Will Palin entice Hillary's supporters?

In recent days many disappointed supporters of Hillary Rodham Clinton have been vowing to change their support, and vote, and back John McCain. A number of reasons have been put forward for this volte face, and many of them may be true but likely the main reason is the one that remains unspoken: the "elephant in the room that no one wants to mention". However, of late, some Clinton supporters have been making "trunk calls" and querying whether the country is "ready for, or wants to be governed by, an African-American".

So there it is: with only a couple of months to go before the election for president, race quietly rears its head, to be whispered in dark corners and alleyways, but not over the kitchen table or the parlour. Could this late starter in the game make a significant difference to the election? It is doubtful though, as it is likely there will be as many "antis" as there are "pros" on the issue, thereby effectively negating each other's vote.

But now that Republican candidate McCain has made his choice for vice-president known, it effectively becomes a spoiler for those disenchanted Democrat supporters of Hillary. In choosing Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, a fairly unknown player in national politics, let alone the international scene, McCain is blatantly attempting to court those discontent Democrats, mainly women, who were stridently active in their feminine support of Hillary.

However, Sarah is no Hillary, and Hillary is no Sarah. Politically they are at opposite ends of the spectrum. If a Democrat supporter is true to political beliefs, then switching votes, for whatever reason, and especially so if it is chauvinism or race, then it truly denies them the right to be called Democrats.

To a non-American, the long, tortuous road of electing presidential candidates that has taken place over the past 18 months has been more than exhausting to watch. Even many Americans would agree with that. But Americans like to boast that their system of elections is the only truly democratic one (in the world) as the candidate with the most votes gets elected. I've no wish at this time to explore the reasons why it isn't necessarily so, other than to say "Florida" but if, as claimed, it is a true democracy, then the minority must accept the decision of the majority.

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Accordingly, if the Democratic party, after five days of hyperbole and hoo-ha, have said "you da men!" to Obama and Biden then all Democrat supporters, especially those at the convention, are obliged to go along with the decision. Otherwise they should think about renaming the party, or changing party allegiance permanently.

From McCain's point of view, of course, it makes perfect sense for him to choose a woman as running mate. The undertones that emerged during the Democrat convention in Denver must have inspired him to make such a decision. Additionally, charges of age and experience can be effectively thwarted by both sides. On a mathematical basis, there is only a total three years difference between the combined ages of both sides: Obama, 47, and Biden 66, equals 113 years; McCain, 72, and Palin, 44, equals 116 years. So will it come down to Beauty and the Beast versus the Beast and Beauty? Knowing American politics, it could do so yet.

Although neither side have disclosed much about their mandate to the public, other than to say "Here I am!" or to save the US economy from the critical condition it is in, of interest to those living abroad is the foreign policy they expound. In that area neither has been particularly forthcoming, other than to say that the US will get out of Iraq by a designated time frame, maybe two years (Democrat) or, US could stay as long as 100 years (Republican).

Recent polls have shown that the majority of Americans want their troops out of Iraq PDQ, but not in such a way as to imply that American lives lost there so far, were wasted. Or that the departure of American troops was premature and gave every indication of defeat, as in Vietnam. On matters of foreign policy, Iraq is the biggest issue for America, but Afghanistan is rapidly pushing its way into the headlines. There again, the US recognises that its history with Afghanistan is not good, having pulled out too soon last time.

But if truth be told, these issues, while important to people living in the region, are rarely taken into consideration by American voters. Their interests lie more in the price of potatoes in the supermarket.