What Do Google And John McCain Have In Common?

Since early March, Sen. John McCain has had the GOP nomination tucked safely in his back pocket, while the stalemate between Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton has left the Democratic party at an impasse. Like the Republican pundit, Google is benefiting from the current standoff between Yahoo and Microsoft.Nearly two months since clinching the Republican nomination, McCain has used the extra time to get his presidential campaign rolling, taking both of his potential political adversaries to task at various intervals. On the Democratic side, Obama and Clinton have made attempts to take shots at McCain, but most of the time they've been too busy focusing on which one of them will be the party's top dog to really do any damage (except to one another).

For McCain, the situation couldn't be more ideal -- the longer they take, the better for him and his campaign.

Jumping from politics to technology, Google is benefiting from the current standoff between Yahoo and Microsoft. Since it was first announced, both sides have been very vocal: Yahoo publicly rejecting Microsoft's advances (in the hopes, as some speculate, for the deal to be sweetened) and the Redmond giant in turn suggesting Yahoo take its latest offer "or else."

The deadline for Yahoo to accept the buyout offer -- or risk the possibility of a hostile takeover -- was this past Saturday. Four days later, both camps have grown silent on what happens next.

Meanwhile, Google keeps chugging along, gaining market share, impressing investors with ad quality, and earning the distinction of being named the world's No. 1 brand.

If the Microsoft/Yahoo deal happens, Google could surely face a formidable opponent in the online advertising market. The longer it takes for such a merger to occur, however, the longer Google has to further cement itself deeply into the market niche -- making Microsoft's chances of taking the lead, or at least a large slice of the revenue, questionable.

And if the deal falls through, Google's still on top.

Like the Democrats, the next few weeks are going to prove pivotal for Microsoft and Yahoo. Egos need to be stroked or suppressed. Concessions need to be agreed upon. Both are up against juggernauts that have a great many supporters and are enjoying comfortable leads in their "market."