Forget “Hope”: Go with the Details

The prolonged Democratic fight has allowed McCain to do some campaigning in areas that he is not expected to win in November, and the message he is bringing is a far cry from the one both Democrats are promoting. From the Los Angeles Times:

“Instead of promising truckloads of aid if he's elected, McCain talked up his vision of a government that helps more by doing less.

It's not a new message from the Arizona senator, who follows an unpredictable political muse but typically favors smaller government and less regulation. Yet the context was important. Standing outside the Ohio factory Tuesday, in a state where Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton pandered to protectionists, McCain actually stood up for the North American Free Trade Agreement and free trade. The lost factory jobs aren't coming back, McCain said, and rather than waging a futile fight against globalization, Washington should do a better job training workers for careers in the new economy.”

Lord knows telling the electorate the hard cold truth in an election year is rarely advised, but it sure offers up an interesting contrast between McCain and the envoy of artificial “hope.”

Update: Welcome Real Clear Politics readers!