The Moment

In the run-up to each of the past three debates, pundits and reporters have rehashed pivotal moments in debates past, almost salivating at the possibility that another such moment will present itself. "You are no Jack Kennedy," "Who am I? Why am I here?," "Are you better off than you were four years ago?," George H.W. Bush checking his watch while Bill Clinton felt a voter's pain, Al Gore encroaching upon George W. Bush during a town hall debate - each a moment, arguably THE moment, in the campaign when one candidate etched himself (or was etched) into the American consciousness in a distinct and permanent way. Watching last night's second presidential debate, I believe we witnessed just such a moment.

Toward the middle of the debate, moderator Tom Brokaw asked McCain the following question: "Should we fund a Manhattan-like project that develops a nuclear bomb to deal with global energy and alternative energy or should we fund 100,000 garages across America, the kind of industry and innovation that developed Silicon Valley?"

McCain's response began innocuously enough: "I think pure research and development investment on the part of the United States government is certainly appropriate. I think once it gets into productive stages, that we ought to, obviously, turn it over to the private sector." Then, it took the following turn: "By the way, my friends, I know you grow a little weary with this back-and-forth. It was an energy bill on the floor of the Senate loaded down with goodies, billions for the oil companies, and it was sponsored by Bush and Cheney. You know who voted for it? You might never know. That one."

It was those last two words, churlishly and venomously aimed directly at Obama which took my breath away. We've been inundated with reports that McCain "doesn't like" Obama and certainly been witness to his disdain and surly temperament throughout the campaign, but this was THE moment when it became clear that what McCain feels for Obama is more than dislike - it is contempt.

McCain's campaign has provided more proof for his contempt than those two words, of course. In the past week alone, at rallies led by both McCain and Palin, attendees have, at the mention of Obama's name, burst forth with cries of "Terrorist!" and "Kill him!" How did McCain and/or Palin respond at such abhorrent displays of misinformation and malice? By saying nothing. No admonishments, no attempts to set the record straight, no calls to have those people removed from the rallies - nothing but silence and, in the case of Palin, the slightest smirk.

The McCain-Palin ticket has become one actively courting the darkest side of the American psyche, preying upon the fear, ignorance and gullibility that led us into two catastrophic Bush administrations, a criminal war in Iraq and cultural wars over abortion, gay rights and judicial oversight. And now, let there be no mincing words from this point forward, they are not just using, but displaying, racism and ethnophobia as a means of winning an election. "That one can't be trusted," they say, ugliness on full-display.

After last night's moment, and the several this week which preceded it, it will no longer wash with me when people say they are voting for McCain for reasons of experience, foreign policy credentials, his desire to "shake up" the Washington of which he's been a part of more than thirty years, or the honorability of his military service. No one could vote for McCain at this point, out of sheer disgust alone, unless they also shared his cynicism about, and contempt for, an America that looks and sounds different than it used to - an America that may just elect a person of color as its next President.

And that's why, regardless the election's outcome, we've seen the pivotal debate moment of this cycle. If McCain wins, it will be because we live in a nation riddled with the cancers of fear, contempt and willful ignorance. If Obama wins, it will be because we live in a nation finally prepared to reject the sins of its past and learn how to move forward together. The choice couldn't be clearer.

I know which I want. "That one."