The Occasional Observer

Karl Rove is undeniably a brilliant political mind. And in reviewing the transcript of his appearance yesterday on "Face the Nation", I came across a paragraph that intrigued me:

SCHIEFFER: Does he need to separate himself from your old boss, George Bush? Separate himself more?

Mr. ROVE: You know, he needs to--he needs to recognize that every election is about the future, and he needs to describe who he is. If he--if Senator Obama has wisely attacked him saying, `Third term of George Bush,' Senator McCain has responded badly to that. Rather than saying, `You know what, here's who I am and here's what I'm about,' he's responded by saying, `No, I'm not,' which is the wrong answer. If the question is who is not George Bush, Barack Obama is the answer. If the question is who are you and do you have a vision for the future, the answer could be Senator McCain.

Can Mac respond to the McSame taunts by "changing the topic," without appearing to be validating the charge? I'm not sure, but Rove raises an interesting question. Is Mac setting himself up for a race he can't win by claiming to be (more) real change?