It’s a very trying time to be a supporter of John McCain. Listening to my fellow classmates and national news organizations talking about McCain as if he has already lost the election is disheartening to me, but I take solace in the fact that the election isn’t over yet.
McCain may be down in the polls right now, but history has a way of repeating itself. In the last presidential election, John Kerry was ahead in the polls before the voting booths closed and we all know how that turned out.
I find it slightly humorous the same news organizations claiming McCain to be on a downward spiral to defeat are the same ones who said Hilary Clinton would be out of the race by March. Granted, Barack Obama won that one, but he doesn’t have five extra months to work with this time; only about 12 days. It is also proof the talking heads are jumping the gun when voters have yet to have their say in the matter, as early voting only began on Monday, Oct. 20.
Most people I have talked to tell me the election might as well be over because Colin Powell’s endorsement of Obama has become the mountain of straw that broke the camel’s back in this presidential race. But I strongly disagree.
McCain can still win this election. Just because Powell jumped ships to spite the Republican party with his endorsement of Obama doesn’t mean the nation as a whole will do the same. I have the utmost respect for Powell as a military and political leader, but that doesn’t mean I have to blindly follow him in every decision he makes.
In order for McCain to win, he needs to end the smear tactics against Obama that has consumed his campaign as of late and appeal to swing voters, those who usually hold out until the last minute in election years and vote for who they believe will improve the country and their future. It is the swing voter – not blatant attack ads aimed at increasing their numbers in the polls – that will decide this election’s outcome.
Obama may be able to out-spend and out-organize McCain (for instance, Obama buying his own channel just to promote his campaign in addition to two 30-minute ads during primetime television), but that doesn’t mean McCain can’t come out on top. Just ask one-time competitor Mitt Romney, who ran against McCain in the Republican primaries: “It would be a mistake to count out John McCain. I remember when everyone said he was dead and buried during the primaries, but he came roaring back.”
McCain is a force to be reckoned with, and I for one will not give up hope that he can pull off a come-from-behind victory, because he has several factors on his side to turn the tides in this election. Voting does make a difference, and Obama might find it hard getting the people he is counting on (college students and young adults) to show up at voting booths when historically this age group is notorious for “having better things to do.”
Use your head and vote for the candidate who can truly improve our economy and future. I know I will.