A theme is developing in the media that this a very nasty presidential election campaign. And by many measures it is, and it is likely to only get more so. This morning, John McCain was being interviewed on ABC’s “Good Morning America” and was asked about his own negative ads. He responded, quite rightly, that he was sorry Barack Obama had rejected his invitation to conduct town-hall type debates across the country, taking questions side by side from ordinary Americans (or at least the kinds of Americans who show up at these things, ordinary or not). He renewed his invitation to Senator Obama to do these debates with him (in advance of the standard three presidential debates coming along later in the campaign).

This is the absolutely appropriate answer for McCain to give to any question about his campaign’s negative ads. McCain has been willing to debate Obama in a freewheeling format, to have them both take any kinds of questions that people come up with, and to let the chips fall where they may. Obama initially said he was willing and eager to do this (in May of this year) and later reneged on that, with his campaign claiming that, as the frontrunner, Obama didn’t want to give the underdog McCain an opening by participating in such debates. This was a laughable excuse then; it’s clearly a non-existent excuse now. Personally, I don’t understand how Obama’s supporters explain to themselves why their candidate is self-evidently afraid to debate John McCain, and what this says about his character.

At this point, McCain should take advantage of the current media theme about how negative the campaign is, and issue an even more high-profile challenge to Obama. He should say something like this (and put it in ads if necessary): “I hereby challenge Senator Obama to join me in instructing our campaigns to put aside all negative advertisements whatsoever, and to simultaneously schedule six town-hall style debates to take place in the next two weeks, at different locations around the country. Let’s take questions from regular Americans, and let’s discuss everything: gas prices, the crisis on Wall Street, the war in Iraq and in Afghanistan, and everything thing else that is on the minds of the American people. Let’s put away the sound-bites and give the American people the kinds of substantive debates on these issues that they truly deserve.”

Obama will doubtless refuse, and it will be interesting and instructive for everyone to see how he tries to justify his refusal (while at the same time bemoaning negative campaigning). The point that he is not the candidate that he presents himself as — i.e. the candidate of change, of a new style of politics — needs to be driven home again and again.

If by some surprise Barack Obama should actually accept the invitation, then we would all be the richer for it. Everyone is always saying how they want political campaigns based on substance and how they want to see real debates between the candidates. McCain was willing this year to provide just that. Obama said he would go along with it when it was convenient for him to do so, but backed out as quickly as he could when faced with the possibility that it could actually happen. This said something about Obama which I believe is very defining, and ties into his entire political history. It’s about how he lacks even the courage of his own convictions; it’s about the difference between how he portrays himself for political convenience and who he really is; and it’s about the difference between his affection for making heady, glorious promises versus being able to put himself on the line and deliver.

McCain ought to issue this challenge now and shine a bright and unforgiving light at a crucial moment on the real Senator Barack Obama.

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