A couple weeks back I had Former Army Staff Sergeant David Bellavia as an entry in the Lunatic Fringe Awards who was introducing John W. McCain and said, of Barack Obama, that “You can have your Tiger Woods, we’ve got Senator McCain.”. I didn’t really understand how that was a slam. Isn’t Tiger Woods the best golfer of our era, perhaps all time? That’s an insult?  Both Obama and Woods are mixed-race African-Americans who have overcome traditional discrimination in their respective careers, they both flash megawatt smiles and appeal to broad swaths of white America, which, again, makes you ask “what’s the insult?”

Of course, I know the intent was coded racism, a dig at the notion that Obama supporters are starry-eyed dreamers, but in a time of war, we need a macho guy like McCain.   Besides, “they” all look alike to Republicans anyway.

With that in my mind I went to my doctor’s appointment  You know how it is in the waiting room, so I grabbed the newest male-est magazine I could find - a Sports Illustrated from October 15, 2007.

But there was a political slant to it.  James Carville, the longtime Democratic strategist and Hillary Clinton supporter, was being interviewed about his love of LSU football.  The interview then turned briefly to politics.  The reporter asks, “Is there a good sports analogy for the 2008 Democratic presidential campaign?”

“In the PGA, there’s Tiger Woods and everybody else.  In 2008 presidential politics, there’s Hillary and then the rest of the duffers hacking away in some rough on a different course.” — James Carville, 10/15/2007, Sports Illustrated.

I think Carville got the right sport, but the wrong athlete.  Hillary Clinton is Greg Norman at the 1996 Masters.  The well-known “Shark”, the inevitable winner, with an unassailable 6-stroke lead going into the final holes, and then Norman’s epic collapse with a final score of 78 and the rise of the persistent Nick Faldo
to win the green jacket - yes, that fits a Clinton/Obama analogy much better.

Except for one thing.  Obama’s no Nick Faldo.  He’s Tiger Woods.  And the 2008 presidential election will be the 1997 Masters.