Thank You Letter To John McCain

It's been a little over a month since Barack Obama was elected the 44th President of the United States. The campaign was one of the ugliest I've seen in my adult life and I believe it was largely due to the campaign strategy of the McCain/Palin ticket. The following letter (which I never intend to actually send) sums up the frustration I, and many others felt during the campaign. Instead of a campaign on issues, we got the typical Karl Rove identiy/culturue war. Fortunately America was paying attention and was not hoodwinked by the politics of distraction. Barack's election was historic but it does not mean we have arrived. His presidency is not the destination, it is but one step (albeit a very significant and profound step) in the right direction. If you agree with the sentiments in this letter, say so. If you do not, say so and let's have an open, honest dialogue.


Dear Senator McCain,

Now that this historic election is over, the nation owes you a debt of gratitude and on behalf of Americans everywhere, let me be the first to say “thank you.”

• Thank you for making the same mistake Hilary Clinton made in underestimating Senator Obama. I understand what a shock it must be to have been so soundly defeated by a man who, prior to the Democratic National Convention just four years ago, was relatively unknown. Your inability to see the real challenge he posed to your bid for the White House made his ascent that much easier.

• Thank you for constantly mocking and disrespecting your opponent’s experience as a community organizer. Your campaign’s inability to adapt new strategies and techniques gave young voters only one choice in this election. Senator Obama used his oft criticized community organizing experience to build the most effective, strategic, grass-roots campaign in the history of American politics. While you were launching fearful, racist, robo calls, his “ground game” literally knocked on more than a million doors the day before the election.


• Thank you for wasting time resurrecting old news by constantly brining up his past associations. Because Senator Obama faced a real challenge during the Democratic Primary, he had been fully vetted by the time he got to the general election, so your question: “who is the Real Barack Obama?” had already been asked, re-asked and sufficiently answered. Every moment you spent talking about Ayers, Rezko, Wright and Khalidi was a moment you failed to let the nation know your plan for getting America back on track.

• Thank you for picking Sarah Palin. That decision gave us the first glimpse into your judgment as a leader. By picking someone so utterly unqualified for the position of Vice President, you not only energized the Republican base, you energized the rest of the electorate. I’m not sure whether you really believe she’s qualified (my instincts tell me you don’t) or whether she was a pawn in a desperate attempt to change the conversation and shift the momentum of the Democratic National Convention. Either way, it revealed a lot about the manner in which you would govern this country. The contrast between your erratic campaign (from the Palin pick to the fake campaign suspension to the first debate bluff) and Senator Obama’s steady, focused leadership, was stark; and it was greatly appreciated as we pondered who would be best to lead during these difficult times.

• Thank you for turning Palin loose and letting her be the “real” Sarah Palin. The two of you incited the ugliest sentiments and emotions during your rallies and as you threw racial fire-bombs and stood back to watch the carnage, America was able to confront its racist past and present; and vote for Obama anyway. Your attempts to scare us into voting for you and against him, actually accomplished the opposite, and as you said in your concession speech: “the American people have spoken and they have spoken clearly.”

There are many more reasons for us to be grateful today but I wanted to personally thank you for the role you played in making history. As a maverick, I hope we can count on you to reach across the aisle and work with President Obama as passionately and vigorously as you worked to defeat him in this election. I am confident that you will live up to your campaign slogan and put your dislike and disappointment aside and put Country first.

THANK YOU,