Barack “Bugs” Obama v. Hillary “Daffy” Clinton

Jeff Greenfield has a really interesting column on Slate where he says that one of few reliable rules in presidential politics is “Bugs Bunny always beats Daffy Duck.” He states “Bugs and Daffy represent polar opposites in how to deal with the world.” First he describes Bugs:

Bugs is at ease, laid back, secure, confident. His lidded eyes and sly smile suggest a sense that he knows the way things work. He's onto the cons of his adversaries. Sometimes he is glimpsed with his elbow on the fireplace mantel of his remarkably well-appointed lair, clad in a smoking jacket. (Jones once said Cary Grant was his inspiration for Bugs. Today it would be George Clooney.) Bugs never raises his voice, never flails at his opponents or at the world. He is rarely an aggressor. When he is pushed too far and must respond, he borrows a quip from Groucho Marx: "Of course, you realize this means war." And then, whether his foe is hapless hunter Elmer Fudd, varmint-shooting Yosemite Sam, or a raging bull, Bugs always prevails.

Daffy on the other hand:

Daffy Duck, by contrast, is ever at war with a hostile world. He fumes, he clenches his fists, his eyes bulge, and his entire body tenses with fury. His response to bad news is a sibilant sneer ("Thanks for the sour persimmons, cousin!"). Daffy is constantly frustrated, sometimes by outside forces, sometimes by his own overwrought response to them. In one classic duel with Bugs, the two try to persuade Elmer Fudd to shoot the other—until Daffy, tricked by Bugs' wordplay, screams, "Shoot me now!" "Hmmm," he adds a moment later in a rare bit of self-scrutiny. "Pronoun trouble."

He gives historical examples of Bugs v. Daffy races (Kennedy-Nixon, Reagan-Carter, and Bush-Gore). The Bush-Gore example was interesting recalling how in one of the debates Gore walked up behind Bush while he was answering a question, startling Bush, who nonetheless simply smiled and said “hi there.” A Bugs moment if I ever saw one.

Of course McCain is a Daffy. If it’s Obama, will the streak end? This is an election where streaks seem to be ending left and right. Assuming Obama gets the nomination and McCain doesn’t pick Jeb Bush for VP, we will have all of the following:

• The first presidential contest that didn’t feature a Bush or a Clinton in 28 years.
• The first Republican ticket without a Bush or a Dole in 32 years.
• The first sitting Senator elected president in 48 years
• The first presidential race between 2 sitting senators in, well ever.

So maybe (hopefully) Daffy can finally win one.