From Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo:
Do we need to remind Joe Biden he was hired to take the gloves off?
Late Update: Am I actually seeing more examples of Obama hitting Palin than Biden? WTF, not Obama's job.
Later Update: Also, time to start calling McCain the liar that he is. On taxes principally. He's lying about taxes. Can't be said enough, has to start now.
I know Joe gave a fiery speech yesterday, but he REALLY must stop praising McCain and Palin at every opportunity. That is not going to win the election. He might as well tell people to just vote for McCain.
I think we need moratorium on John McCain praise now. Enough is enough! Did the Republicans say one nice word about John Kerry in 2004? Did they acknowledge he was a war hero? Nope -- they hit him where he was strongest, and it worked.
Have they said one nice thing about Obama? NO. So why does Biden need to begin every point with words of praise for McCain or Palin?
Biden on September 5:
"John McCain is my friend," said the loquacious Blue Hen. "I admire John McCain. I know of no man or woman I have ever met that has more personal courage than John McCain. We have been friends for over 33 years. We have traveled together. When John was Navy liaison he staffed me for three or four years everywhere I traveled in the world.
"Jill and John are good friends," Biden said, referring to his wife Dr. Jill Biden, who had just introduced him. "Matter of fact there’s a best-selling book written about us called The Nightingale's Song about John and some of his graduating class from Annapolis that references Jill and John in the book as good buddies."
Digby and other bloggers at Hullabaloo have noticed too. They've reminded us of Michael Moore's wise words:
I came across this blueprint from Michael Moore on how the Democrats can manage, despite incredible odds, to wrest defeat from the jaws of certain victory. It was written before Biden was chosen as Obama's running mate:
Just follow each of these steps and you, the Democratic Party establishment, can help elect John Sidney McCain III to a four-year extension of the Bush Era.
1. Keep saying nice things about McCain.
2. Pick a running mate who is a conservative white guy or a general or a Republican.
3. Keep writing speeches for Obama that make him sound like a hawk.
4. Forget that this was a historic year for women.
5. Show up to a gunfight with a peashooter.
6. Denounce me!
5 out of 6, by my count. And it's only early September. There's still time to do 'em all.
UPDATE: And while the following doesn't hurt, it really doesn't help things at all. As Moore astutely observes:
You've sold them on the idea that McCain isn't a bad egg, and they do not hear the rest of what you have to say: "But John McCain is four more years of George W. Bush."
I don't agree with all of Moore's points, but he is certainly right that Biden needs to stop with the bravery and war hero talk about McCain.
There are more than a dozen key issues that Biden could hit McCain/Palin on -- IRAQ. big oil. the environment. All of their LIES in the last week.
Biden's appearance on Meet the Press this morning did not give me confidence that he is going to go on the attack any time soon.