McCain advisor unwilling to fight Obama

February 14, 2008

Last summer, Mark McKinnon, the former chief media adviser to George W. Bush, and now a top aide to John McCain’s presidential campaign, admitted that he liked Obama so much, he wouldn’t create negative ads against him if the Illinois senator became the Democratic nominee.

Of course, that was easy to say at the time. Over the summer, McCain’s campaign was in deep trouble, and Obama still seemed like a relative long-shot. Given that we’re talking about a top-tier politico who was Bush’s top media guy, I assumed he’d come up with some excuse to change his mind.

But lo and behold, McKinnon seems to have meant it.

A top adviser to John McCain said Wednesday that he will step down from the Arizona senator’s presidential campaign if the presumed GOP nominee faces Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., in the general election.

“I would simply be uncomfortable being in a campaign that would be inevitably attacking Barack Obama,” said McCain adviser Mark McKinnon in an interview with NPR’s “All Things Considered.” “I think it would be uncomfortable for me, and I think it would be bad for the McCain campaign.”

McKinnon, who was a Democrat before serving as President Bush’s ad maker in 2000 and 2004, said that he plans to be behind McCain “100 percent” no matter who the Democratic nominee is. He explained, however, that if the Democrats nominate Obama, he will be supporting McCain “from the sidelines.”

I have to admit, this is just not normal. I can’t think of a comparable example of a major candidate’s key advisor stepping down because he or she liked the other party’s candidate so much.

I have two quick questions, though:

1. Why would McCain hire a media advisor who was prepared to quit if Obama became the Democratic nominee?

2. Why would McKinnon go to work for McCain if he were prepared to quit if Obama became the Democratic nominee?

I suspect the answer to both is the same: they assumed Clinton would get the nod and this wouldn’t be an issue.

As for conservatives, this story apparently is yet another reason for the right to distrust McCain. Here’s an item from one far-right blogger:

If these are the kind of people that John McCain has surrounded himself with, we are in for BIG trouble. […]

If I am John McCain, I fire this weasel and throw him and his ugly hats out of my campaign office RIGHT NOW.

That seems unlikely, but it’s an interesting story, isn’t it?

You know what?
Given the data you posted on Colorado earlier in the day…
And given tons of examples such as this:

…. admitted that he liked Obama so much, he wouldn’t create negative ads against him if the Illinois senator became the Democratic nominee.

I think the kid needs to shit the two parties and run on an indy ticket.
Crikey he might even win: The kid versus the bitch and the bastard and their extremists.
Man… that’d shake the Washington game upside down and sideways.

  • There is only one instance I can think of that’s even close: Bush’s anti-terror Czar, Randy Baers (sp?) quit to become Kerry’s foreign policy advisor. Then his replacement, Richard Clarke, quite to devote himself full time to opposing his former boss. But that was a negative motivation.

    To do this for positive reasons… my God, the man has captured something, no doubt about it.

    Can anything go right for McCain?

  • I think Mackinnon is probably looking at the current generation of GOP operatives and after meditating about the amount of race-baiting mudslinging (to mix metaphors) that would likely feature under the radar in any Republican campaign against Obama deciding he doesn’t want to be a part of it. Good for him, I suppose. I heard him reiterating his intention to step aside on the radio and there was something in his voice that made me think that he really wanted to say that this had as much to do with his desire to dissociate himself from what he expects the party to do as it does with his feelings about Obama.

  • This guy worked for Bush? Must be a Log Cabin Republican. Curious, self-loathing and terribly confused.

  • …McKinnon, who was a Democrat before serving as President Bush’s ad maker in 2000 and 2004…

    I can see a (former?) Democrat maybe working for Bush in 2000, but in 2004? By that point it was obvious that Bush was a total dirtbag. I guess he was OK with attacking Kerry, but not Obama. And he still “”plans to be behind McCain “100 percent” no matter who the Democratic nominee is.”

    They guy is very confused.

  • What’s so odd about this is that he says he’ll step down to avoid running against Obama, but that he would still be supporting McCain rather than Obama. How can someone not stomach running ads against an opposing candidate, but still support his former campaign running those ads?

    I’m not following McKinnon’s train of thought on this one…

    And yeah, what Racer X said…

  • JRS Jr @ 6,

    Flip-floppers of a feather flock together?

    Still… If Obama can generate that much goodwill, it cannot be bad.

    On the floor, @1,

    Your advice is as good as Mark Penn’s, but your language is worse.

  • “Flip-floppers of a feather flock together…”

    Then who next libra? I bet he’ll probably join up with Clinton next…

  • I was reading about this elsewhere (poplicks.com), and this possible alternative explanation was put forth:

    Given that McKinnon was part of Bush’s team in 2000 – when they took down McCain in South Carolina on some incredibly shady, racial smear tactics – [my wife] thinks McKinnon would excuse himself as a way to avoid drawing undue attention to his possible role in that campaign.

    Makes sense to me.

  • When I heard this, I somehow got the impression that it had something do with Obama’s race. That McKinnon felt uncomfortable running a campaign against a black man. He said that he liked Obama a lot and had read his book, but that he disagreed with him on some very fundamental issues.

    Needless to say, that take on it had me even more confounded. I guess I should go listen to it again and nail down what exactly he said that made me think that it was race-related.

  • memekiller @ 5: it’s possible because Obama simply wouldn’t have him. Maybe not, but I know Joe Trippi, for example, was going to sit this election cycle out, and then got so excited about Obama that he went and applied for a position with Obama’s campaign, and was turned down, and decided he was so energized anyway to get back into and signed on with Edwards.

    McKinnon may have just thought, “I really like this guy, but he has a long-time team in place and I’m a GOP operative so there’s prob little-to-no role for me in that campaign” and signed on w/ the best of the GOP in his mind.

    There were conspiracy theories months ago that Trippie was really an Obama mole in the Edwards campaign…so we could also apply that logic here. Maybe that’s why McKinnon is being so politically tone-deaf as to announce this right now (hurts McCain and boosts Obama) and explains the rather platitudinous and at this point, played out, ready to lead on day 1 pitch that’s working just so well for Hillary

  • I’m not sure about his resume to date, but perhaps he isn’t prepared to work for a Walnuts campaign that doesn’t have a chance in hell against Obama.

  • This is better then an endorsement.
    “Even one of John’s top advisers think I am better.”

    I don’t blame the right one bit for being ticked off. McCain is an idiot.

  • Taking the guy’s statement purely at face value, it seems to me like he’s showing some integrity. He likes Obama and won’t participate in a negative campaign against him. McKinnon is making this statement in an era of blankety-blank loyalty oaths and the “if you’re not with me, than not only are you against me, but you are also a subhuman waste of skin and oxygen” mentality. Good for him. I imagine he’s getting death threats even as we type.

  • So when will McKinnon step down from the Broadcasting Board of Governors??

    http://www.utexas.edu/lbj/faculty/mark-mckinnon/

    Mark McKinnon is Vice Chairman of Public Strategies, Inc. and President of Maverick Media.

    President Bush recently nominated McKinnon to serve as a member of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the independent, autonomous entity responsible for all U.S. government and government-sponsored, non-military, international broadcasting.

  • I am a life long Democrat—I even worked in teh Carter White House. I’ve supported Democrats forever, and was a huge supporter of Bill Clinton.

    I will support the Democratic Party’s nominee, provided that:

    1. The Super Delegates do not reverse the winner of a majority of the elected delegates; and

    2. The Democratic Convention does not seat the Michigan and Florida delegates elected in the unsupported January primaries. Instead, the DNC should advise MI and FL that their delegates will be seated only if they are selected by a caucus or primary sanctioned by the DNC, and in which both remaining Dem candidates are on the ballot and are permitted to campaign.

    IN THE EVENT that the above two conditions are not met—i.e., Hillary gets the nomination notwithstanding democratic principals and following rules, then this would be more of the chicanery, parsing, and slick behavior that I uncomfortably defended for 8 years of Bill and will not defend for Hillary.

    Instead, in the event that Hillary wins a technical victory on either of those points, then I will contribute to John McCain and will leave my business and travel at my own expense to work for his campaign.

    I don’t like it, but I suspect that I am not alone. I believe I am simply representative of many other Dems who won’t support Hillary if she is so slick as to win on a technicality.

    Given that polls show that 47% of American voters “Hate” Hillary (I am NOT among them), by losing me and others of my cohort, there is no way Hillary will get a majority of the vote.

    Hillary beware.

  • [Here’s my negative ad – Yes, it’s a scary to do because Reaganomics advantaged capital, and now it’s labors turn to Ba-rock & roll?]

    OUR DEMOCRACY’S FATAL FLAW?
    What happens if a young [46 year old] intelligent [Harvard educated] and telegenic junior Senator [in only his 2nd year] attracts a Hollywood dream factory’s support, that then whips up a frenzied march-to-power; Blowing past any harsh media scrutiny…overwhelming grand-ma’s sewing circle… and storming the nominating convention, after having racked up more primary & super-delegate votes? We’re about to find out!

  • It is an interesting contradiction to use rhetoric to call another mans rhetoric into fault…
    Just know that this kind of politics is exactly what Barack is against and by posing these lame-duck arguments, McCain and Hillary are fueling his fire.

  • Democracy’s fatal flaw???

    That was when we let FLA change their election results right?? Democracy’s fatal flaw has been a desire to maintain established ties within government, rather than letting the system do what it was intended to do. Fresh thoughts and perspectives are the very basis for the democratic process Are you being a little close-minded because you are old and crusty like Hill and McCain?? This is the most important election in the history of our nation and thanks to the internet, the 18-28 year olds of America will not stand on the sidelines. Keep hating on Barack, just make sure you offer something intelligent in support of someone, somewhere or you just look bitter.

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