It was obviously a slip of the tongue, but it was a gaffe that underscored an important point: John McCain seems to think he’s already the president. Standing behind a lectern in Michigan this week, with two trusted senators ready to do his bidding, John McCain seemed to forget for a moment that he was […]
McCain heads back to the ‘celebrity’ well for the 736th time
It must be rather frustrating for the McCain campaign to have so few honest arguments to make. I can sympathize — if I worked for McCain, I’m not sure what I’d do to sell this clunker of a campaign to the public, either. Looking at the McCain gang’s latest ad, it’s painfully obvious that this […]
Should there be an Iraq litmus test on Obama’s running mate?
TNR’s Michael Crowley made an argument yesterday that I’ve seen more than a few times in recent months: Barack Obama shouldn’t pick a running mate who supported the war in Iraq in 2002. Increasingly, the wise guys are predicting that Obama will choose Bayh or Biden as his running mate. Maybe, but neither one makes […]
An odd example of ‘putting country first’
In late June, the McCain campaign was aggressively pushing the line that John McCain has taken political risks by working with Dems on important issues. Pressed for a recent example to bolster the claim, a campaign spokesperson said, “It’s fairly significant that Senator McCain worked on the immigration reform legislation while he was pursing the […]
Thursday’s Mini-Report
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Russians aren’t exactly rushing to go home: “Russian officials said Thursday that the Georgian government will not regain control over two breakaway provinces that are at the center of a week-long military conflict, as the Kremlin issued an uncompromising response to U.S. and Western threats over its military incursion […]
Corsi, Obama, and threading the p.r. needle
It’s the quintessential campaign conundrum: ignore an attack or respond forcefully. The prior denies the criticism oxygen, but campaigns generally don’t want to risk leaving an attack out there without a response. The latter gets the campaign’s message out, but it runs the risk of bringing attention to criticism that might otherwise go unnoticed. With […]
Would McCain consider a pro-choice running mate?
Just a few months ago, Chris Matthews asked John McCain if he would consider a pro-choice running mate, such as former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge. “I don’t know if [his position on the issue] would stop him, but it would be difficult,” McCain said. McCain is saying something different now. Republican John McCain says he […]
Two competing Olympic strategies
Both presidential campaigns have invested pretty heavily in television ads for the Olympics, with Obama reportedly spending $5 million, and McCain $6 million. Given reports on high ratings for this year’s games, it’s probably money well spent — a lot of folks will see the commercials. But it strikes me as interesting how the competing […]
If money talks, the troops are saying, ‘Vote Obama’
Way back in September, we learned that Barack Obama and Ron Paul, who don’t have too much in common, were the top two presidential candidates when it came to financial support from U.S. troops. It had a certain political salience — opponents of the war in Iraq took note of the fact that the top […]
Clinton to be put in nomination, campaigns strive for ‘peace in the kingdom’
Hillary Clinton’s recent talk about “catharsis” was in large part about having her name being placed in nomination during the Democratic National Convention. It’s largely a symbolic move, but it appears that’s precisely what’s going to happen. The decision was reached this week, according to Democratic officials, and will be announced later today. It comes […]