In victory, President-elect Obama was gracious and looking forward. In defeat, Sen. McCain was positive and bipartisan. Both showed leadership with messages to supporters and to those who did not vote for them. We asked the question last week about what each needed to communicate in acceptance and concession speeches.
So the first post election communications were strong and positive. Obama appeared sober, deciding that he would leave it for others to chest thump and avoiding an in-your-face or “look what we did” posture.
Can he keep up this positive, collaborative, “we have a lot of work to do” communication while taking advantage of the spoils of victory? Will McCain come back to Washington and help?
Yes, I agree, both candidates were gracious and impressive at the end of the night. For Obama, of course, it was in keeping with the hallmark of his campaign– his expressive, pitch-perfect rhetorical style. From McCain, it was a surprise. His campaign had been so full of bluster, his debate demeanor so pugnacious, it was a delightful relief to see him be the fine man we all knew he was underneath the bad advice he apparently was getting from his campaign managers.
In my opinion, Obama’s speech was the better of the two, for the fact that he was not boastful about it. He gave great points for America to think of, with great perspective. He spoke eloquently to even the youngest child in the crowd, and I was pleasantly surprised at his demeanor and welcoming nature (I was a McCain supporter).
McCain did give a ‘more spritely than usual’ speech, which was a refreshing change, but I felt that his posture relayed his defeat.