Tiptoeing Through the Mud

A fair warning from E.J. Dionne:

It has been hard to remember lately that the country is in the midst of one of the most consequential presidential elections of our lifetimes.

The campaign is a blur of flying pieces of junk, lipstick and gutter-style attacks. John McCain's deceptions about Barack Obama's views and Sarah Palin's flip-flopping suggest an unedifying scuffle over a city council seat.

The media bear a heavy responsibility because "balance" does not require giving equal time to truth and lies. So does McCain, who is running a disgraceful, dishonorable campaign of distraction and diversion.

But Obama bears responsibility, too: His task is to remind Americans that the stakes in this election are far higher than the matter of who said what and when about Palin. He isn't doing that.

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Tiptoeing Through the Mud

By E. J. Dionne Jr.
Friday, September 12, 2008; A15

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/11/AR2008091102827.html