Arc
Charles Krauthammer today maps out the arc of Barack Obama’s candidacy. Plotting out the points through Obama’s speeches over the last four years, Krauthammer draws a picture of the rise and fall of Barack Obama.
But Palin is not just a problem for Obama. She is also a symptom of what ails him. Before Palin, Obama was the ultimate celebrity candidate. For no presidential nominee in living memory had the gap between adulation and achievement been so great. Which is why McCain’s Paris Hilton ads struck such a nerve. Obama’s meteoric rise was based not on issues — there was not a dime’s worth of difference between him and Hillary on issues — but on narrative, on eloquence, on charisma.
The unease at the Denver convention, the feeling of buyer’s remorse, was the Democrats’ realization that the arc of Obama’s celebrity had peaked — and had now entered a period of its steepest decline. That Palin could so instantly steal the celebrity spotlight is a reflection of that decline.
It was inevitable. Obama had managed to stay aloft for four full years. But no one can levitate forever.
Too soon to write off Obama? Maybe. With the rabid press helping him, he may yet be dragged across the finish line. But there is bad news again today in the Gallup Daily poll. McCain is still ahead by four points. (No wonder reporters have gone mad.)
Obama’s rise has been described by the media as “meteoric”. They appear not to realize that meteors only flare brilliantly when they are crashing to earth.
By martian, Friday, 12 September , 2008 @ 2:23 pm
I think it is too soon to write him off - if only because there is so much time available between now and election day for any or all of the candidates to shoot themselves in the foot several times over. However, I hope that the voting public will finally come to recognize an empty suit when they see one.