Published: September 28, 2008 08:39 pm         

Do you need help from a political campaign overdose?

This Side Of The Fence column

Political junkies from sea to shining sea and across our fruited plains are detoxing today because of the complete overdose of political events in the last week capped by a presidential debate super bout that left us higher than any of our nation’s purple mountain majesties.

This is the stuff political columnists dream about and I’m creating a special hotline phone number to counsel those who fear another round of “political fixes” could lead to their demise. If you find yourself alone and huddled in a dark corner with a craving to watch more C-SPAN on your Blackberry, fear not, for help is just around the corner. Call me at 1-555-ICAN-DOTHIS and a friend will talk to you about what’s on over at the Lifetime channel and help you schedule a family intervention.

For those who are not quite ready for rehab, let me tell you how I spent my weekend. In order to bring my faithful readers the most concise, in-depth analysis about Friday’s hour-and-a-half presidential debate, I reviewed the debate three separate ways.

First, like millions of others, I watched Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain duke it out live on TV. However, on Saturday, I did it again, but this time I only listened to the audio portion. On Sunday, I watched the debate again, but this time I turned off the audio.

Obsessive? Yeah, maybe so, but the insight gained was well worth it because it revealed major weaknesses in both campaigns, but also gave me a clearer picture of who may end up in the White House next January.

The most obvious and telling body movements came from Mr. McCain. Time and time again, the moderator urged the two candidates to speak directly to each other, but Mr. McCain consistently refrained from doing this. Mr. McCain may have looked into the eyes of Russian president Vladimir Putin and saw a “KGB,” but he didn’t look into the eyes of Mr. Obama Friday night.

Mr. Obama was much better at engaging his opponent, looking at him often, and making direct statements to Mr. McCain.

What’s the upshot there? Ask any psychiatrist and they’ll say not looking into someone’s eyes can be viewed negatively and give a “he’s hiding something” type feeling.

This does not bode well for Mr. McCain because it calls into question the issue of trust, which many voters use as a measuring stick for picking a candidate. The same philosophy can also be applied to Mr. McCain’s relentless negative ads — such as the ridiculous one featuring Paris Hilton — which I believe are purposefully being done to goad Mr. Obama into looking unpresidential while responding.

From my count, Mr. Obama made over 20 statements where he indicated his opponent was not being truthful. To balance that, Mr. Obama also made at least six references where he agreed with Mr. McCain on certain issues.

Mr. McCain, on the other hand, made at least seven references indicating Mr. Obama “didn’t understand” the issues being talked about, which in essence would lead to disastrous consequences if he became president. Mr. McCain declined, even once, to agree with his opponent or say he was right on any issue.

I believe this reveals how Mr. McCain’s campaign is shaping this election by using the argument that Mr. Obama’s not ready to lead the nation. Certainly, Mr. McCain is getting beaten on economic issues and after Friday night’s debate, I believe Mr. Obama’s foreign policy stances were laid out better than in previous events.

So, when McCain makes comments like the one about “the bracelet” he wore from the mother who lost a son in Iraq, it’s clear that Mr. McCain is doing this to goad Mr. Obama into responding with statements that make him look “unpresidential-like.”

If you look at the body movements of Mr. Obama during that exchange and others, the “I’ve got a bracelet too” remark, it reminds me of the way elementary school kids bicker. The school yard bully (Mr. McCain) is picking a fight with the class nerd and Mr. Obama is falling for it hook, line and sinker.

That has nothing to do with issues and I’m sure Mr. McCain’s advisers know that. But, apparently, Mr. Obama’s campaign has failed to notice.

In fact, Mr. Obama began hurling negative attacks only one minute and 30 seconds into the debate and Mr. McCain began attacking his opponent at the 14-minute mark.

I reserve the right to be a little off on any of my calculations because I find drinking a cold Budweiser during presidential debates makes the politicians much more palatable.

I’d like to see Mr. Obama take the high road from this point on in the election. I’m 43, and he reminds me of a John F. Kennedy-esque type candidate. He’s young, smart and passionate about fixing our country’s problems.

But if JFK were running against McCain, I don’t believe he would be smirking and grinning each time McCain told an untruth.

This campaign is going to be razor close and in the end, it’s the guy who looks more presidential-like who’s going to win the election. Carpe Diem, everybody. Have a great week.

— Christian lives in Greenbrier County. E-mail: cgiggenbach@register-herald.com