There are several problems with the attack on McCain’s seven houses. And when I say “problems,” I don’t mean just logical problems but also political problems. In order to make a class resentment case against a wealthy politician, you have to make two points: First, you have to establish the candidate’s great wealth. Next, and this is the critical step, you have to show that the candidate’s wealth has separated him from the common man.
This is a tough case to make against McCain because of his life story. While it makes lefty heads pop off every time McCain loyalists point to his military service, McCain shared in the greatest challenges that his generation faced. As the left has often pointed out with evident glee, this was not the case with many wealthy Republican office-seekers who came of age in the Vietnam era.
And then there are the optics of John McCain himself. If McCain spends a lot of money on his wardrobe, it doesn’t show. He may wear $550 loafers, but (and I say this respectfully), he still manages to look extremely frumpy. He doesn’t wind-surf or snow-board. Having been laid as low in his life as he was in Vietnam, McCain just doesn’t come across as the kind of rich guy who floats above the concerns of the ordinary citizen.
So what are the Democrats left with? They’re left complaining that McCain has too much wealth. And they’re left with a guy who made $4 million last year to push that case. Honestly, if they were really intent on pursuing the class warfare angle, surely they could have come up with a cleaner narrative.
BOOM! Dean Barnett nails it!
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