The Race Begins in Earnest

John McCain will be in nearby Sterling Heights later today, together with his new VP. The conventions are over, the speeches have been given, and now it's just two candidates (and their #2's). I didn't watch McCain's speech last night, but from all reports, and the clips that I've seen, it's pretty much what we've seen before. He's not eloquent but he has a compelling life story. He fought then and he'll fight now. But as for what he'll do to change Washington or solve the nation's woes, we heard nothing new.

McCain's claim to change is that he'll cut taxes and cut spending. Well, we've seen taxes cut these past 8 years and the economy is worse off now then when George Bush began. As for the spending he'll cut -- the biggest drain on the economy is the war, along with energy prices. At this point in time oil prices are going down, but the economy still is having problems. Living in Michigan the biggest issue is getting the auto industry back in form, that is, we need to move to the new realities.

Obama is calling for support to Detroit as it retools -- as long as it retools. He talks about giving tax breaks to companies that will create jobs for American workers. I expect his trade policy will be pragmatic. Indeed, everything we've seen is that he's a careful, pragmatic, compassionate leader. He's not impulsive nor does he have a quick trigger. I like that!