The race is on. With the official selection of Arizona Sen. John McCain as the GOP contender on the November ballot, the campaign to be the next president of the United States gets down to business. With less than two months to go before the election, the two parties' strategy and tactics are clear, and, incredibly, they appear to be flogging the same message: Change the way business is done in Washington. The question is whether voters will turn to a relative newcomer who looks — literally — nothing like the face of traditional American politics or a veteran politician with a quarter century of experience in Washington.
Mr. McCain claimed the nomination in front of a rapturous crowd of the party faithful last week in St. Paul, Minnesota. The convention narrative painted the Republican nominee as a war hero who has throughout his life put his country before his own interests; he's a maverick who sticks to his guns, even if that means defying his party and entrenched interests in Washington. Those are the pillars of the McCain campaign: He is a man whose patriotism is above challenge, whose judgment can be trusted, and who will fight for the interests of the ordinary citizen rather than the "elite" that GOP convention speakers slammed at every opportunity.
It promises to be an uphill battle for Mr. McCain. Some 80 percent of U.S. voters think the country is on the wrong track, and the Democrats are doing their best to paint Mr. McCain as "more of the same" by tying him to U.S. President George W. Bush. Indeed, the incumbent was conspicuous by his absence during the convention. His wife got a thunderous greeting but the president himself only appeared by video. Mr. McCain's acceptance speech referred only to "the president" once and he never mentioned Mr. Bush by name. And yet, although the Republicans controlled the White House for the last eight years and Congress for six of the last eight years, Mr. McCain and his strategists have decided to run against "Washington." They take solace from polls that show Congress' standing is lower than that of Mr. Bush.