8 Ways To Help Obama Steal Arizona
Sunday, August 24th, 2008Dear Barack Obama,
You could win this state, and I’m here to tell you how.
First, remember that John McCain was called a carpetbagger before anyone in Arizona called him senator.
Arizona may look red on cable TV. But a lot of that is just blood on the floor from all the brawling within the state’s GOP.
National pollster John Zogby says that if the GOP had nominated anybody but McCain, Arizona would be listed right up there with Virginia and Colorado as a red state that could flip to blue.
Zogby “can’t imagine” McCain losing Arizona in November. But he has seen enough support for Libertarian candidate Bob Barr to suggest there is an opening for the Obama campaign to throw McCain “off his game” in Arizona.
“Every day McCain has to spend in Arizona is a day he can’t spend somewhere else,” said Zogby. The same goes for dollars.
Two Democrats who won statewide elections in this so-called conservative state think an Obama win is possible in Arizona. Gov. Janet Napolitano believes it will happen. Attorney General Terry Goddard calls it a “long shot.”
Giving Napolitano a speaking role at the Democratic convention was a nice nod to her up-and-coming status in the party. Now, give her some private time to share the secrets of her success. Ditto for Goddard, whose political roots in Arizona are deeper than McCain’s.
Here are my other tips for turning Arizona blue:
1. Stop by and see us
A little effort in Arizona could go a long way. Goddard offers a reminder of what happened in 1964, when another Arizona favorite son, Barry Goldwater, was on the GOP ticket. Even though the Dems virtually ceded the state to him, Goldwater won Arizona only by 1 percentage point. What’s more, Goldwater’s coattails were pretty short. Democrat Sam Goddard, Terry’s father, won his race for governor that year by a wider margin.
And just think how impressive it would look on national TV to have a celebrity-size crowd shouting, “Obama, Obama!” in the heart of McCain country.
“Visit the state at least twice,” is the advice of Democratic state Rep. Cloves Campbell Jr., co-publisher of the Arizona Informant, a newspaper that primarily serves the African-American community. He says a visit would energize the grass-roots organization that is the Obama campaign’s “biggest asset” in the state.
So, make us feel special. Let Arizona see that you are a sensible man who won’t put Britney or Paris into the Cabinet. Perhaps more important, let us see that you’re hip enough to know Britney and Paris aren’t hip anymore.
2. Get prickly
Our state flower grows on a cactus. To win our hearts, you gotta show some spine. That makes hit pieces like Jerome Corsi’s fiction, The Obama Nation, more of an opportunity than a threat.
Pollster and Arizona State University Professor Bruce Merrill suggests, “Maybe people want to see if he’s tough enough to hit back … to see if he’s tough enough to be commander in chief.”
So, show us what you’ve got. In American politics, nice guys finish last.
3. Court Arizona’s Latino voters
OK, OK, this is supposed to be in the bag. Alfredo Gutierrez, a radio talk-show host and former state senator, says the Latino vote “will be overwhelmingly carried by Obama.”
But that’s only if Latinos turn out to vote.
Remind them why they should.
The GOP may have picked the only one of its presidential contenders willing to acknowledge that illegal immigrants are “God’s children,” but McCain hasn’t been thanking God for them lately.
“His backing away from comprehensive immigration reform … is not being lost on our community,” Gutierrez says.
Napolitano, who helped write the party platform, says an Obama administration will take on immigration reform “right away.” If McCain gets elected, he’ll likely be beholden to the anti-immigrant wing of his party, which favors mean-spirited laws that make even third-generation Latinos feel uncomfortable in the land where they were born.
Don’t let Latino voters forget that.
4. Exploit the rift in Arizona’s GOP
This is a rich mother lode.
National anger over illegal immigration has been momentarily eclipsed by other things, such as high gas prices, foreclosures, a weak economy, etc. But in the land of Sheriff Joe Arpaio, Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas and state Rep. Russell Pearce, immigration remains the issue most likely to get the GOP to turn on itself.
These Three Stooges of anti-immigrant antics keep the fight going between the GOP’s fire-breathing conservatives and the party’s pragmatic business types.
Pearce’s employer-sanctions law became a national model for the anti-immigrant crowd, but it has been soundly denounced by Arizona business leaders, who expected more than a hammer from the party they have long supported.
Give them an alternative.
As for the Woolly Mammoth Wing of the party, conventional wisdom says they’ll end up voting for McCain. But there’s a real lack of gusto. A few clever commercials about the senator’s support of “amnesty” might make them feel bad enough to stay home on Election Day.
“There remains the issue of enthusiasm,” as Gutierrez points out. “There is tremendous enthusiasm among Democrats, Hispanics and African-Americans for Barack Obama. Enthusiasm on one side may be enough to overcome the lack of enthusiasm on the other side.”
Here’s something else to sap the enthusiasm of the far right.
If McCain wins the White House, someone the right dislikes even more - Napolitano - will get to name the person who finishes his term in the Senate. She can pick the person she’d most like to run against in the 2010 Senate race.
Arizona’s GOP is deeply conflicted. Distribute some “Bob Barr for President” buttons.
5. Add some drama
(If only so we don’t have to hear “no-drama Obama,” anymore.) You want to keep Oprah inconspicuous during the convention? Fine. But don’t keep her hidden for long. This woman has more impact on America’s thinking than all the cable news talking heads.
This is an asset worth deploying.
Often and shamelessly.
6. Make nice with Hillary supporters
You may think you’ve sent Hillary supporters a dozen red roses. But, in the language of florists, they were mad enough for at least two bouquets. Your history-making run cost women theirs. I’m still sore. So are a lot of my sisters. Feel our pain. Make sure we know just how influential Hillary is going to be in the Obama administration.
You also have to do more to placate Bill. He’s one mad hombre. Get somebody to call him America’s first Black president. Or do it yourself. This will demonstrate the kind of (nose-holding) diplomatic skills a president needs when dealing with petulant foreign leaders.
7. Remember the independents
Independent voters make up nearly one-third of the state’s registered voters. Nobody wins without them. These folks signed up in the “other” category because they don’t want to be called Republican, Democrat, Green or Libertarian.
The political successes of Napolitano and Goddard suggest independents could swing your way.
With McCain’s reputation as a maverick in tatters, this is a good time to give those independents a reason to vote for a nice, moderate Democrat.
8. Stay focused
“His message of change is resonating well with Arizona,” says Mel Hannah, director of community outreach and job development at the Greater Phoenix Urban League. “It makes sense to a lot of people.”
Don’t get distracted.
When the Obama star began to rise, everybody was talking about how the campaign transcended race. That sells in Arizona, too.
Hannah says he has been politically active for decades, and, as an African-American from rural Arizona, he is convinced that race “is not nearly as high up as people would lead you to believe.”
What matters, he says, is a candidate’s credibility.
OK. So there it is.
These are my tips for winning my home state. I’ll be in Denver this week if you want to discuss any of this in more detail.
Just remember, this state could end up a lot less red than John McCain would like.
Credits: AZCentral.com
We support Barack Obama. For change.
