Clinton borrows from LBJ's playbook

I've got to call Mr. Keating out on this one. He's crazy to say that this is like Daisy.

Johnson's ad is talking about nuclear war. Explicitly. There is nothing like that in Clinton's ad. It's not even the old red phone, the old hotline to the USSR. This ad is mostly clearly NOT about the annihilation of America.

To those who are likening this ad to GOP ads on security, I ask them to note the differences as well.

Note that the ad says that the children are sleeping safely. Note that the ad does not depict or describe an attack. It's not even necessarily about attacks on your children or America. Note also that it doesn't say anything about Obama not being able to to handle things.

Rather, this ad is about the moment of uncertainty. In the middle of the night the phone rings. You don't know what it portends. But being a phone in the White House, there is probably a crisis or emergency in the world. Think about when YOUR phone rings in the middle of the night. It could mean anything. But it might be a very big deal.

At that moment, do you want the uplifting rhetoric of Obama? Does his conciliation-based approach matter, then? This is not about the bully pulpit part of the presidency. This is not about the political deal making or even crafting of policy. This is about competence and perhaps experience. This is about judgement. This is the more hidden part of the presidency.

We know that Obama is better at the bully pulpit stuff - a very important part of the job. Obama might or might not be better at the deal-making stuff. The Clinton camp believes that she's better at the policy stuff. But what about the crisis stuff?

This is not about an attack on the United States. It's not about wolves or terrorists. It's about crisis generally.

And the ad asks, given the kind of world we live in, who do you want as president at THAT moment.

Some people would want Obama at moment. Others people would want Obama for the public stuff, and Clinton for the private stuff. Clinton is trying to remind that latter group of people how important the private stuff is.

I understand those who think that this is like a GOP national security ad, and I disagree with them. Why is it that any dramatization of a moment of crisis must be GOP like?

But likening this to Daisy? That's downright irresponsible. Or, at BEST it is irresponsible. At worst, it causes me to question Mr. Keating's agenda and/or abilities. It's insulting to readers and shames Foreign Policy.

but the comparison is clear. It's simply been watered down because we're all a little more savvy at recognizing the unbelievably blatant fear mongering in the Daisy ad.

It's not as BAD as Daisy, but to say it's reminiscent is a fair comparison.

Obama got this right, anyway. When it's 3 AM, I want the president who's got judgment, not experience.

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