towards and of minorities, not just in his country, but over the world.
He will enter office in the most challenging circumstances, his egregious predecessor having ruined the economy, wrecked America's reputation and illustrated very clearly the limits to her power. I wish Obama luck and he will surely need it.
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At 10:03am on 05 Nov 2008, mancroft wrote:
"When Americans realise the full extent of Obama's Communitarian agenda, they will not be best pleased."
http://www.stopcp.com/cpphilosophy.php
and there you have it! a nation of millions who voted, and voted decisively, are simply naive and incapable of judging a candidate who put himself up for intense public scrutiny for the best part of a year.
how fortunate we have fearless misunderstood heroes like mancroft to put us all right with his special understanding and insight.
when will we learn!
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130. At 8:26pm on 05 Nov 2008, kwhittingham wrote:
"Whilst I think the white population of the US made a great effort to be objective with their votes I am left wondering are there (m)any non-whites who voted for McCain?"
Not that many I shouldn't think. But then not many of them voted for the white democrat candidates in the past either, since many didn't vote at all (turnouts as low as 50%)
and thats the point, Obama engaged large swathes of americans who previously saw no benefits from voting - no prospect of change.
There's a difference between ethnic americans voting FOR Obama cos he's black and white americans NOT voting for Obama cos he's black.
That difference is called racism.
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Matthew Price! Did you really just write in your article that someone was "pro-abortion"?!?
Obama said it during the election: there's NO ONE who is "pro-abortion", but there's a lot of people who are "pro-choice".
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This 'hero' sat in a jet plane at 15,000feet and poured napalm, bullets and bombs on defenceless Vietnamese men, women and children as part of the usual US strategy of "bombing the enemy back to the stone age", declaring a victory and leaving the mess behind them (also see Iraq, Afghanistan etc.).
Some hero.
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His speech isnt going to be as memorable as Obamas by a long shot. He tried to be Gracious in Defeat but his childish anticts during the run up is what he will be remembered for. He should have just stuck to talking about his policies rather than smear campaigns about Obama. If he had won you would have had more or less the same as Bush gave in the last 8 years. The better man won but i wish people would stop taking about his skin colour and concentrate on his policies and plans for the future. The guy has the hardest job in the world clearing up after Bush. That guy and his administration have left the world in a mess. I dont envy Obama. Hes got a long long road ahead. Good luck Obama
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liberalbedwetter (great name by the way)
Its not racist.
Black people have been slaves to Whites for hundreds of years.
Of course they are going to vote for a Black President.
It gives a sence of accomplishment.
It gives hope to those who had none.
The same could go for your comment about mainly white voted for MCcain because he is white.
You have no idea but your comment just shows your a racist
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liberalbedwetter
I applogise for my comment. I miss read your post. Ihadnt realised you had quoted someone....
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We Americans, to a greater or lesser degree, all have serious concerns about our future. I submit, however, that we are not fearful, particularly now that we have a dynamic new leader. And that includes Republicans from Arizona!
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30 moneygran1:
"I dont quite get it.
The media highlights Martin Luther King's famous speech in which he said "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character".
So why is almost everyone hailing the election of America's first black President, thereby underlining his colour as an electoral issue?
I hope that Mr Obama has been elected for the "content of his character" and his political programme, not his colour.
Any nation that truly claims to be non-racist should be totally colour blind."
You're quite right. You don't get it. Go home and think about it for a bit.
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From his clearly heartfelt speech we must conclude that most of what he said during his campaign (that which we heard here) was not what he believed but what he was forced to say by his political masters.
We must rejoice therefore that their plan did not prevail.
Or was it that the powerful right wing in the USA got the media and, worryingly its artists, to ridicule McCain and thus lose him the election and bring blame onto the Democrats for what the USA may endure in the next few years?
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I cannot forgive him for bringing Sarah palin to the fore.
I truly hope the current hype of this Palin politician is just that - hype. I hope there is no substance and PLEASE let us hope she is nowhere to be seen in future elections.
Suerly the USA is past choosing such lightweight and vacuous Presidents - George W raided the coffers enough, Republicans, let's not see your country turned over again.
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So America finally have a black president. How long will it be before a Native American sits in the Oval Office making the decisions?
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His speech leads me to believe that he ran such a lousy campaign on purpose. The purpose was to show up the ignorant side of the republican party's base and how their demagoguery is only brining the country to its knees. Only in this way, can the republican party drop its demagogues, racist and ignorant members and start focusing on building a party that is intellectually strong instead of bankrupt. I noticed many Republican "thinkers" wear bow ties and wire glasses, it gives them an intellectual look, but inside their brains are empty. And if that is the case, then i must reject my own premise that he ran the campaign like a sailr and he is then a true hero.
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John McCain was hobbled by numerous factors many of which have been mentioned by others.
I have to say as an almost 60 year old I did not think I'd see a black man in the White House in my lifetime.
Their speeches? McCain was gracious in defeat. Obama said what the people wanted to hear.
I've not heard rhetoric like Obama's since JFK. I'm afraid for him & his family he may last about the same length of time.
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This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the House Rules.
McCain gave such an eloquent and memorable speech the night of Nov.4, 08. I do like him and would have voted for him. He has put a lot of heart, soul, and sweat into America. That qualifies him in my book as heroic and honorable!
However, with all due respect to his avid supporters. I would like to comment on the lack of experience that is said of Obama.
It may be so that he may not have the experience, however he is intelligent, possesses common sense, and is optimistic to name of few of his many attributes.
I truly do understand that our country, the U.S., needs a huge reform and a strong leader. That is why some wanted the more experienced McCain, but too many people can't be wrong all at once for choosing "Change".
If at the end, it turns out that we did not choose wisely, then it will be another moment added to our history. Moreover, as an optimistic American, I don't only place my hope in Obama. I also place my hope in me and the many other Americans that can begin creating a change from within to continue building a great nation for all.
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