Skip to content
Categories:

McCain’s ‘cone of silence’

Post date:
Author:

Before the candidate forum at the Saddleback Church got underway on Saturday night, the Rev. Rick Warren explained that both candidates would get the exact same questions. Barack Obama would go first, and John McCain had been “safely placed … in a cone of silence.”

As it turns out, that’s not quite right.

Members of the McCain campaign staff, who flew here Sunday from California, said Mr. McCain was in his motorcade on the way to the church as Mr. Obama was being interviewed by the Rev. Rick Warren, the author of the best-selling book “The Purpose Driven Life.”

The matter is of interest because Mr. McCain, who followed Mr. Obama’s hourlong appearance in the forum, was asked virtually the same questions as Mr. Obama. Mr. McCain’s performance was well received, raising speculation among some viewers, especially supporters of Mr. Obama, that he was not as isolated during the Obama interview as Mr. Warren implied.

Nicolle Wallace, a spokeswoman for Mr. McCain, said on Sunday night that Mr. McCain had not heard the broadcast of the event while in his motorcade and heard none of the questions.

“The insinuation from the Obama campaign that John McCain, a former prisoner of war, cheated is outrageous,” Ms. Wallace said.

Now, I have no idea if McCain heard any of the questions, or if anyone on his staff gave him a heads-up on what to expect. The McCain campaign hasn’t exactly operated with a high level of integrity, but we’ll probably never know for sure. The Obama campaign is reportedly “not pursuing” this and I doubt it’s a “story” with legs.

That said, I can’t help but notice that Nicolle Wallace, a veteran of Karl Rove’s shop, responded to a question about this by reminding us that McCain is “a former prisoner of war.”

I’m afraid the campaign took a right turn at embarrassing, and is headed straight for ridiculous.

To be sure, it’s obvious that McCain’s detention as a young man in Vietnam helped shape his life, and it’s not unreasonable that he’d want voters to know about his experience.

But that’s not a license to force the “P.O.W. card” into every unrelated question.

Last week, when the Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell, a close Bush ally, publicly questioned McCain’s character, the McCain campaign responded by highlighting McCain’s background as a prisoner of war. When Dems attacked McCain’s healthcare plan in May, McCain responded by noting his background as a prisoner of war. Asked by a local reporter about the first thing that comes to his mind when he thinks of Pittsburgh

, McCain responded by talking about his background as a prisoner of war.

And all of this, of course, dovetails with the McCain campaign running multiple television ads talking about McCain’s background as a prisoner of war, literally including interrogation footage in the commercial.

This hard-sell wouldn’t be quite so odd if McCain didn’t go around saying that he’s reluctant to talk about his Vietnam experiences.

McCain became visibly angry when I asked him to explain how his Vietnam experience prepared him for the Presidency.

“Please,” he said, recoiling back in his seat in distaste at the very question…. McCain then collected himself and apologized for his initial reaction.

“I kind of reacted the way I did because I have a reluctance to talk about my experiences,” he said, noting that he has huge admiration for the “heroes” who served with him in the POW camp and said the experience taught him to love the U.S. because he missed it so much.

“I am always reluctant to talk about these things,” McCain said.

McCain’s service demands respect and the nation’s gratitude. But he’s clearly crossed the line into shameless exploitation.

Comments

  • toowearyforoutrage

    says:

    I am now hoping Ace mentions his P.O.W. status at every opportunity.
    It is his biggest selling point and beating it into the ground should do for him what Rudy Giuuliani’s endless inclusion of “911” into every issue did for him.

    Keep it up, J.S.

  • mellowjohn

    says:

    the question i’m waiting for someone to ask:

    “senator mccain, given that your history as a pow is being emphasized much more this year than it was when you ran in 2000, could you please tell us specifically what foreign policy expertise getting shot down and held captive for 5 years imparts? other than giving one a self-admitted life-long hatred of ‘gooks’?”

  • Freedom Fry

    says:

    Jeez, it’s kind of amazing what sort of cover you have if you’re a POW. All he has to do at debates now is to cover his ears and yell “I’m a POW! Nanana!”

  • Grumpy

    says:

    This hard-sell wouldn’t be quite so odd if McCain didn’t go around saying that he’s reluctant to talk about his Vietnam experiences.

    “I heard him swear, were he to stand for consul,
    Never would he appear i’ the market-place nor on him put
    The napless vesture of humility;
    Nor showing, as the manner is, his wounds to the people…”
    –Coriolanus, Act II, scene 1

  • Martin

    says:

    “The insinuation from the Obama campaign that John McCain, a former prisoner of war, cheated is outrageous,”

    Anyone want to ask the first Mrs McCain for a comment?

    How about the rest of the Keating Five?

  • slappy magoo

    says:

    McCain spokesperson Nicolle Wallace is explicitly stating that suspicions over McCain knowing questions in advance is coming from the Obama campaign.

    Not Obama supporters. Not “the left wing media,” that trusty old excuse. The Obama CAMPAIGN, WHICH MEANS OBAMA HIMSELF.

    DID the Obama campaign complain? And if not, wouldn’t this be considered (by some) to be a “lie?” And a “dick move?”

  • jimBOB

    says:

    If you don’t think McCain didn’t listen to the questions (and use the time to plan responses) then I have a bridge to sell you. Like Dubya with his hidden wireless transmitter during the Kerry debates, McCain will use any possible opportunity to cheat.

  • dpb

    says:

    I find in amazing that McCain responded to quickly and forcefully to the questions, when a few weeks ago he fumbled around for what seemed like minutes on a question about whether medical insurance companies’ policy concerning birth control and Viagra.

  • MW

    says:

    Apparently when McCain told the “cross in the sand” story during the 2000 campaign, it was some unnamed US POW, not him, that it happened to. Also, when he wrote about his time as a POW years earlier shortly after his release there was never any mention of the story. The story only surfaced when he ran for national office, first as something that happened to someone else, now with him as the star. We already know from his changing the details of the football story that he will chnage his POW experiences to suit his own purposes.

    Can you imagine the firestorm if a Democrat was caught possibly fabricating a story about their time as a POW?

  • Georgette Orwell

    says:

    It’s always possible that he was indeed within the cone of silence–as he was reading the questions provided in writing.

    With “my friends” and “POW,” I wish he’d retreat into another cone of silence, or come up with some fresh catchphrases.

  • Ravi J

    says:

    I am willing to give McCain the benefit of doubt. I (still) believe has some integrity left. But not to his staff, for sure. I may have had to repeatedly admonish them not to brief him on the question Obama was asked – again, if he has any integrity left.
    That said, the main stream media narrative would entirely been different had McCain gone first and had Obama gotten late or stuck in traffic.

  • Mark

    says:

    The insinuation that McCain, a former prisioner of war, cheated on his first wife, lied about his age to his billionaire mistress, was involved in a scandal such as the Keating Five, and has flip-flopped on most positions he held in 2000, is OUTRAGEOUS.

  • The Answer is Orange

    says:

    So. Obama is responsible for everything his supporters say. Fine. Let’s start taking McCainiac to task for the ugly shit his supporters puke out. In a game of nutpicking, Dems have rocket launchers. Rethugs have a handful of wet tissue paper.

    Asked by a local reporter about the first thing that comes to his mind when he thinks of Pittsburgh, McCain responded by talking LYING about his background as a prisoner of war.

    Fixed.

    As to whether or not John POW! McCain was forewarned about the questions, he sure as hell wasn’t ready for the “Define Rich” one.

  • Steve

    says:

    “The insinuation … that John McCain, a former prisoner of war ….”

    John McCain was a “former prisoner of war” when he participated in the Keating Five mess.

    John McCain was a “former prisoner of war” when he chose to support the Bushylvanians, their illegal war on Iraq, and the application of “aggressive interrogation techniques” that clearly violate the Geneva Conventions.

    John McCain was a “former prisoner of war” when he declared support for numerous domestic programs, military programs, and foreign-policy programs that would have been beneficial to Americans, America’s men and women in uniform, and America’s reputation overseas—and then walked in lockstep with his Bushylvanian masters.

    John McCain was a “former prisoner of war” when he decided that he didn’t have to earn his paycheck as a Senator, and stopped showing up for work.

    John McCain was a “former prisoner of war” when he sold out to the lobbyists, surrounded himself with lobbyists, and declared his campaign to be “lobbyist-free”—and was lying through his teeth—and knew about it.

    In short, John McCain’s captors were, are, and will continue to be better men that this so-called “former prisoner of war” will ever again be—and I’ll be damned, ad infinitum, before I’ll blame John McCain’s cowardly, conniving, cajoling, thieving, immoral, unethical, ideological Rovian dishonesty on the NVA.

  • brent

    says:

    I am willing to give McCain the benefit of doubt. I (still) believe has some integrity left.

    What makes you think that? I am asking seriously. Frankly I was never particularly impressed by his integrity but I see people arguing all the time that he is somehow not responsible for the way his campaign is run now. What evidence is there that McCain is anything ther than what he seems which is a dishonest, lowlife, gutter politician? Again, I am asking seriously.

  • ROTFLMLiberalAO

    says:

    Adding to Steve’s incantation re-mix:
    (Wherein we test the magic properties of “former prisoner of war.”)

    “The insinuation that John McCain, a former prisoner of war, committed adultery is outrageous,” Ms. Wallace said.

  • Angellight

    says:

    All who are wondering about the Cone of Silence & the Story of the Cross, HAVE A DUTY to also ask the Main Stream Media to look into these stories and if they are proven to be true, there should be no wall of silence on these stories. Public has a right to know what kind of character their leaders have before pulling the lever in the ballot box.

    • The Politico — McCain campaign protests NBC’s coverage: Rick Davis, manager of Republican John McCain’s presidential campaign, called Sunday “for a meeting with Steve Capus, the president of NBC News, to protest what the campaign called signs that the network is ‘abandoning non-partisan coverage of the presidential race.’ ” The trigger was a comment by NBC’s Andrea Mitchell, who said on the air Sunday that some aides to Democrat Barack Obama thought McCain might have been listening Saturday as Obama was being questioned during Pastor Rick Warren’s “civil forum” (Warren had said McCain would be in a “cone of silence). The McCain campaign says the candidate did not hear any of the Obama-Warren exchanges.

    •

  • MW

    says:

    Rick Warren said that Obama going first was decided by a coin toss. I am reasonably sure that the vast majority of people watching assumed the coin toss had taken place back stage just before the opening. If McCain wasn’t even there, but in a motorcade on his way, then either the coin toss story is a lie, or it took place long before the event giving McCain the opportunity to conveniently NOT be in a “cone of silence”.

    Also, I notice the McCain campaign says he did not hear any of the Obama-Warren exchanges. This is probably true. This does not mean that McCain’s staff weren’t listening and couldn’t have given him a heads-up on the questions before he went on stage. Everyone knows that in debate preparation candidates rehearse answers to possible questions. It would be quite simple for a staffer to signal McCain which of the practiced answers he should be ready with. All of that said, there is of course the reality that in many cases McCain didn’t really answer the questions asked, but instead just riffed into his stump speech.

  • mellowjohn

    says:

    georgiagirl: i think i first saw the “cross in the sand” thingee in an old cecil b. demille movie from the 30s called – appropriately enought – “the sign of the cross.”

    btw, has anyone (left or right) commented on how truly “reaganesque” mcsame is becoming? st. ronnie used to conflate/inflate/imaginate stories all the time.

  • stormskies

    says:

    And now, of course, ABC, NBC, AND CBS have all declared McBush the ‘winner’ of the ‘debate’ ………. Mrs.Greenspan herself declared that because Obama’s people are questioning whether McBush was not in the cone of silence ‘proves that McBush won the debate’ …….. The criminal conspiracy of the Corporate/Repiglican/Media=Mafia equal massive FRAUD: purposeful fraud committed against the American people. It is the Corporate Media that is responsible for the destruction of our once great country called America.

  • Rielle Lovechild

    says:

    Common sense tells you that of course he was listening to the interview if there was any possible opportunity to. But unless one of his limo-mates does a tell-all book, we’ll never know for sure.

    I think the response from the Obama camp should be (or was), “I don’t know, I wasn’t there in his limo while the interview was being broadcast live. But if Senator McCain was caught in traffic in a car containing a functioning radio and some of his campaign managers instead of being in isolation as was supposed to happen, what do you think most likely happened? Again, I don’t know what actually happened on the drive over.”

    Actually, this is probably close to what was said by the Obama campaign as a quick aside – then they wisely chose not to pursue it further – just to raise the question.

    As far as any MSM reporterr pursuing it – no chance, unless maybe the National Enquirer brings out the checkbook and talks to the driver.

  • John R

    says:

    any one who thinks this was not “fixed” is as dumb as a box of rocks.Whose team do you think Warren or any number of his followers is on. McCain knew those questions beforehand.

  • Bitter Nation

    says:

    Using Paris and Britney……. Prisoner of War
    Misrepresenting Obama’s tax policy….. Prisoner of War
    We need a sense of humor, in reference to a smear book…. Prisoner of War
    Keating 5…. Prisoner of War
    Adulterous…. Prisoner of War
    Calling your wife a c*** in public…. Prisoner of War

    Bloggers, please keep up the references to POW in juxtaposition with the low and dishonest things McCain do. After awhile, it will become a word association with McCain

  • gttim

    says:

    If Cindy McCain expresses disactifaction with their lovemaking, McCain recoils and in horror and says, “Please, I am a POW!”

  • stuart

    says:

    Of course he knew what the questions were going to be. Watch the tape. Early on he is answering a question and then pauses and says something like “we will be getting to the question of judges?” Warren knew that he knew: catch the look of mild annoyance on Warrens face. At that moment I thought “Oh, he knows the questions.”

  • corporatemediawatcher

    says:

    I have more faith in the National Enquirer reporting the real news than I do ABC, CBS, NBC and the rest of the corporate media minions. I am not joking here.

  • Shalimar

    says:

    Damn John Kerry. If he had just gotten captured by the enemy like a good soldier then Republicans would have honored his service and he would be President now.

  • Shalimar

    says:

    Also, considering how many lies Nicolle Wallace told when she worked for the current administration, her credibility should be less than zero as a spokesperson.

  • sarinda

    says:

    Pathetic desperation
    on the part of Obama and his supporters.
    Warren gave a bunch of softball questions that any seasoned politician could handle. But Obama isn’t one so he didn’t do too well. The ‘above my pay grade’ comment was only the worst example.
    But instead of realizing its obama’s failure you guys whine and slander and really demonstrate why the dems have such a bad rep.
    But don’t worry Obama will name a VP soon and that will distract you since he is likely to name a right wing hawk which will undercut everything you stand for and you will be too busy coming up with new excuses as to why that’s just another sign of his yet to be seen greatness.

  • stormskies

    says:

    the only thing that is pathetic are creeps like you ………… you and people like you live in a reality defined by total delusions that you pretend , pathetically, to be reality …….

  • ~Blue Girl

    says:

    Her full quote was “”The insinuation from the Obama campaign that John McCain, a former prisoner of war, cheated is outrageous.”

    To which my immediate response is Seriously? He was a former prisoner of war when he cheated on his wife, too. We know he is a cheater, and that weakness of character wasn’t beaten out of him in the Hanoi Hilton, mores the pity.

  • doubtful

    says:

    Ah, so the good reverend fibbed a bit about that coin toss and the cone of silence.

    Don’t worry, Rick. I’m sure Jesus thinks it’s okay since John McCain is a Republican.

  • Prup (aka Jim Benton)

    says:

    As I said in last night’s open thread, I contacted both the NY Daily News and the Saddleback Church over this. I do not think McCain has any integrity at all, but I think Warren does, and does not like being made a fool of. But we shall see.

    As for the POW “Get Out of Jail Free” card, I asked last might if there was anyone who had access to better databases than I have who can find mention of POWs who, once they returned home, were convicted of serious felonies. (Some of you mentioned authentic war heroes like Duke Cunningham and John Murtha, but if possible, I’d like to hear about actual POWs.)

    My feeling — and hope — is that this is not going to die. There’s no way that it can be used by the Obama campaign — the proof level is ‘preponderance of the evidence’ but doesn’t rise to the ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ level. But I can’t wait to hear Cafferty and Keith on it.

    As for the Politico story about Davis complaining to the head of NBC news, unlike most of you, I expect, I think this will blow up in his face. Not sure, but I think there will be much more criticism on the stations as a result of this.

    Anyway, tonight Keith will be a ‘must watch.’

  • Basilisc

    says:

    The accusation itself is really no big deal. These guys have been through so many debates at this point that they have well-honed responses available for almost every possible question, and if it’s a question they haven’t anticipated or don’t want to answer they can effortlessly twist it around to one of their preferred talking points. The “cone of silence” is a gimmick – what is this, “The Newlywed Game”?

    But what is interesting about this story is the McCain campaign’s reflexive “former POW!” response.

    Is it time, and do Democrats have the balls, to ridicule McCain’s use of POW-hood as thoroughly (and successfully) as we mocked Rudy’s obsession with 9/11?

  • Joel

    says:

    Try focusing on what Obama accomplished in this interview not some fabricated BS that tries to discredit McCain on a decent interview

  • stormskies

    says:

    if it is such ‘fabricated bs’ then exactly why pal did mcbush himself ask, during the ‘interview’ with warren ‘are we going to get the questions about the judges’ ….. remembering he was not supposed to know any questions in advance ………. this is called fraud pal .. a set up …

  • Shalimar

    says:

    Warren is the one who clearly lied to his congregation. I had respect for him and thought he had integrity before this. Now, not so much.

  • jefflz

    says:

    The only difference between the bumbling McCain who gave a confused explanation of the Surge in front of a grocery cheese display and the McCain who answered Warren’s questions at Saddleback before they were asked is that he was thoroughly coached ahead of time. Furthermore, his Rove handlers have eliminated his exchanges with reporters on his bus and cut way back on Town Hall meetings because he can’t answer the questions. Anybody who believes that McCain didn’t cheat still believes in the Tooth Fairy and Weapons of Mass Destruction.

  • Jeff

    says:

    Once a cheater, always a cheater. McCain cheated on his first wife, so what’s so inplausible that he would cheat with getting the questions fed to him? The statement by the McCain camp is that he had not heard the broadcast, does not mean that someone wasn’t feeding him the questions via a cell phone in the motorcade.

  • MMH

    says:

    You know, it’s possible McCain is actually well spoken – how about that! Obama gives great speech but can’t speak from him heart unrehearsed. McCain doesn’t give a good speech but can answer questions he hasn’t been prepared for – what does this say about the 2 candidates. I’ll take a guy that can answer my off the cuff questions before I take a stump speech robot anytime. Watch out America – see who Obama really is – nothing but a suit with a well rehearsed stump speech – all talk no heart………

  • MMH

    says:

    Georgia Girl,

    As a Christian I know that the cross signifies the whole story of Christ. The Cross is the culmination of Christmas – Jesus humbled himself, was born in a manger, to later die for our sins – without the cross – there is no Christmas. But then again, you have to understand Christ – to understand Christmas………

  • Charles

    says:

    I could train a chimpanzee to spout right-wing talking points on command, which is all that McCain did at Saddleback.

    Or religious dogma.

    Neither of these abilities would qualify the chimpanzee for the office of president.

  • MsMuddled

    says:

    From a transcript of Saddleback

    Warren: UNION — A UNION BETWEEN MAN AND WOMAN, BETWEEN

    McCain: ONE MAN AND ONE WOMAN, THAT’S MY DEFINITION OF MARRIAGE.

    McCain: ARE WE GOING TO GET BACK TO THE IMPORTANCE OF SUPREME COURT JUSTICES. (Note: not mentioned to or asked of John McCain previously)

    Warren: WE’LL GET TO THAT.

    McCain: ALL RIGHT. OKAY.

    Warren: YOU GOT ALL MY QUESTIONS, GOOD.

  • Democrat for McCain

    says:

    Obama did well, McCain did better…period. They both knew some questions beforehand…Stop with the conspiracy theories. Liberals have been saying for months how slow and senile McCain is.. if this is true how could he pull together the very smooth and emotional answers he did in just thirty minutes? Pretty slick for an old dumb guy
    Give credit where credit is due…McCain did well, did better than Obama..so now the REAL competition begins. Obama has real competition here and he lost to McCain in the forum…suck it up and plan a tighter game for the convention.
    With all this whining you’d think this was a “PUMA” blog.
    Jennifer Hartford CT

  • Charles

    says:

    @52,

    I was under the impression that neither of the candidates was supposed to know the questions beforehand.

    Perhaps you’d care to point us to a source for your assertion?

  • Chad

    says:

    Oh yes, it’s not that McCain was more prepared and came off looking more presidential, no no, it had to be that McCain cheated. It’s not that Obama looks like a complete idiot without his telemprompter or scripted responses, it’s because McCain cheated.

    Both candidates were given a synopsis of the debate prior to showing up. Both had time to go over their responses. But because Obama was unprepared is McCain’s fault because McCain cheated.

  • Democrat for McCain

    says:

    @54–there is an interview with preacher Warren and CNN (see under Sunday night open forum from last night) where the preacher clearly states on CNN that he gave BOTH Obama and McCain some questions prior to the forum(because he is friends with both and did’nt want to put them on the spot about supporting/commiting to helping adoption around the world.

  • Charles

    says:

    @56,

    It is a far different thing to know all the questions in advance (which is what you said above) as opposed to knowing some of the questions in advance.

    Given the venue, it would be elementary to deduce that some questions would be about religion. However, it would not be simple to craft careful replies unless one knew the wording of the questions in advance. Of course, here’s where McCain had an advantage. All he has to do is spout a talking point, and the braid-dead audience cheers.

    So you lied, above. Noted.

  • Charles

    says:

    Chad,

    The issue isn’t whether McCain or his campaign staff listened to Obama and hence knew the questions in advance.

    The campaign staff obviously listened. They wouldn’t be doing their job, otherwise. Equally obviously, McCain wouldn’t be listening — that’s the job for his strategic staff, who prep him for his appearances.

    The question should be: did the people who prepped McCain listen to the questions before they finished prepping McCain? And the answer is: obviously. That constitutes cheating.

  • Democrat for McCain

    says:

    #57
    Charles,you need to put your glasses on…entry #52 quote “they knew some questions beforehand”…too bad you can’t stop whining about how well McCain did…if you really want to help Obama win, stop crying in your beer and spouting conspiracy theories, formulate a plan to tighten his game in the debates, and GET OFF YOUR ASS and go door-to-door, person-to-person for him.

  • Chad

    says:

    I understand it’s hard for you to admit that your guy just didn’t have it. There must be some reason that McCain came off looking better, something, anything, oh, how about he cheated? Yeah, that’s what we’ll cry. CHEATER!!!

    Maybe these two should just have a townhall debate where everyday people are allowed to ask the questions. Oh wait, they’ve already tried that and Obama chickened out. I wonder why that is? Is it because if Obama can’t prep and prepare his statements before-hand, he comes off looking like an idiot.

  • Charles

    says:

    @59, @60

    Get your facts straight. I never mentioned McCain’s performance. I’m dealing in facts and obvious deductions here.

    The fact is that, unless you want to claim that McCain’s campaign staff is completely incompetent, they listened to Obama and knew the questions in plenty of time to prep McCain to answer them.

  • Democrat for McCain

    says:

    Keep whining Charles, and wasting your precious time in life…. you could be helping Obama by talking with people one-on-one about why you personally believe in the man….but ,no, lets just keep whining about perceived slights and conspiracies.
    See ya, would’nt wanna be ya.

  • Charles

    says:

    I’m sorry, I said I hadn’t mentioned McCain’s performance, but I see that I pointed out that a trained chimpanzee could have done as well.

    Let me rephrase: the issue isn’t whether McCain did well or poorly. The point is that his campaign cheated, and, by then claiming POW! when it was pointed out, tried to cover up the cheating.

    It’s so often the cover-up that’s more serious than the original crime, you’d think people would figure it out.

    Oh, and @62, I’ve given up trying to change the minds of people like you. This country can go straight to Hell, if I have to try and teach dimwits the rudiments of logic via comment threads. If that sounds elitist, well, I didn’t get a PhD so I could go back to the farm and raise chickens.

    Educate yourself and figure out why it’s such a bad idea to put an impulsive hot-head with oedipal issues in charge of the presidency. Don’t expect somebody else to teach you.

  • stormskies

    says:

    Charles:
    maybe it’s better not to respond to these spluttering repiglican robots ……… they don’t have brains that can actually think or reason ..they are simply programmed robots who are programmed to say and do what they say and do without any critical reasoning interfering in the program … just let them splutter on their tireless drivel issued thru the tone of sniveling stupidity …. …….. they are indeed the very embodiment of what paul krugman called the other day THE POLITICS OF STUPIDITY ……… indeed …

  • Jeff

    says:

    Post # 51… exactly. When I was watching the broadcast, I thought, wait, Warren has not asked him about Supreme Court Justices yet. Hmm.. seems fishy to me.

  • Always hopeful

    says:

    Obama answered the questions. McCain used the questions as springboards into his “stories’ which resonate well with the public, plain and simple. He was trained to twist any answer into his talking points. Obama on the other hand, came across as unprepared because he really was “off the cuff” thinking that is what the public wanted – him unscripted. This wasn’t really a “debate” forum. Obama will pick up speed in the real debates…

  • stormskies

    says:

    maybe the spluttering repiglican rebots can explain the following ?

    **************
    two days after the fact, questions continue to surround John McCain’s surprisingly strong performance Saturday at Pastor Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church. The mainstream media and blogosphere alike are abuzz with rumors that McCain pierced Warren’s so-called “cone of silence” and, more serious still, may have purloined his legendary POW “cross in the dirt” story from the late Alexandr Solzhenitsyn.

    But on one point, there is no dispute. Despite CNN’s assurances to the contrary, Rick Warren simply asked Barack Obama and John McCain different questions.

    From the very first question, Warren treated McCain with biblical kid gloves, editing out scriptural references that might have proven uncomfortable for the religiously reticent Republican:

    QUESTION TO OBAMA: These first set of questions deal with your personal life as a leader and I’m not going to do this with any other segment, but as pastor I’ve got some verses that have to do with leadership. The first issue is the area of listening. There is a verse in Proverbs that says fools think they need no advice but the wise listen to other people. Who are the wisest three people you know in your life and who are you going to rely on heavily in your administration?

    QUESTION TO MCCAIN: This first question deals with leadership and the personal life of leadership. First question, who were the three wisest people that you know that you would rely on heavily in an administration?

    Chuck Todd of MSNBC was quick to note the strikingly different answers Obama and McCain offered, but not the clearly different questions they were asked:

    “Take the VERY first question Warren posed to both candidates: who are three people you’ll depend on for wisdom in the presidency. Obama seemed to answer this in a very personal way, talking about his wife and grandmother. McCain went right to this message, checking boxes on Iraq (Patraeus) and the economy (Whitman) for instance. Now, I’m betting Obama’s answer came across as more authentic but McCain’s was probably more effective with undecided swing voters.”

    Given the very different framing of the question Warren posed, it’s no surprise that Barack Obama and John McCain produced strikingly different responses in both substance and style. Obama took Warren’s personal question personally, and cited his wife and grandmother as both “wise and honest” before moving on to a litany of political figures on both sides of the aisle. (Obama’s mention of the radical social conservative Tom Coburn (R-OK) was transparent pandering to his audience.) For his part, McCain responded to Warren’s political question and pointed to General David Petraeus, Obama supporter Congressman John Lewis and former eBay CEO Meg Whitman. (McCain was quick to return to his stump speech and extol the glories of eBay as America’s economic future.)

    But Warren’s divergent paths for Obama and McCain split further with the very next question on leadership and moral weakness. Again, Warren turned to the Bible for Barack Obama, but to Dr. Phil for John McCain:

    QUESTION TO OBAMA: Let’s talk about personal life. The Bible says that integrity and love are the basis for leadership. This is a tough question. What would be looking over your life, everybody’s got wings [sic], would be the greatest moral failure in your life and what would be the greatest moral failure in America?

    QUESTION TO MCCAIN: We had a lot leaders because of their weaknesses, character flaws, stumbled, become ineffective [and] are not serving anymore, serving our country. What’s been your greatest moral failure and what has been the – what do you think is the greatest moral failure of America?

    Again, the different framing of the question put Obama at a distinct disadvantage. After admitting his own troubled, selfish youth as his personal failing, Obama turned to scripture to highlight America’s failure to live up to its own ideals:

    “I think America’s greatest moral failure in my lifetime has been that we still don’t live by that basic precept in Matthew that whatever you for the least of my brothers, you do for me.”

    In contrast, McCain killed two birds with one stone. He dispensed with his own marital infidelity in a single sentence, “my greatest moral failing, and I have been an imperfect person, is the failure of my first marriage.” (The issue never surfaced again, and Warren’s admission Friday that he “absolutely” would have compunctions about voting for an adulterer never became an issue for McCain.) More important, McCain highlighted America’s greatest shortcoming as a failure to “serve cause greater than yourself.” That theme – “country first” – is the rhetorical cornerstone of the McCain campaign. And the contrast of his response with Obama’s discussion of his own battle with what Warren termed “fundamental selfishness” couldn’t have been more strategic for McCain.

    Warren’s different framing of the inquiries he posed and the tailored, selective follow-ups continued in his discussion of marriage. Warren asked Obama and McCain alike to “define marriage.” But while Obama was then asked, “Would you support a constitutional amendment with that definition,” Warren instead offered John McCain an opportunity to weigh in on a hotly contested ballot measure being pushed by the religious right in California:

    “Let me just ask a related question to that. We got a bill right here in California, Proposition 8, that’s going on because the Court overturned this definition of marriage. Was the Supreme Court of California wrong?”

    It’s no secret that the foes of same-sex marriage see Proposition 8 as essential to fueling Republican turn-out in November.

    And so it went all night. And so it went all night. Thanks in no small part to Pastor Warren’s biblical guidance, Barack Obama spoke in a personal, conversational style, making a point throughout to refer to the principles of his Christian faith in the misguided attempt to please an audience indifferent to him at best, downright hostile at worst. So while Barack Obama talked of “trying to do God’s work,” John McCain did the work of his campaign advisers. Despite Warren’s feeble requests not to do so, McCain just repackaged his stump speech and made purely political appeals. In so doing, John McCain probably had the best night of the campaign.

  • Carol All

    says:

    We should be surprised that Rick Warren’s interview with both presumptive political candidates resulted in advantage McCain? Come on!

    From the earliest broadcast interview, Warren has made the true political purpose of the interview clear; to promote his neo-con agenda. The fact that McCain was not under the “cone of silence” while Obama was being interviewed has been uncovered. Now tjat has become an innocent misunderstanding. Right! McCain’s camp got caught, and they know it. All they have left to use is the old POW excuse. How dare we question a military hero! It seems to me that for a man who hates to talk about his POW experiences, it just keeps coming up. Now it is embellished as the campaign covers up another of old grumpy’s serious blunders.

    It’s hardly a coincidence that Rick Warren, Pat Buchanan, and Jerome Corsi have gone all out lately to bash Obama as they roll out their pro-life stands. Next, the 527s are poised to focus on Obama’s pro-choice votes. In pathetic, desperate Republican panic, some grizzly stories from a disgruntled nurse at Christ Hospital in Chicago about a rare induced medical abortion is being linked to Obama’s vote on SB 1095 to paint the father of two little girls guilty of infanticide.

    Apparently, self-righteous Republicans can get away with lying, cheating, and stealing to win an election, even for a candidate they admit that they don’t really believe in. What is today’s latest pander? Continuing to yammer to the VFW about “victory” in Iraq, something McCain refuses to define. He claims that the troops beg him to “Just let us win.” No matter, my friends, that even in victory, McCain plans for troops to stay in Iraq for 10-100 years. Could it be that some of McCain’s lobbyist buddies have interests there? It is a fact that Budweiser is sold on all the bases.

    John McCain spends more time bashing, distorting, and lying about his opponent than he does explaining his own policies. Just like the playground bully, McCain has nothing good to say about himself, or his buddy George Bush, so he mocks and tries to tear down Obama. McCain claims, “He’ll do anything to win!” Me thinks thou doth protest too much, John McCain.

  • tiredofgreed

    says:

    Why did Davis send a letter to NBC complaining about bias?All Andrea Mitchell did was report what the Obama campaign thought about the late arrival of Mccain and the comment by Warren that McCain was in the “cone of silence” and he was actually still at the hotel. The letter seems to have been pre written and as soon as any mention of Mccains late arrival was made the very long and strongly worded letter was sent and a meeting set up with NBC officials to talk about this. How is someone a 1/2 hour late to such a huge event as this. He should have been there a hour before the event. Has there ever been a general election candidate late for a debate? How would he have ever known Warren was going to ask a specific question about the Supreme Court? The dishonesty from Mccain is staggering.

  • rvadem

    says:

    I think it is pretty obvious that McCain likely cheated (for a whole handful of reasons detailed mockingly or otherwise above). However, I think we missed this one: for me, the obviousness is the campaign’s response. What the heck? They are really nervous about getting caught – so much so that they mapped out this ridiculous attack. They want to change the media narrative quick – and are perfectly happy to have the focus on the “POWs don’t cheat” nonsense rather than the actual story. The sad part is this has worked. They put NBC in a defensive position and thus scared off other organizations from touching the story. In my opinion, NBC should simply ask McCain “did you or did you not know the questions before appearing on stage with Warren?”. Betcha he won’t answer that with a simple “No, I did not”.

  • Hannah Stevens

    says:

    “Educate yourself and figure out why it’s such a bad idea to put an impulsive hot-head with oedipal issues in charge of the presidency. Don’t expect somebody else to teach you.”

    You are so right on. McCain is a dangerous man with a trigger finger who has said that he wants to bomb Iran and then laughed about it. He is old and is not a deliberate thinking person, much like we have now and would be another puppet president in the hands of corporate interests. And he is dishonest; adultery, Keating 5 and more. I shudder to think what will happen to middle class America if he gets in. It will truly be gone.

  • doubtful

    says:

    stormskies,

    Where did that come from? That’s a great breakdown of the inherent bias in the questions.

    And I’d like to ask Chad and his like minded conservatives how they would feel if the rolls were reversed. What if a moderator lied to cover for Obama and said he was in a silent room when he was really in a car where he could’ve listened to every word?

    I think we all know how you’d react, as well as the national media. The Obama campaign would be over. There is a double standard, and the Republicans are allowed a lot of latitude and their follows are consistently guilty of context dependent outrage.

    Honestly, if you want to beat us, do it legitimately. But hey, your the Diebold party. I don’t expect any of you to have the integrity to actually listen to our concerns.

  • Barbara J. Hatcher

    says:

    This “cone of silence” issue now supports my suspicions. If John McCain did not llisten, his staff did and coached him. It was very appparent. McCain does not ever speak well.Since he said Obama gets too much press, everyone has closed ranks to make McCain look good. There is a very, very big difference in world view
    1. Evil- With McCain we are back with the “evil Empire” mess of gtthe Republicans. Evil is always someone else. While he wants to confront Osama, he does not speak of the evil right in the US. McCain plays on fears just as George Bush did.
    2. The sharp answer and story about Faith did not address McCain’s faith. It was the story about the faith and willingness to do a good turn my a guard who was a believer! John McCain made no attempt to reply or signal agreement when the cross was made in the ground. The media tells ius he was great.
    3. I understand he was a POW and that must have had a huge impact on his life but he sounds like he never moved forward–he is still a POW. That makes him scary to me. He has still not dealt with it if one if can.

  • Richard

    says:

    Maybe someone can clarify a point for me. I understand that John McCain has not been baptized. Does someone know if he has. I learned from growing up Catholic and changing to Episcopalian that the first step in being saved is being baptized. If John McCain has not been baptized, he has uttered another half truth. He says he is saved but he is willing to go to war at the drop of a hat. I guess he is like most Republicans and that they fear bombs and terrorists more than they fear God. That’s why God said in the Old Testament, “The first SIGN of WISDOM is FEAR OF GOD! John McCain needs to study the bible and not use his prisoner of war bit. someone should tell him it’s getting old real fast.

  • Bill

    says:

    Well Maybe we should give McCain the benefit of the doubt and assume he was indeed in the cone of silence but then remember in Get Smart the Cone of Silence NEVER WORKED.

  • Norah RunningWolf

    says:

    I often wonder how anyone could call themselves “pro-life” and then support the killing of innocent children in the bombings of soveriegn countries such as Iraq and now Iran.
    Is it because those children are already born?
    And how about supporting the children here that need help?
    It is a specious argument that at least these children will have a chance.
    A chance at what?

  • SJ

    says:

    For the folks who think that McCain gave better answers than the “The one we have been waiting for”, must have cheated, then what is your excuse that “The One” gave such poor responses i.e. “above my pay grade..”. I supose that from now on when a judge is being grilled to be accepted for the Supreme Court, they can give that as their answer. “above my pay grade”

  • John

    says:

    Republicans are all in favor of the “right to life” as long as it is just the part of life that occurs between conception and birth. After that, no such right.

  • Sharon

    says:

    McCain’s used his P.O.W. status as an excuse for everything that goes wrong in his life for years: just as he used it when he ran for the House of Representatives for the first time (and every time) years ago. It’s simply become more pervasive this time because of the negative campaign he’s running and it’s his only real defense against any negative charge by the Obama campaign (though not nearly enough members of the press question a single thing this charlatan does). He uses it shamelessly like a shield ‘how dare you attack me, a war hero, who spent five and a half HEROIC years suffering untold agonies and torture for this country….” he plays it like a piano. It’s sickening.

    The good news is, sooner or later it won’t just be the Democrats among us who roll their eyes and want to vomit when he overplays this for every single misstep he makes: so will everyone else.

  • Jo Ruggles

    says:

    Ms. Wallace needs to pay attention to her own choice of words. In her response comment to the allegation that McCain “cheated” was just outrageous, someone should have asked, oh, really…he admitted cheating on his first wife, did he not?

  • Walter L. Harrison

    says:

    What disturbed me most about the “cone of silence” farce is that when McCain first came out, he was asked about his experience in the cone of silence, and he responded with a joke that he had had his ear to the wall. Why did not he not tell the TRUTH (or at least the truth as has been portrayed by his campaign) – the he was NOT in a cone of silence but was in his motorcade on the way to the forum, but that he did not hear any of the questions or answers. He certainly was content with having the audience and viewing public believe a TOTAL FALSEHOOD – namely that he was in fact in a “cone of silence.”

  • R G Major

    says:

    Mayor of NY Julie all he says is 9/11 this 9/11 that,McCain POW this POW that’s all the spin they know

  • Newton Gimmick

    says:

    It’s a bit ridiculous. Cheating aside, the Saddleback forum was a joke. Obama answered the questions, McCain did his stump speech.

    On the plus side, the POW stuff really came to the forefront in the Saddleback forum. He answered nearly every other question with a POW story. One solid POW story would have sold McCain well. Using it in every answer exposed him quite quickly. The fact that he’s went to that well again and again proves that ti’ll run dry VERY soon, if not already.

    The American public have been easily fooled before, but after the last 8 years people have grown smarter and aren’t as easily swayed by rhetoric and ignorance. That’s not to say that a large portion of America won’t be swindled again, because they will. But hopefully there is enough intelligence out there to turn a few red states blue and remind the world that America is still a smart country, that makes wise choices.

  • JoAnn Jenkins

    says:

    McCain was a prisoner of war and what about being a POW prepared him to be the president of the US. What about the fact that he must have and still maybe suffering from PTSD. Is he rational enough to deal with threats of war, without his POW experience coloring his judgement. Will his experience as a POW make him better at dealing with hostile behavior from other countries, as it is implied by his followers..

  • Robin

    says:

    It amazes me how childish the Obama campaign has become. It is as though the candidate has decided to act in an immature manner to impress the kids that he is depending on to vote him into office. The Warren interview just verified to me that Obama is trying to take all sides of every single issue. It appears he has no core values at all! I just wanted him to answer the questions, not try to justify his personal beliefs with reasons why he also supports the opposite of what he claims to be his personal beliefs. And by accusing McCain of cheating just because he miserably failed at the questions shows me that Obama cannot even understand that others might actually have core values and be willing to state them clearly and concisely without making excuses for them!
    The whole cell phone announcement of his VP just verified that Obama is determined to act less mature than my 19 year old son!