How to attack John McCain on the economy

After being infuriated with Obama's unwillingness to speak about the economy with a populist tilt, imagine my reaction when I wake up this morning to see this awesome headline: (Via TomP)

Obama sounds populist themes in Virginia bus tour

Holy Crap. It gets even better:

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (AP) — Democrat Barack Obama pledged Wednesday to create millions of union jobs in alternative energy and end tax breaks for companies that move jobs overseas, using tough new populist language to convince voters that he, not rival John McCain, is best positioned to lift the limping U.S. economy.

. . .

Obama stuck mostly to economic themes during his appearance, adopting a pitch that sounded much like Hillary Rodham Clinton in the waning days of her primary campaign. The former first lady defeated Obama in eight of the last 13 primaries using populist language that strongly resonated with rural and working-class voters.

. . .

Obama said it was wrong that the Iraqi government has been sitting on billions of dollars in oil revenue while the U.S. spends billions to rebuild the country.

"We should be using some of that money to rebuild Virginia, laying roads, building broadband lines and putting people back to work," Obama said.

As for tax breaks to companies taking jobs overseas, Obama said: "We sure as heck don't have to give them incentives to move. ... We should give companies tax breaks that are right here."

. . .

"If you give me that opportunity, if you give me that chance, I will fight for you every single day," he pledged. "I'll wake up every day in that White House thinking about those people in Martinsville."

The article references how this type of talk helped Hillary Clinton, and that's actually a bigger tribute to the power of populism more than anything else. If it can make Hillary Clinton sound like a good idea... well then think what it can do for Barack Obama!

Granted, he throws in that line about us spending all of our money to rebuild Iraq, while those greedy Iraqis hoard their oil money, ( a statement that is so absurd I'm gonna write about it at some point very soon) but if use that line in the midst of all those others, it's hard to stay mad at him for too long. And if you thought that was good, and that ad that I posted here yesterday was horrendous, well then get ready for this:

I don't understand how the campaign can put out two ads like that in the span of several days. This ad gets everything right:

• 1 Theme- Taxes
• Introduces John McCain's shitty tax plan
• Good specifics of who McCain's plan helps
• Rails on outsourcing
• Rails on corporate greed
• Rails on Oil companies
  
• Says McCain's tax cuts wont help you
• Says that Obama's tax plan will help you
  

What a difference a day makes, huh? One theme, reinforcing examples, and then how your plan is better!

Genuinely populist rhetoric, and and genuinely populist ad that should be tremendously effective... I don't even know what to say. This turn around could be a legitimate change of heart on how to attack John McCain on the economy, or it could be message testing. I'd rather it be a change of heart, but we should win either way when this ad tests through the roof.

With more messaging like this this, he'll turn this thing around in no time.