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Is The Culture War Dead?
ByMichael Scherer evaluates McCain's new ad:
In some ways, this is a predictable theme. Every presidential election since Vietnam has, in some ways, been a retread of the 1960s culture war. Bill Clinton smoked pot, remember. Gary Hart internalized the free love thing. Michael Dukakis was a card carrying member of the ACLU. Republicans like this theme because it unites the nation's hinterlands against the cultural elites, the liberals of New York and Los Angeles. But the effectiveness of the strategy is arguably aging. Does the theme still work with a post-baby boom candidate? Or for post-baby boom voters?
DIsh readers don't think so. I find Obama's post-culture war appeal to be central to his candidacy. But as an empirical matter, I'm not sure the post-Vietnam gambit is totally played out yet. Here's hoping.
