The 2008 presidential election has created a number of new buzz words and phrases, among them Veep, as opposed to V.P. or vice president. The formal adoption of veep by the media points to the importance of this position to the outcome of the November general election.
Just one day after the Democratic National Convention, the Republican National Convention jumped off with Senator John McCain shocking the American public by naming Sarah Palin, as his veep candidate. I think this was a strong move by the Republicans and somewhat underscores my critique of Obama’s failure to choose Senator Hillary Clinton as his running mate. In short, I do not think that it is as funny as some pundits are claiming, and that Obama’s camp should be concerned.
The Republican’s decision to choose Palin, clearly points to the party’s efforts to reach out to disenchanted Hillary supporters. McCain’s choice was timely, as it came within days of the anniversary of the 19th amendment, which gave women the right to vote. Palin, in her acceptance speech, praised former veep choice, Geraldine Ferraro, and Hillary Clinton for blazing the trail, thereby setting the tone for her place in history (yet, she, unsurprisingly, failed to mention former presidential candidate, Shirley Chisolm who is black). When discussing Hillary, she was quick to mention that, “Hillary left 18 million cracks in the highest, hardest glass ceiling in America, but it turns out the women of America aren’t finished yet, and we can shatter that glass ceiling once and for all.” This was a clear invitation for Hillary voters to jump on board.
So, why was this move so important, and probably not as dumb as some pundits are suggesting? Well, it appears that the Republicans are looking to take advantage of the Bradley Effect. The Bradley effect occurs when some white voters will simply lie to pollsters suggesting that they will support a well-qualified black candidate, so as to not appear to be racially prejudiced. This is also known as providing socially desirable responses to polls, given our age of political correctness. Here, we need to keep our eyes on those Hillary supporters who tell pollsters that they are undecided. In one study, a statistical analysis testing the Bradley Effect reveals that if a black candidate is not at least 10 percentage points ahead in the polls, then s/he will find him/herself in trouble during the actual election. So, in closing, McCain’s strategy is not to attract/convert every Clinton supporter to his ticket, for that would be laughable. Rather, they seek to convert those ambivalent voters who may possess racially prejudiced views toward Obama, yet are not revealing such biases in their responses to the national polls.
Just one day after the Democratic National Convention, the Republican National Convention jumped off with Senator John McCain shocking the American public by naming Sarah Palin, as his veep candidate. I think this was a strong move by the Republicans and somewhat underscores my critique of Obama’s failure to choose Senator Hillary Clinton as his running mate. In short, I do not think that it is as funny as some pundits are claiming, and that Obama’s camp should be concerned.
The Republican’s decision to choose Palin, clearly points to the party’s efforts to reach out to disenchanted Hillary supporters. McCain’s choice was timely, as it came within days of the anniversary of the 19th amendment, which gave women the right to vote. Palin, in her acceptance speech, praised former veep choice, Geraldine Ferraro, and Hillary Clinton for blazing the trail, thereby setting the tone for her place in history (yet, she, unsurprisingly, failed to mention former presidential candidate, Shirley Chisolm who is black). When discussing Hillary, she was quick to mention that, “Hillary left 18 million cracks in the highest, hardest glass ceiling in America, but it turns out the women of America aren’t finished yet, and we can shatter that glass ceiling once and for all.” This was a clear invitation for Hillary voters to jump on board.
So, why was this move so important, and probably not as dumb as some pundits are suggesting? Well, it appears that the Republicans are looking to take advantage of the Bradley Effect. The Bradley effect occurs when some white voters will simply lie to pollsters suggesting that they will support a well-qualified black candidate, so as to not appear to be racially prejudiced. This is also known as providing socially desirable responses to polls, given our age of political correctness. Here, we need to keep our eyes on those Hillary supporters who tell pollsters that they are undecided. In one study, a statistical analysis testing the Bradley Effect reveals that if a black candidate is not at least 10 percentage points ahead in the polls, then s/he will find him/herself in trouble during the actual election. So, in closing, McCain’s strategy is not to attract/convert every Clinton supporter to his ticket, for that would be laughable. Rather, they seek to convert those ambivalent voters who may possess racially prejudiced views toward Obama, yet are not revealing such biases in their responses to the national polls.
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6 comments:
"McCain's Veep Pic,What's Funny?" It is not funny at all but down right sick! In my opinion McCain is playing with the supporters of Hilliary Clinton. I believe that he chose Sarah Palin for two reasons: (One)of the reasons is because she is a woman (Two)because of her ethnic. All McCain did was reserve the roles of Obama and Clinton. Meaning, everyone just assumed that Clinton will be Obama's running mate and a lot of people wanted that to happen and McCain knows that. So, that's why he chose a woman of "color." If he really wanted to "win" he should have chosen a Black Woman. However, if he did, it would have shown that everything that he is doing is an act of manipulation to win America's voters votes. Moreover, it is my prayer that God allows the right man to take office so that His will can be done! -L.A.Smith
Hi L.A. Smith,
How would selecting a black woman help a Republican candidate win? Are you aware that only about 10 percent of blacks vote Republican? This is not an emotional site, rather one of reason. Lasswell's definition of politics is who get's what, when and how... So, in short, of course he's trying to win... David Mayhew (1974)argues in his book that the primary goal of any political official is to be elected... Let's reason... Professor Dre'
Senator McCain probably has his set of reasons for choosing a woman as his Vice President candidate. I can agree with the writer when he says that he assumes that he chose this woman in order to gain some of Hilary's supporters back. Even though I agree with the reason, I do not think that it was a smart decision. Looking at this woman's credentials, (sports reporter, co-owner of a fishing operation, sport vehicle rental business owner, etc...)I, personally do not think that she is capable of serving as a Vice President. If McCain gets himself in a situation and looks to her for advice, she will not be able to deliver because of her lack of experience. I have nothing against McCain, but I do not think it was smart to try and gain Hilary's voters back by selecting a woman. If he was going to do that, it should of at least been a stronger woman with more experience and with a stronger voice of her own.
araymon1, I think you underestimate "white privilege" in the United States. Please see Peggy McIntosh's brief article on white privilege. I mention it in one of my blogs below.
I thought the same thing when i first saw that McCain was picking Sarah Palin, a woman, to be his V.P. The first thing that came to mind was that he made this decision in order to gain Clinton's supporters. As I thought deeper I began to see how this decision was more harmful than helpful. For one, Palin doesn't have enough experience needed to be a good V.P. She wouldn't have the advice to give McCain if needed. With that being said, if anything would happen to McCain she would be the next in line to lead our country. I definitely don't see that as being funny at all.
mcat, let's be reasonable; Have you noticed who's been in the White House for the last 8 years. Lol... Surely, she could do no more damage.
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