Rattled
The Dow dropped below 9,000 this afternoon for the first time since 2003.
And the harder the economy falls, the less likely it seems John McCain and the Republicans will have success with a homestretch smear campaign against the Democratic nominee.
Bill Ayers? Who cares? Cavorting with domestic terrorists? A charge that's unlikely to stick to the Harvard Law-educated Barack Obama. Allowing surrogates to use Obama's middle name, Hussein, to cast doubt on his Christian faith, to imply he's a Muslim, to suggest he's un-American. Garbage.
Who's buying the Democrats' "Keating Five" nonsense, for that matter, when voters are watching their retirement savings evaporate, when they're worried about keeping their homes or paying for health care and college bills.
Both White House candidates would be wise to keep it as clean as possible in coming weeks, to emphasize their economic solutions and compassion for citizens struggling to make ends meet, watching their dreams of a comfortable retirement evaporate in a matter of days.
The problem for McCain in all this is that his economic plans -- to extend the Bush tax cuts, to slash the corporate tax rate -- line up with the president's proposals. The translation -- at least if the Democrats are doing their jobs -- is that he's looking out for the wealthy, not the little guy. That he's more worried about big business than mom and pop shops. And in truly tough and scary economic times, that's an easier sell for the Dems.
The ailing market could help usher Obama into office, but curing it will be a daunting challenge for the next president and an urgent test of his efficacy.
(JENNIFER SKALKA)
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