Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

It is understandable why John McCain has been vigilant in seeking 10 town hall meetings with Obama.  He expressed the point again yesterday when asked if he intended to show up for the debate in Oxford, Mississippi.

It is much easier to introduce theater and avoid specifics while accenting on personality if the agenda is suitable.  

The strategy of the McCain-Palin campaign has been to run away from the most unpopular White House resident in history and even the party that has been in control of events in the last eight years, save two years of a congressional small numerical Democracy majority.

That Democratic majority possessed enough size to prevent certain Bush-Cheney excesses but lacked sufficient numbers to enact an agenda of its own, faced with the constant reality of a Bush veto and possessing insufficient votes to override him.

It is important to have a debate format specifically narrowed down in terms of  participants and subject matter to provide a prospectively rewarding opportunity for the voting public.  

Once the public carefully listens to and observes the candidates the focus can be far more productively applied if voters act in the manner of attentive personnel directors rather than viewers of various forms of athletic and entertainment competitions.

A Republican Party seeking to avoid issues want the election to be decided on personality.  Rather than keeping score of a debate on a point by point basis, which is more useful in training speakers at the college and high school levels, political debate experiences will prove more beneficial if the contest aspect is avoided and the audience evaluates the candidates as one would the hiring of a potential job applicant.

While certainly less than perfect as a barometer, and allowing that certain candidates are more telegenic and audience friendly than others, a positive effort can be achieved if one attentively seeks to learn which candidate in a particular format has a grasp on the basic issues that matter to the nation and the broader context of the world extending beyond.

This is where the shrewd personnel director element falls into play.  Voters are evaluating which individual or individuals to "hire" to serve their interests.  

Just as a job applicant interviewed for an executive position in the business world is evaluated for readiness, basic knowledge, thinking skills including intuitive grasp, and overall command of the challenges ahead and how to confront them, candidates for public office should be analyzed in a similar fashion.

A presidential debate should be evaluated not in terms of personality points and pithy one-liners, but on the perceived abilities of candidates to develop intelligent policies to confront and make policy involving the major issues of the present that impact on the future.