While it would be wise for Senator McCain to focus on an economic message — and that must be his first priority —  he should not ignore the influence of Ayers and ACORN on Barack Obama’s political development.  Because Senator Obama doesn’t have much on his resume before becoming a US Senator,  we have to take all of his prior work experience into account.  If Senator Obama wants to make his community organizer days a part of his relevant experience to be president, then it’s not unreasonable to ask questions about what he did in that position and about those who helped him form his political philosophy.  I’m not accusing Obama of being a terrorist, wanting to blow up buildings,  or supporting voter fraud.  I suspect he just used their political influence to win elections, which is cynical but not criminal.  However, it does damage his image as someone who is going to change Washington and fight corruption.

All we are asking for is a little transparency here.  You know, the same kind the Democrats promised in ’06 when they won Congress.  The argument from the Obama campaign has always been that he has better judgment than John McCain and George Bush because he opposed the war in Iraq, and that all that Washington experience doesn’t matter if it leads to bad choices.  Shouldn’t we judge Obama by the same standards he uses for his opponents?  Isn’t it bad judgment to have a friendly relationship with an unrepentant terrorist, no matter what your personal views are on using explosive devices to cause destruction?  Shouldn’t we question the judgment of someone who has ties to a group that has clearly been involved in voter fraud?

There are two uncomplimentary explanations of Barack’s relationship with Ayers and ACORN.  One is that he knew about the radical stuff and it didn’t bother him.  The other is that he was completely unaware of all this, and now that he knows, he condemns those activities.  Either way, it should concern Americans about Barack Obama and his ability to serve as our president.  Do we want someone who is so incapable of recognizing a bad guy when he sees one to face off against foreign bad actors like Kim Jong Il and Ahmadinejad?  I don’t.

That’s why Ayers and ACORN are relevant to the discussion during this presidential race.

What will resonate with the American people down the stretch?  Telling them the truth about the economy.  That means not only mentioning the culpability of Chris Dodd and Barney Frank in this financial mess, but also providing a clear break from the policies that got us in the situation we are in today.  It’s much easier to find Democrats to blame for what happened with our economy than it is to find Republicans, and it’s almost impossible to blame John McCain.  But the blame game will only move the ball so far.  Senator McCain needs a better answer to Barack’s economic plan, and he also needs to propose reforms that can prevent the mistakes we made from happening again.  Right now Barack is winning on the economy.  If McCain doesn’t poke some holes in Barack’s economic plan, he loses the election.