"The Enthusiasm Gap, Part II"
HAYES, STEPHEN F.
The Enthusiasm Gap, Part II Conservative voters remain uninspired by the McCain campaign. BY STEPHEN F. HAYES Standing on a stage at an autoparts manufacturing facility in this small town...
...Keenan says he has “a lot of disagreements” with George W. Bush, but nonetheless thinks “everybody in the country is a hell of a lot safer because he has been president for the last eight years...
...Fewer voters may identify themselves with the Republican party these days, but more still describe themselves as conservative than liberal...
...I asked him if he would turn out to vote for McCain in November...
...And McCain is trying to convince voters that he gets it, that he understands their circumstances and has a plan to improve them...
...He defended his vote against the Bush tax cuts and, at some length, reiterated his concerns about global warming...
...Polls consistently show that the economy is at the top of voters’ concerns...
...More troubling for the McCain campaign is that more than half of those who identified themselves as McCain backers—54 percent—say they are “less excited than usual” about their candidate...
...I guess the question I have, and that people like me in this country have, is what can you say to us to make us believe that you actually came to the right position...
...A Washington Post/ABC News poll last month found that nearly half of the liberals surveyed are enthusiastic about supporting Barack Obama, while only 13 percent of conservatives are enthusiastic about McCain...
...Keenan was “concerned” about some of McCain’s views—he mentioned the opposition to the Bush tax cuts and his views on the environment— and told the senator that he was grateful that McCain had begun taking more conservative positions...
...He has voted for Republicans but does not consider himself one...
...His experience here will do more to help McCain with independents than celebrating Hillary Clinton or pushing cap-and-trade...
...It is not surprising that conservatives are not warming to a candidate who likes to talk about climate change and government subsidies for displaced workers...
...And that, more than anything, might get voters like Keenan and other conservatives to a situation where they are excited about voting for him...
...At a press conference after the town hall, CNN’s Peter Hamby asked McCain about the new fi ndings on the “enthusiasm gap...
...BY STEPHEN F. HAYES Standing on a stage at an autoparts manufacturing facility in this small town west of Detroit, John McCain reacquainted himself with his enthusiasm gap...
...Senator, a new USA Today/Gallup polls shows that Senator Obama’s supporters are considerably more excited about voting for their candidate than are your own supporters...
...But this coldness is increasingly alarming to some McCain backers...
...You might have seen it in USA Today...
...You know, I really don’t know...
...But national security issues cannot disappear...
...Seventy-three percent of such McCain supporters say they are “enthusiastic” about his candidacy, but only 17 percent say they are “very enthusiastic...
...The campaign’s emphasis on these issues is understandable...
...I believe that my record on national security and keeping this country safe is there...
...I’m happy to say I didn’t,” McCain joked...
...We have—Senator Obama didn’t support the surge, wanted to pull out, said that it would fail...
...I respect the campaign that Senator Obama has run...
...He has done a fi ne job of motivating many, many people...
...The audience laughed, and McCain did, too...
...I have to say, and I don’t mean to disappoint you, but I haven’t changed positions...
...Then he got serious...
...Stephen F. Hayes, a senior writer at THE WEEKLY STANDARD, is the author of Cheney: The Untold Story of America’s Most Powerful and Controversial Vice President (HarperCollins...
...54 percent say they are “very enthusiastic...
...But it also refl ects the campaign’s strategic attempt to position McCain as a centrist in order to win the votes of independents and even some Democrats...
...I do think that there are millions of Americans out there like me who are fairly conservative, probably more conservative than John McCain, and I think a lot of them are concerned about what’s going to happen if he does get elected...
...Wearing jeans and a black buttondown with an American flag embroidered over his left breast, Keenan took the microphone and told McCain that he would not be voting for Barack Obama...
...Then McCain grew serious...
...I supported it when it was the toughest thing to do...
...Although his campaign has occasionally sought to provide a contrast with Obama when national security issues are in the news—as it did so well with the Supreme Court decision on detainees and, last week, with the Iranian missile tests— McCain’s theme weeks have focused on the economy, energy, and domestic policy...
...His answer was revealing...
...Many supporters—both inside and outside of the campaign— believe that McCain has spent relatively little time on his strongest issue: national security...
...I am confi dent that as we go through this campaign that I will convince the majority of voters in this country that I am the person to lead this nation through very diffi - cult times...
...McCain himself seems to know that for all of his talk about other issues, many voters will ultimately make their decision based on their understanding of which candidate will keep them safe...
...Later, he went out of his way to emphasize his respect for Hillary Clinton and boast about his work with Democrats Joe Lieberman, Russ Feingold, and Ted Kennedy...
...Rich Keenan owns the Old Glory Flags and Flagpoles Company in Livonia, Michigan...
...Rich Keenan is one of them...
...And the American people will examine our records and I will win...
...He says he is surprised that McCain hasn’t spent more time talking about that aspect of the Bush record and touting his own national security credentials...
...They believe that all of McCain’s efforts to win over Democrats and independents can only pay off if he is able to get conservatives to turn out to vote for him in November...
...Since the general election began six weeks ago, he has focused largely on energy and the economy...
...More generally, 91 percent of self-identifi ed Obama supporters are “enthusiastic” about their candidate...
...Last week was “Jobs for America” week, and this is education and opportunity week...
...This is McCain being McCain...
...There are risks to this strategy and the enthusiasm gap is chief among them...
...He calls himself an independent and a conservative...
...We want to take you to the dance, we’re just concerned about who you’re going to go home with...
...That survey shows that while 67 percent of Barack Obama’s supporters are “more excited than usual about voting” for their candidate, only 31 percent of John McCain’s supporters can say the same thing...
...A USA Today/Gallup poll reported similar fi ndings last week...
...But he said: “What I’m trying to do is get to a situation where I’m excited about voting for you...
...He clearly believes that bipartisanship is among the highest virtues of political life...
Vol. 13 • July 2008 • No. 42
