Ad wars: McCain and Obama trade barbs; third-party group releases incendiary Ayers spot
Tuesday, August 26, 2008 at 9:21 am
- 7 Comments
Three new ads in the presidential race mix this week. Barack Obama goes Negative Lite with a new McCain = Bush montage featuring a reworked version of Sam Cooke’s “Wonderful World,” the McCain campaign scratches at the Obama/Clinton scab by giving the spotlight to a Hillary supporter who’s voting for McCain, and a third-party outfit called the American Issues Project coughs up a 1-minute spot tying Obama to former Weather Underground leader William Ayers.
In Obama’s “Don’t Know Much,” a vaguely James Taylor-ish crooner spins couplets like “I’m not up on the economy/ Don’t know much about industry/ Really can’t explain the price of gas/ Or what has happened to the middle class” while on-screen chiros quote McCain on his ignorance of economics and reprise The Hug.
Barack Obama: “Don’t Know Much” (:30)
McCain’s new ad is a testimonial from one Debra Bartoshevich, a former Hillary delegate who says she will vote for John McCain. It’s timed so as to keep the chattering classes playing up Obama/Clinton antagonisms during the Democratic convention. Also relevant: The latest USA Today/Gallup poll says that 27 percent of Clinton backers currently plan to vote for McCain.
John McCain: “Debra” (:30)
And in the first full-on Swiftboating episode of the campaign, a nonprofit group called American Issues Project is pushing an ad that highlights Barack Obama’s past association with a U of Illinois professor and former Weatherman, William Ayers, who served on a community board with Obama in Chicago. The ad, which Fox News channel declined to air for unspecified reasons, is appearing in heavy rotation in some swing states (Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, according to TPM‘s Greg Sargent), where $3 million is being spent on ad buys.
The American Issues Project is headed by a former consultant to McCain’s Iowa campaign, Ed Failor Jr., is also the executive VP of the anti-tax group Iowans for Tax Relief.
American Issues Project: “Know Enough?” (1:00)
7 Comments
Comment posted August 26, 2008 @ 9:47 am
McCain handlers including him are typical ugly Americans.
Comment posted August 26, 2008 @ 10:12 am
Why does Hillary have more experience than Obama? Just because she was first lady gives her “experience.” All I see from both sides is the same nonsense and nothing will “change” if we vote for either candidate, Obama or McCain. Why don't we talk about real issues that actually matter to people? I am happy to say I will not be voting for Democrats or Republicans. At least the person I support has actual solutions to real problems, and I will not have to take any responsibility when this nation is far worse off with one of the two major parties on office.
Comment posted August 26, 2008 @ 11:26 am
Actually, “expelled delegate” may have been the best way to discribe Ms. Bartoshevich. She was booted out of the Wisconsin delegation last month.
Comment posted August 26, 2008 @ 1:16 pm
During MSNBC coverage they stated that the woman mistakenly stated that McCain was Pro-Choice and was shocked when informed that McCain would overturn Roe-v-Wade. For a delegate, she is very uninformed.
Has Ayers ever been convicted of any crime, or is this just interpretation from this writings or speeches ?
Isn't it remarkable how the news media gives free coverage to these Obama-McCain ads such that the candidates don't even have to pay for any paid advertising.
Comment posted August 27, 2008 @ 5:16 am
It wasn't “unspecified reasons”: it was because the ad was potentially illegal, and has been reported to the DoJ by the Obama camp for violating election law.
Comment posted August 27, 2008 @ 5:17 pm
“McCain is like a Grumpy Elephant with no vision and a flip flopping memory! There is a reason this Elephant is always attacking without a postive message. His trainers are Rove & Schmidt at the circus! We know what to expect at the McCain’s convention a Grumpy Elephant entwining his trunk with 2 Rogue elephants in Bush/Cheney with two cheering trainers in Rove & Schmidt who are trying to sell the American People a 3 rd George Bush Term.” RFK
Comment posted October 11, 2008 @ 5:01 am
You Obamabots can’t handle the truth….
I’d rather have an old man who is not perfect than a young well spoken snake oil salesman who is a racist, socialist, marxist, communist mole. Google Obama + New Party + CPA
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