Dear Senator Obama...

Ok, This new ad is a good start. The problem is, this is August and this ad is only a good start.

I have been watching the game of poltical tetherball that the George W McCain campaign has been playing with you for the last month. What I have seen is disturbingly familiar.

The days and weeks following your incredible speech in Berlin, you had the momentum, the free world had stood up and cheered the hope that America would return to a path of sane, rational global leadership. A hope that now had a face and a name. Yours.

And then, your campaign dropped the ball.

You allowed attack after ridiculous attack to go basically unanswered. You allowed the campaign of the consummate lobbyist's pet to question your ethics. You allowed a man who has voted consistently against supporting the men and women of our military, to question your commitment to the troops. You allowed a man who employs lobbyists for foreign nations to question your love of country. You allowed a man who thinks that wide spread conflict in the Middle East would make a good Beach Boys song, to cast doubt on your willingness to defend America. In the past few weeks, you allowed a man with 10 homes, $500 loafers and a private jet to say that you were elitist and out of touch with the needs of working families.

In response? You mumbled tepid statements of disapproval of "old style politics." You frowned at the camera and said John McCain is honorable man who is running a dishonorable campaign. I have news for you. John McCain is not an honorable man, and at some point, unless you are happy with the idea of watching the McCain Inaugural from the bleachers, you are going to have to say so.

I feel like screaming at you. "HAVE YOU TALKED TO MICHAEL DUKAKIS OR JOHN KERRY LATELY???" Yes, playing defense will make you feel very noble and allow you to say how you are leading a "new kind of campaign." Sorry but there is nothing new about losing. Your campaign seems to be heading down a frighteningly similar path to 1988 and 2004.

I hate to break this to you but there is a truth to this Presidential race that you seem to be unable to grasp, so let me spell it out for you:

The Republicans will say anything and stop at nothing to win.

They will lie, they will cheat, and they will steal. They will call you a terrorist, they will call your wife a traitor, and they will criticize you for every thing you do, then turn around and criticize you for everything you don't do.

GOP Surrogates will spew the most insane nonsense about you with impunity on Fox News, which will then be repeated in the rest of the media as "covering the campaign". You CANNOT play defense. You will LOSE.

Not only that - you have yet to get your OWN house in order. This lunacy of having Senator Clinton's name put in nomination is a prime example. You WON the nomination, will you please ACT like it! Senator Clinton's campaign was historic yes. But it is OVER. The time has come for the Democratic Party to say to every Clinton supporter who is still whining about the need for "healing" a simple question. "Why do you want John McCain to win?"

You need to state in clear terms the choice in 2008 is this; "If you believe the right of a woman to control her own body is a bad thing then by all means support John McCain".

You need to state clear terms the choice in 2008 is this; "If you believe our economic and national security, and the lives of thousands of American soldiers should be sacrificed for Oil Company profits, then by all means vote for John McCain."

You need to state in clear terms the choice in 2008 is this; "If you believe the Executive Branch of the Government has a greater right to privacy than the citizens who elected it, then by all means vote for John McCain."

You need to state in clear terms the choice in 2008 is this; "John McCain has no plan to repair any of the damage done to our economy, national security, global standing or environment over then last eight years. John McCain's only plan is to continue doing more damage. To do that the Republican Party can't offer America anything to vote FOR, they can only try desperately to scare enough of us to vote against anything different."

You must be willing to stand up and say out loud that John McCain has nothing to offer this nation but exactly what we have had for the last eight years. Economic disaster, loss of American lives in wars with no end, and a philosophy of Government that sees the constitution at best, as a nuisance, and at worst, a threat to its power.

Unless you are willing forcefully articulate the choice between the two of you. A choice that is, in fact crystal clear. You will allow the GOP to once again cloud that choice with mud, flung without conscience or restraint. The time has come to stop lying to yourself by thinking that deep down the Republicans want the same things as you do.

They don't. They want you to lose, that's it.

The time has come to call liars what they are. Time has come to call cowards what they are. The time Senator has come for you to stand up and say you are a better man, a better leader and the better choice to lead this nation.

Please Senator Obama, stop being the tethered ball on the GOP playground