Hey, Barack! Time To Stick And Move, Buddy

The Left is too outraged to see that the Moderate Middle likes Sara Palin, and thinks the charges (to date) are petty, baseless or wildly exaggerated.

Obama's strategy was always Defeat Bush-McCain. That's shot, the Palin pick makes it crystal clear that McCain is no Bush.

Plan B would be, just keep pushing your themes and programs. But if Campaign Obama were confident in those, they'd already be pushing them. And McCain has seized control of the debate, so your stuff might not get through anyway.

Time for Plan C:

1. Welcome, Governor Palin. Sorry about the pig thing -- thoughtless at best, I'll do better.
2. Please tell me, what are your views/track record on manufacturing jobs and competitiveness, economic fairness, shipping jobs overseas, urban education?
3. We know you agree with Sen. McCain on Iraq and Afghanistan; but what are your views on the proper military structure going forward? our relations with China? Islamic countries? Africa?
4. Oh right, the _Presidential_ nominee. Senator, you're no George Bush, but what is _your_ plan for the economy, environment, education?
5. Congratulations, you've just vetoed all the pork Congress can muster. You've saved what, 5% of the federal deficit? Now what?
6. You're about change, that's great, is there an iota of evidence that there is anyone outside your party actually with you on this? In the lower 48, please.
- Outside of crazed Oklahoma doctors. The Republican hates Tom Coburn as much as the Democrats.
- We'll give you Lindsey Graham.
- Why is it that the only other ally you've got in the Senate is a _Democrat_ (btw, we're taking Joe Lieberman back, the whole Lamont thing was shameful)?
- Your election would empower the same Senators that backed Trent Lott and Bill Frist!
6. Never mind Afghanistan, everyone agrees on refocusing there. What with half the army sitting in Baghdad, what the hell are we going to do if Pakistan melts down? China goes after Taiwan?
7. You're 72? You don't look a day over 65.
8 I've got a reform agenda in my own party:
- Look at me, here in Newark condemning the party bosses slowing down Cory Booker!
- What, teachers unions in XXX are stifling reform? Not on my watch!
- I just discovered Bob Byrd was in the KKK! And he's moving the seat of government to West Virginia! We'll throw _him_ out!

Get McCain off "reform" and make _him_ state what _he_ means. Get people asking why he won't come to your turf. Accept Palin's bona fides as an at least plausible candidate, if only to get the focus off her, but press her to address issues, and in particular stuff outside her history and off the briefing books. Show some signs that you'll actually contest at least the worst excesses of your own party (frankly, it's probably too late for that to stick, but at this point it might be worth a shot anyway).

The risk of this is, 1) McCain/Palin get to answer the questions and thus continue to drive the debate; 2) their answers might be good!; 3) your answers aren't so compelling; 4) if voters think government is full of hard questions they can't answer themselves, they may look instead to the candidates' philosophy and character, and you're already nervous about that comparison. And 5), McCain may succeed at just ignoring you, though I doubt that'll work for seven weeks.

Obama and his allies have completely misread the general reaction to Palin, and so missed their best opportunities to highlight her real weaknesses. They were counting on the Bush-McCain / out-of-touch stuff, and at this point all that is shot. It isn't clear they've got anything else, and I'm not sure they've got the depth to respond. But they have to try to move the debate back to their terms and issues, and they can't do that while complaining that Palin is a moron and whining it's all so unfair. It's risky, but so was Palin, and now look where things are.

At this point, Obama looks like an inflexible strategist with only one or two arguments, and a guy who can't take a punch. They can sit around wishing it was mid-July again, or they can get off their ass and take a shot. This whole thing is in their court right now.