Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Obama in Danger of Destroying His Brand?

NRO has a short piece by Byron York who says that a "well-connected Democrat" shared concerns about how Obama's move to the center might have the unintended consequence of dissolving his small-donor base.

This fits in with a recent NY Observer article with similar jitters about Obama's flexibility and the hidden pitfalls that might ensue abrupt moves rightward.

York's source claims that Obama believes that his centrist tilt will get him into the White House without big-donor obligations, but this Dem tells York that it is the "FISA-heads" & other policy geek/wonks who make the largest pct. of his small-donor base, the base that convinced him that reneging on his promise to accept public funding was a shrewd move.

If York's anonymous Democrat is right, Obama will have a lot of troubles. The York source doesn't mention it, but not only does Obama look like just another pol, but his broken promise on funding will harm his brand with less "pragmatic" independents, who believe that McCain's long record shows that he just might be a man of principle despite his frequent bobbing & weaving. The relatively unknown Obama in contrast reveals himself as just another Kerry flip-flop clone. In the end, the vital center will go for the comfort food Johnny Mac provides.

Read the piece for interesting & plausible morsels of Democrat disaffection with their candidate.

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