Kephart: Both Men Do Well but McCain Outshined Obama at Saddleback Church
The following is a posting from Sam Kephart, former Republican candidate for U.S. Senate and an occasional contributor to South Dakota Watch. 
I don’t agree with Sam’s conclusion but I think he provides a thoughtful analysis of last night’s candidate forum between Senators Barack Obama and John McCain with Pastor Rick Warren at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California.
——-
Over 400 years ago, in Shakespeareʼs play The Merchant of Venice, his character Launcelot said “…but at length, truth will out”. So it did Saturday evening, August 16th., for Americaʼs 2008 Presidential campaign.
Rick Warren, Pastor of the Lake Forest California-based Saddleback Church, hosted a Civil Forum on The Presidency that was cablecast, live, by MSNBC. He personally interviewed, for an hour each, both Senators Barack Obama and John McCain. If you didnʼt see it and you plan to cast your vote on November 4th., youʼd better catch the re-broadcast or look it up online. It was the clearest, cleanest in-depth view of the opposing candidates since the election season started.
Pastor Warren was able to get both men to reveal more about themselves in an hour-long detailed conversation, than the best of Americaʼs political hacks and news anchors have been able to do in more than eighteen months of ad nauseum, generally uninsightful, coverage.
Both candidates were relaxed, confident, open, polite, and considerate. Senator Obamaʼs personality and charisma were very apparent, and he gave honest, thoughtful answers. However, John McCainʼs responses to the same questions (he was in a sound-proof room while Obama was asked them first) were nothing less than a political tour-de-force… and a defining moment in Americaʼs 2008 Presidential Campaign. It would not be right, nor fair, to say McCain “won” the debate. In the first place, it wasnʼt a debate; it was a candid conversation with each of the candidates. There was nothing to win - no right or wrong answers. However, it was a very clear window into their worldview, emotions, and priorities.
It should have been clear to anyone who watched it, that John McCain is, indeed, ready for our nationʼs highest elected office… and Barack Obama is not.
My conclusion comes not so much from what was said, but how both Senators answered Pastor Warrenʼs probing questions. For the most part, Barack Obamaʼs
answers were, at best, tentative. McCainʼs were clear, immediate, and unflinching.
Thereʼs an interesting concept in psychology called meta-talk. In essence, it refers to the greater meaning of our spoken encounters with each other, i. e., when a conversation is taking place there is more going on than just the words being spoken.
Thereʼs body language, intonation, patterns of speech, etc., all of which add to the unconscious context or hidden meaning behind whatʼs being said.
While Senator Obama gave thoughtful answers, his responses were sometimes hesitant and filled with vocal pauses, indicating that he was either not comfortable answering the questions, hadnʼt yet formulated a conviction, or wasnʼt sure how he was being perceived. Senator McCain, by comparison, was direct, immediately responsive, heartfelt, humorous, and confident.
It was readily apparent that McCainʼs waters run much deeper than has ever been shown before on TV. His deep regret about the failure of his first marriage was evident; his patriotism and commitment to Americaʼs security and values were real. Obamaʼs concerns for for the little guy and his desire to protect “the least among us” were also manifest and compelling. Given Americaʼs current energy and economic mess, due largely to an axis of greed that has been allowed to build, unregulated, between the elites of Wall Street and K Street, Obamaʼs positions have great appeal to many Americans.
In the final analysis, however, itʼs clear that the evening went to Senator McCain, who is ready to inherit the mantle of power. Senator Obama, while obviously a charismatic political phenom, is not quite ready to be Commander-in-Chief.
The arguable “father” of modern social theory was the late German politician and economist, Max Weber (1864-1920). Weber once said “Avoid holding all those who contend as politicians in contempt, but strive to hold them to account. Remember that they will shape the world in which you live and that each of you has the ability to affect, somewhat, whether it is more a bit of heaven or a bit of hell.”
The big winner of the night was Pastor Rick Warren. By holding his guests to account, rather than in contempt, he got both Senators to give gut-level answers, without spin, that brought the truth out. Perhaps Weber was right…
Cross posted to Kansas Watch and South Dakota Watch.
Photo above: Sam Kephart.
Photo below: Online flyer of the event from Saddleback Church.
Sam Kephart is CEO of Virtual Acumen Corp., a Spearfish based creative agency specializing in digital media and marketing. He was also a Republican candidate for the U. S. Senate in 2008. He can be reached at sam2sam@aol.com
I don’t agree with Sam’s conclusion but I think he provides a thoughtful analysis of last night’s candidate forum between Senators Barack Obama and John McCain with Pastor Rick Warren at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California.
——-
Over 400 years ago, in Shakespeareʼs play The Merchant of Venice, his character Launcelot said “…but at length, truth will out”. So it did Saturday evening, August 16th., for Americaʼs 2008 Presidential campaign.
Rick Warren, Pastor of the Lake Forest California-based Saddleback Church, hosted a Civil Forum on The Presidency that was cablecast, live, by MSNBC. He personally interviewed, for an hour each, both Senators Barack Obama and John McCain. If you didnʼt see it and you plan to cast your vote on November 4th., youʼd better catch the re-broadcast or look it up online. It was the clearest, cleanest in-depth view of the opposing candidates since the election season started.
Pastor Warren was able to get both men to reveal more about themselves in an hour-long detailed conversation, than the best of Americaʼs political hacks and news anchors have been able to do in more than eighteen months of ad nauseum, generally uninsightful, coverage.
Both candidates were relaxed, confident, open, polite, and considerate. Senator Obamaʼs personality and charisma were very apparent, and he gave honest, thoughtful answers. However, John McCainʼs responses to the same questions (he was in a sound-proof room while Obama was asked them first) were nothing less than a political tour-de-force… and a defining moment in Americaʼs 2008 Presidential Campaign. It would not be right, nor fair, to say McCain “won” the debate. In the first place, it wasnʼt a debate; it was a candid conversation with each of the candidates. There was nothing to win - no right or wrong answers. However, it was a very clear window into their worldview, emotions, and priorities.
It should have been clear to anyone who watched it, that John McCain is, indeed, ready for our nationʼs highest elected office… and Barack Obama is not.
My conclusion comes not so much from what was said, but how both Senators answered Pastor Warrenʼs probing questions. For the most part, Barack Obamaʼs
answers were, at best, tentative. McCainʼs were clear, immediate, and unflinching.
Thereʼs an interesting concept in psychology called meta-talk. In essence, it refers to the greater meaning of our spoken encounters with each other, i. e., when a conversation is taking place there is more going on than just the words being spoken.
Thereʼs body language, intonation, patterns of speech, etc., all of which add to the unconscious context or hidden meaning behind whatʼs being said.
While Senator Obama gave thoughtful answers, his responses were sometimes hesitant and filled with vocal pauses, indicating that he was either not comfortable answering the questions, hadnʼt yet formulated a conviction, or wasnʼt sure how he was being perceived. Senator McCain, by comparison, was direct, immediately responsive, heartfelt, humorous, and confident.
It was readily apparent that McCainʼs waters run much deeper than has ever been shown before on TV. His deep regret about the failure of his first marriage was evident; his patriotism and commitment to Americaʼs security and values were real. Obamaʼs concerns for for the little guy and his desire to protect “the least among us” were also manifest and compelling. Given Americaʼs current energy and economic mess, due largely to an axis of greed that has been allowed to build, unregulated, between the elites of Wall Street and K Street, Obamaʼs positions have great appeal to many Americans.
In the final analysis, however, itʼs clear that the evening went to Senator McCain, who is ready to inherit the mantle of power. Senator Obama, while obviously a charismatic political phenom, is not quite ready to be Commander-in-Chief.
The arguable “father” of modern social theory was the late German politician and economist, Max Weber (1864-1920). Weber once said “Avoid holding all those who contend as politicians in contempt, but strive to hold them to account. Remember that they will shape the world in which you live and that each of you has the ability to affect, somewhat, whether it is more a bit of heaven or a bit of hell.”
The big winner of the night was Pastor Rick Warren. By holding his guests to account, rather than in contempt, he got both Senators to give gut-level answers, without spin, that brought the truth out. Perhaps Weber was right…
Cross posted to Kansas Watch and South Dakota Watch.
Photo above: Sam Kephart.
Photo below: Online flyer of the event from Saddleback Church.
Sam Kephart is CEO of Virtual Acumen Corp., a Spearfish based creative agency specializing in digital media and marketing. He was also a Republican candidate for the U. S. Senate in 2008. He can be reached at sam2sam@aol.com
Posted on Sunday, August 17, 2008
by
Todd Epp
in 2008 Election, 2008 Presidential Election, Religion
|
9 Comments
Todd Epp
in 2008 Election, 2008 Presidential Election, Religion
|
9 Comments
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Reader Comments (9)
Wonder what Mr. Kephart would think about Andrea Mitchell's musings on Meet the Press today about a possible reason for McCain's good performance:
Transcript: "And, you know, there was the crisp, immediate, forceful response by John McCain, clearly in a comfort zone because he was with his base. And Barack Obama, taking a risk in going there but seeing an opportunity. And a much more nuanced approach. The Obama people must feel that he didn't do quite as well as they might have wanted to in that context, because that -- what they're putting out privately is that McCain may not have been in the cone of silence and may have had some ability to overhear what the questions were to Obama."
So the Obama camp wants the public to think that maybe McCain wasn't insulated from the questions. And used Andrea Mitchell as their surrogate. But what else is new?
They need to prove it, or answer for this. If the McCain camp had implied this about Obama, by God, we wouldn't hear the end of it.
Of course McCain wasn't isolated from the questions. Rick Warren just admitted it on CNN. It was a set-up pure and simple. Where's the Bible verse that endorses gotcha politics?
What exactly did he say? I can't find it on the CNN website yet.
Pastor Warren admitted when pressed by CNN's Rick Sanchez that McCain wasn't even at the church during the first half of Obama's interview, but he was sure no one listened. You know, the honor system. Hahahaha....
Just read this on another blog, "A Presidential candidate cheating and a pastor lying at a forum on values. Oh, the irony. The sweet sweet irony."
You characterized it as a set-up. Not exactly true.
If anybody cares, here is what the McCain campaign is saying:
http://www.johnmccain.com/McCainReport/Read.aspx?guid=86cd988c-66ce-4416-951e-489c30596ee1
And here is CNN's report:
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/08/17/warren-mccain-did-not-violate-cone-of-silence/
You really believe McCain didn't listen? Also, Pastor Warren lied when he said McCain was in a cone of silence. He knew he wasn't.
Warren may have lied, but there is no proof that McCain heard anything. Just like there's no proof that Obama was present over 20 years when Wright said inflammatory stuff.