Will The Best Man Win?

So, here we are at the precipice of what has been billed as the most important election in U.S. history.  Three men and one woman are squaring off for the world's most influential job.  It's a job which has the power to change markets, shift the global balance of power and set the world-wide agenda of what gets our attention.  

Politics aside, I'm left wondering if the best man will win?  What I mean by that is which man has demonstrated that he's truly ready for the job?  In my view it's Joe Biden.  

Biden is unshakeable in his beliefs around family; he's gifted in his understanding of foreign policy and he has weathered decades of domestic shifts which have given him a seasoned perspective on where America has been and, more importantly, where America needs to go.

There's a truism in the packaged goods business when it comes to selecting the best team for a job.  When the job is launching a new product you need a young, fresh team of creative thinkers and innovators who will wedge the product into what is likely either a market first, or an already crowded category.  A new idea by its very nature deserves the kind of out of the box thinking which youth can deliver.

However, when the job is the kind of trench warfare where combatants crawl on their bellies for percentages of market share you need a team which is deep in experience.  You put your 'old guys' on the job because they have the wisdom, history and humility necessary for the long game.

I believe America has fallen for its own hype and by that I mean she has been seduced by the shiny attractiveness of 'new' which drives the American dream.   Obama is certainly gifted and talented and so is McCain, yet neither of them truly have the global or domestic experience which is mandatory to pull America out of her listing.  And though it seems that the nation is captivated by the promise of "It's Time For A Change," they've collectively lost sight of the necessity for consistency and the value of old.  And Sarah Palin for all of her 'get up and go,' is nothing more than pre-mature; she's simply not ready for the 2008 gig.  Joe Biden on the other hand is, and in my view, the strongest man on the ticket.  Biden deserves to win because experience has taught us as human beings that age trumps youth when it comes to truly moving our species forward.    

If The Choice was Hillary or Sarah - How Would Men Vote?

It's an interesting question really.  Given the choice between the intellectual, worldly, business-friendly Hillary Clinton or 'the common woman,' soccer mom of Sarah Palin, which woman would most men choose to vote for?  Clearly the RNC are hopeful that the popular female vote will create a tidal surge towards Palin, while the Democrats, choosing Biden over Clinton, remain convinced that international experience on the ticket will lead to a win.  

I'm confident, for the most part, that our world is no longer in a quandary around whether women make powerful leaders.  So the question is which brand of woman politician really appeals to men.  If men were to choose solely based on their powers of reason, I believe Hillary Clinton is the obvious choice.  Any man can imagine her sitting at the head of a boardroom table, or standing at a podium at the United Nations General Assembly.  However, like Mary Tyler Moore's icy character in 'Ordinary People,' or Sigourney Weaver's dis-interested and distant character in 'Ice Storm," this brand of feminine is not the type of woman a man wants to open up his heart and share his soul. 

This is the brilliance of Sarah Palin.  She's tough, yet nurturing, scrappy and loving, she can change a diaper, lead a pep rally and shake hands with the leaders of the G8. And that's why I think there will be many men in Middle America who in November will see her as an asset on the Republican ticket.  Sarah Palin is reflective of their own wives, sisters, and yes, the most powerful female role model in their lives, Mom.