The Making Of "The Good, the Bad, the Ugly"

By: Jeff Greenfield
Topics: Politics

(John P. Filo/CBS)

Jeff Greenfield is senior political correspondent for CBS News.

No, CBS Evening News is not re-making a famous spaghetti western. Instead, we're launching a weekly look at the most effective, most depressing and most what-planet-are-we-on events of the political week. The judgments are non-ideological – effective and depressing and weird events happen across the political spectrum – and we don't have a standard Olympic-style point-scoring standard for this feature.

For openers, we've chosen an obvious starting point: Sen. John McCain's selection of Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate. We've seen selections in the past change a campaign for the worse: George McGovern's pick of Sen. Tom Eagleton – whom he later dumped from the ticket, dooming whatever chance he had in 1972. Geraldine Ferraro in 1984 and Dan Quayle in 1988 proved liabilities for Walter Mondale and George H.W. Bush.

But the selection of Palin changed this campaign all the way to its roots. It fired up the socially conservative Republican base that had regarded McCain with wariness … if not hostility. It made "change!" a mantra that – at least temporarily – applied to McCain's campaign as much as it did to that of Obama, who had of course made "change" he theme for more than a year and a half.

And it shifted the whole focus form economic issues – a clear Democratic strength this year – to questions of culture and values, where Republicans have been harvesting votes for the better part of 40 years. Palin's image – the spunky, just-plain-folks, strong family mom who can take on the condescending big-shots – is a staple of American pop culture, and the reaction to her choice is measurable in everything from crowds to poll numbers. Will it fade, or change for the worse? Who knows. For now, it's been the most tactically effective move of the entire campaign.

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by pwd1957 September 13, 2008 2:40 PM EDT: The best result about Sarah Palin%u2019s arrival on the national landscape is that she makes us think. Here is a woman serving in public office, who happens to have 5 children, a supporting and loving husband, and likes the outdoors. And this is accomplished under the burden of being pro-life. She has kicked in the door of the old boys club but does not appear to be carrying any persecution baggage. Could the old boys club actually have to rethink long held views?

What is next? If this is true, could there also be African Americans who actually just want a fair opportunity and not a free meal ticket? Maybe not everyone in California is a self absorbed nutcase. Could an avid hunter champion the cause of preserving nature? Dare we consider the possibility that great American literature actually could come from the state of Mississippi?

It is not Sarah Palin%u2019s views in particular that are important, it is that she is challenging the status quo. We should think. We should not think through the filter of the national political parties; we should think based upon what we know first hand. Do not put others in a box. We make our world too small by thinking small.; Reply to this comment


by donc196 September 11, 2008 10:24 PM EDT: Let me see if I''''ve got this right...if I say "Obama s*cks" I''''m a god-fearing patriot republican. IF I say "Palin s*cks", I''''m a liberal leftist terrorist appeasing sexist pig DEMOCRAT. Ok, as a Combat Vet of Viet Nam, I''''ll just say McCain s*cks...Now, do I get Swift Boated?; Reply to this comment