Inside Politics: Obama as Mr. Fairness

Mr. Fairness

The idea of fairness is at the heart of Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama’s whole economic argument. “And he goes back to it in almost every public appearance,” Wall Street Journal columnist William McGurn writes.

“He talks about it as a general theme: ‘It is time for folks like me who make more than $250,000 to pay our fair share.’

“He invokes it as a solution for Social Security: ‘[W]e will save Social Security for future generations by asking the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share.’

“He points to how it guides his energy policy: ‘The first part of my plan is to tax the windfall profits of oil companies and use some of that money to help you pay the rising price of gas.’

“And he stuck to it on capital gains, even after ABC’s Charlie Gibson noted that the record shows increased taxes on capital gains - which would affect 100 million Americans - would likely lead to a decrease in government revenues: ‘Well, Charlie, what I’ve said is that I would look at raising the capital gains tax for purposes of fairness.’

“Translated into ordinary English, what that means is that it doesn’t really matter whether a tax increase actually brings in more revenue,” Mr. McGurn said. “It’s not about robbing from the rich to give to the poor. Robbing from the rich will do, especially if it’s done in the name of fairness.”

Change of plan

Sen. John McCain “hasn’t been able to run the campaign he had envisioned. Instead, he and his staff have been given an education by events,” New York Times columnist David Brooks writes.

“McCain started out with the same sort of kibitzing campaign style that he used to woo the press back in 2000. It didn’t work. This time there were too many cameras around and too many 25-year-old reporters and producers seizing on every odd comment to set off little blog scandals,” Mr. Brooks said.

“McCain started out with the same sort of improvised campaign events he’d used his entire career, in which he’d begin by riffing off of whatever stories were in the paper that day. It didn’t work. The campaign lacked focus. No message was consistent enough to penetrate through the national clutter.

“McCain started his general-election campaign in poverty-stricken areas of the South and Midwest. He went through towns where most Republicans fear to tread and said things most wouldn’t say. It didn’t work. The poverty tour got very little coverage on the network news. McCain and his advisers realized the only way they could get TV attention was by talking about the subject that interested reporters most: Barack Obama.

“McCain started with grand ideas about breaking the mold of modern politics. He and Obama would tour the country together doing joint town meetings. He would pick a postpartisan running mate, like Joe Lieberman. He would make a dramatic promise, like vowing to serve for only one totally nonpolitical term. So far it hasn’t worked. Obama vetoed the town meeting idea. The issue is not closed, but GOP leaders are resisting a cross-party pick like Lieberman.

“McCain and his advisers have been compelled to adjust to the hostile environment around them. They have been compelled, at least in their telling, to abandon the campaign they had hoped to run. Now they are running a much more conventional race, the kind McCain himself used to ridicule.”

Wake-up call

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