After the recent brouhaha over Hillary Clinton and some planted questions, most political observers had to concede that the practice is hardly unusual at the presidential level. The Clinton campaign got caught, and it was embarrassingly sloppy for the usually-flawless operation, but the reaction was muted thanks in part to the frequency with which this occurs.
So frequent that another candidate has been caught? The Chicago Tribune’s Jill Zuckman speculates after John McCain’s most recent event in New Hampshire.
On the heels of the Iowa controversy in which a campaign staffer told a college student what to ask Sen. Hillary Clinton, McCain received at least five highly suspicious questions.
Voters asked him to expound on his position for torture as well as climate change, the issue that got Clinton into trouble.
Another praised McCain for his “physical and political courage” and said: “Could you tell this audience about your consistent opposition to abortion?” […]
Then McCain received this hardball: “When you are the Republican nominee, who do you think your opponent will be in the general election?” […]
Jack Tarlin, an independent voter, stood and told McCain that the polls show he would have the best chance of any of the Republican candidates to beat Clinton. “The news isn’t getting out right now,” he told McCain. “We don’t have a whole lot of time left till January.”
Reporters covering the event apparently laughed in response to the incessant softballs, but a senior McCain aide swore that “no one from the campaign asked any voter to ask any question or make any statement.”
Zuckman seemed skeptical, which is perfectly understandable given the circumstances. But I can’t help but wonder: maybe a lot of Republican audiences are just naturally sycophantic?