McCain Campaign Response: Obama Worries About Arugula, Vacations In Hawaii
Here's McCain campaign spokesperson Brian Rogers' response to Obama's hit on McCain today for not knowing how many houses he owns.
It hits just about every Obama-is-elitist hot-button known to exist, although, in a glaring oversight, the McCain campaign forgot to include Obama's and Michelle's educational pedigree:
"Does a guy who made more than $4 million last year, just got back from vacation on a private beach in Hawaii and bought his own million-dollar mansion with the help of a convicted felon really want to get into a debate about houses? Does a guy who worries about the price of arugula and thinks regular people "cling" to guns and religion in the face of economic hardship really want to have a debate about who's in touch with regular Americans?"The reality is that Barack Obama's plans to raise taxes and opposition to producing more energy here at home as gas prices skyrocket show he's completely out of touch with the concerns of average Americans."
The battle over who's the real elitist here is one that many Dems have wanted the Obama campaign to wade into, and now they're getting their way.
This is obviously a big break for Obama. Nonetheless, does anyone really believe McCain's gaffe will command anywhere near the same amount of media attention as John Edwards' $400 haircut did? We don't, but perhaps we'll be pleasantly surprised.
Late Update: Some of the more optimistic among you are saying that you do think McCain's gaffe will get into Edwards haircut territory in terms of the coverage. Just a small reminder: The Edwards haircut was talked about literally for weeks and weeks, on cable TV and elsewhere, and The Washington Post did something like half a dozen stories on it, if memory serves. Just sayin'.
The housing comment is already front page news on cnn, yahoo and google. I think it'll come close to $400 haircut territory.
August 21, 2008 11:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
...and I'm sure that the millions of Americans who vacation in Hawaii will appreciate being smacked by McCain as being out of touch.
http://strategy08.wordpress.com
August 21, 2008 11:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
McCain's counter-punch is weak...Full of old news that barely gained traction.
August 21, 2008 12:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
According to Mark Halperin, their response was "nuclear". I kid you not.
He also says that Obama
Ladies and gentlemen? I think "seven houses" is a phrase we're going to be hearing a lot of...
August 21, 2008 12:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Very Serious Mark Halperin said that was "nuclear"? ROTFL!
August 21, 2008 12:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Pronounced "NUKE-yoo-ler".
August 21, 2008 12:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
7 houses that cost more than 13 million...
I think McCain had to change his tax policies to conform to Bush's tax policies because if he didn't Cindy would dock his allowance, and Grampy Golddigger McCain just couldn't make do with shoes that only cost $400...
August 21, 2008 12:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'd love to make a web-ad about this, using the instrumental from Kanye West's "Gold Digger".
Hell, maybe Kanye would be willing to do some special vocals, just for this. :-)
August 21, 2008 12:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Let's be careful about that, remember how well Ludacris's last Obama song went over?
August 21, 2008 12:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Totally different situation. West's song is more like "Material Girl" than anything Ludacris puts out. Also, you wouldn't need the lyrics. Just the instrumental, with horrid pictures of McCain and his McMansions and some big text talking about how much each house is worth. :-)
August 21, 2008 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Kanye West doesn't resonate with the people who need convincing.
August 21, 2008 12:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
If that's the case, we could just use the original source of the Kanye/Jamie Foxx "Golddigger" refrain ("She give me money/When I'm in need"): Ray Charles' "I Got a Woman." After all, the Repubs just loooove to play Charles' "America the Beautiful" whenever they can--makes them feel inclusive and race-blind. That way we can avoid the whole ridiculous "Obama is a secret rapper-lover" smear attempt. Check out Ray's version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAvP3eV73Vs
August 21, 2008 3:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
per Nas, Kanye and "the bruthas" are keeping it on the low low for obvious reasons
August 21, 2008 12:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
I ain't sayin' he's wants a gold-life,
but seems he knew to dump his poor-wife.
I ain't saying he divorced her cause she's old,
'cause his new one, she's got lots of gold.
August 21, 2008 5:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Perfect number. Seven. Just enough to constitute a gaggle of houses.
August 21, 2008 12:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
CT Voter says:
Yep, a new movie is coming out; "The Magnificent 7 Houses"
The answer given by the vast majority of the public would have been "one."
August 21, 2008 5:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
I wonder how many of those houses have fallout shelters.
Given his warmongering approach to international relations, that could create a mini boomlet for shelters like back in the 1960's. I guess you could say that McCain's warmongering could be a boost for the housing industry.
August 21, 2008 12:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
August 21, 2008 5:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Just wait until the comedians get their hold on this.
Edward's haircut was a good one, but it wasn't anywhere near as FUNNY as this is.
That's why this monumental gaffe of all gaffes will not only last longer than the haircut - it will likely be mentioned in McBush's obituary!
And they ain't laughing WITH you Ambush.
They're laughing AT you! LOL
The technical term for what McBush just did is:
"Stepping on your Dick!"
As in Dick Nixon, of course. LOL LOL LOL
August 21, 2008 7:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Just wait until the comedians get their hold on this.
Edward's haircut was a good one, but it wasn't anywhere near as FUNNY as this is.
That's why this monumental gaffe of all gaffes will not only last longer than the haircut - it will likely be mentioned in McBush's obituary!
And they ain't laughing WITH you Ambush.
They're laughing AT you! LOL
The technical term for what McBush just did is:
"Stepping on your Dick!"
As in Dick Nixon, of course. LOL LOL LOL
August 21, 2008 7:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Just wait until the comedians get their hold on this.
Edward's haircut was a good one, but it wasn't anywhere near as FUNNY as this is.
That's why this monumental gaffe of all gaffes will not only last longer than the haircut - it will likely be mentioned in McBush's obituary!
And they ain't laughing WITH you Ambush.
They're laughing AT you! LOL
The technical term for what McBush just did is:
"Stepping on your Dick!"
As in Dick Nixon, of course. LOL LOL LOL
August 21, 2008 7:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
They didn't mention "celebrity".
And Greg? I actually DO think this will get attention, because it's as simple to understand as the words "$400 haircut".
August 21, 2008 11:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
Wait, wait, wait. The McCain camp WANTS to make an issue out of this? HALLELUJAH!
August 21, 2008 11:48 AM | Reply | Permalink
Amen! Time for the economy-size Whoop-Ass!
August 21, 2008 12:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ummmm, ummmm LAME!
August 21, 2008 11:50 AM | Reply | Permalink
What a lame-ass response. You can tell they weren't prepared for this one. Heh.
August 21, 2008 11:50 AM | Reply | Permalink
You know who worries about the price of Arugula? Farmers. The very group of people Obama was talking to when he made that comment. That's why this line of attack has been lame since the Republicans started using it in January.
August 21, 2008 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is a fine example of McCain's quick trigger.
August 21, 2008 11:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
yep
August 21, 2008 11:54 AM | Reply | Permalink
What are you talking about? This is just rapid response, it doesn't mean anything in particular, McCain may not even be aware it was being sent out.
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
If your campaign sends it out, you own it. Surely you know this.
August 21, 2008 12:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yep, John probably doesn't know about this response. Hell, the guy doesn't even know how many houses he owns...
August 21, 2008 12:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, man. It's beginning to sink in what a goldmine this situation could turn into....
August 21, 2008 12:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, I only own one home, barely, and I can see how great this going to be. I swear, this stuff writes itself...
August 21, 2008 12:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Greg, this response can mean only one thing: Obama has drawn blood, and the McCain camp is worried. Hence the spastic, and angry response back.
Why are they worried? Because McCain's vast wealth is a fact of his biography that most people just don't know.
They have tried so hard to focus all biographical elements only on the POW service, but this takes the eye off that ball.
I'd add that Republicans like McCain and Bush have ALWAYS been the real elitists and we let the opportunities to smack back slip through our fingers. But McCain is so fabulously wealthy and is so ostentatiously so, that his camp is very worried this becomes an issue.
They can't afford to be painted as more out-of-touch on the economy, and I have a feeling it's all downhill from here.
http://strategy08.wordpress.com
August 21, 2008 11:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
Plus, Obama earned his money honestly.
McCain just married into it.
August 21, 2008 11:57 AM | Reply | Permalink
You forgot how he married into it. He filed for a maraige certificate while still married to his first wife. What percentage of people do you think know about that?
August 21, 2008 12:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey, he didn't remember he was already married.
August 21, 2008 12:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Actually, yes he did, but it is okay BECAUSE HE IS A POW!
August 21, 2008 12:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
That'll leave a mark.
August 21, 2008 12:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Please don't mention the POW thing! A mainstream "journalist" will pop up and tell you how McCain just HATES to mention this and neither should you.
August 21, 2008 1:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
here here!
getting a good education, working your way up and creating a better life for yourself and your family:
American Dream.
August 21, 2008 12:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hell, Obama made $4 million last year? By McCain's standards, that's not even "rich". ;)
August 21, 2008 1:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
McCain didn't Just marry into wealth.
He divorced his first wife so he could marry the younger richer Cindy!
Is that not significant to "values voters"????
Or do I have my chronology wrong?
August 21, 2008 6:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Greg, this response can mean only one thing: Obama has drawn blood, and the McCain camp is worried. Hence the spastic, and angry response back. "
Exactly. Exactly. Exactly.
The more the fight over this, the better.
McCain can either get drawn into this, or turn tail and run. His hysterical temper will prevent the smart choice of ducking.
August 21, 2008 12:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree that not slapping back on Repub elitism is a missed opportunity. One of the things I always found so galling about Bush was the idea that someone who was a product of such privilege could be such a drooling, anti-intellectual dumbass. But then the apple didn't fall far from the tree.
August 21, 2008 12:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
He was born that way.
Disagree. Bush 41 isn't nearly the dumb-ass that Dubya is.
August 21, 2008 1:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Does a guy who worries about the price of arugula and thinks regular people "cling" to guns and religion in the face of economic hardship really want to have a debate about who's in touch with regular Americans?"
Yes, yes, yes, yes.
August 21, 2008 11:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
As Bush would say "Bring it on!"
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
said in the voice of Joe from Family Guy...
August 21, 2008 12:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes. "No mercy!"
August 21, 2008 12:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama: "I agree, lets have that discussion."
Rethug: "um...ah...you're not wearing a flagpin"
August 21, 2008 12:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hawaii, is this place in America or what?
McCain just does not have as much hair as Edwards!
It may be premature but this seems like the beginning of the end for McCain. Target spots by regions and states countered with Hawaii and arugula; I like Obama's chances more than ever
August 21, 2008 11:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
Speaking of McCain's hair you'd better not tell him he is balding, he'll call you a cunt if you do!
August 21, 2008 12:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
LOL!!!!!
August 21, 2008 12:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm sure enterprising reporters are asking Hawaii's Republican governor Linda Lingle if she thinks Hawaii is a state or not.
August 21, 2008 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Right wing e-mail screeds would tell you no. And Obama is not a citizen.
August 21, 2008 1:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
In all seriousness, this sounds like a response one of us would make up as a joke. Just throw every Obama smear into one breath.
August 21, 2008 11:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, the only thing they left out was "...and has a reverend that damns America..."
August 21, 2008 11:56 AM | Reply | Permalink
"the clouds will open, the sky will fall, celestial choirs will be singing, and everyone will know we did the right thing, and the world will be perfect."
August 21, 2008 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, if he only made $4 million last year that puts him squarely in the middle class...!
August 21, 2008 11:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
Beat me to it! Damn!
August 21, 2008 12:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
No, it makes him upper middle class.
August 21, 2008 1:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think they need to make an ad about McCain's houses use a Robin Leach voice. That would really push the knife in.
August 21, 2008 11:53 AM | Reply | Permalink
Done:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7PfSEtiXPw
August 21, 2008 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Sweet video! Now how do me make it go utterly viral?
August 21, 2008 6:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, good, keep it up. The more there is a fight over this, the more the word gets out about McCain's INSANE wealth and out of touch policies. Obama's been on the mean streets of chicago with the poor, McCain is all about outsourcing and taxcuts for the rich ($5 million +, lol)
-----------------------
Another great thing about $100 million in the bank McCain attacking Obama for earning $4, is that the Obamas EARNED their money.
McCain DUMPED his grievously injured wife and ran off wih a homewrecking blonde heiress whose daddy gave her her millions. Best thing he ever did - his maimed first wife was a real loser, had gained some weight, and was 4 inches shorter after the accident. She might never walk again, they were told. Cindy was filthy rich, 20 years younger, and had great political connections. Voila, McCain's ticket to the Senate and lifestyles of the rich and famous.
August 21, 2008 11:53 AM | Reply | Permalink
As a firm believer in the "rope-a-dope theory," I think this statement is a shining example of how it could work. This rebuttal is so tired I'm nodding off like McCain. Because the media has blasted every bit of anti-Obama garbage (like Bittergate) into the stratosphere, this kind of retort has little or no impact left.
The NYT article today about Western PA voters, while not good news for O on the whole, certainly shows that these voters are inured to this stuff already....
August 21, 2008 11:53 AM | Reply | Permalink
The rope-a-dopers vindicated.
August 21, 2008 11:57 AM | Reply | Permalink
are vindicated.
Time for some coffee.
August 21, 2008 12:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
Rope-a-dope! Say it three times fast...
It's true, many lost it on the last two weeks and guess what: Good things come to those who wait.
This right before the VP pick and the convention is just perfect. Now it's a matter of keep hitting!
Stop! Obama time!
McCain: Reckless abroad, seven houses at home.
August 21, 2008 12:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
A few days ago McCain defined someone making 5 million a year rich. Obama made 4 million last year. I guess McCain doesn't think Obama is rich. Right?
August 21, 2008 11:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
Oh man, that would be a perfect retort to this response - "4 million, so what? According to McCain I'm middle class.
August 21, 2008 11:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
I was expecting the end of that omnibus response from the McCain camp to be "All I'm saying is, he wouldn't have been my pastor!"
August 21, 2008 11:56 AM | Reply | Permalink
haha, exactly!
This response almost reads as satire.
August 21, 2008 11:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
LOL.
August 21, 2008 12:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Jeezus, back to the arugula. Vegetables are clearly elitist.
August 21, 2008 11:56 AM | Reply | Permalink
I thought arugala was a type of cheese. I guess I'm not an elitist.
August 21, 2008 12:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
From the Rovian Dictionary:
Arugula: 1) foreign, 2) a coded reference to racial impurity and sexual promiscuity.
Translation: "Obama is foreign, oversexed, and non-anglo-saxon. He cannot be trusted."
The relevant text from Wiki: "It has been grown in the Mediterranean area since Roman times, and was considered an aphrodisiac."
August 21, 2008 12:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
I thought one of Cindy's plagerized recipes involved arugla?
August 21, 2008 1:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
who cares about mcCain's hundreds of millions, his 7-12 houses and $500 shoes? obama eats arugula!
August 21, 2008 11:56 AM | Reply | Permalink
they say obama "worries about the price of arugula." in contrast, the beer baroness's husband doesn't worry about the price of ANYTHING.
August 21, 2008 11:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
Not true...the Great Hops shortage of 2007 had him concerned.
August 21, 2008 1:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
...they were considering selling one of the houses...
August 21, 2008 1:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Glad you can find some humor in all of this, SFCWallace :)
August 21, 2008 4:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm bone-weary of standing by, as the McCain campaign invokes the name of convicted felon Rezko.
Cindy McCain's own father was a felon.
He and his brother were convicted of falsifying liquor records, when rationing regulations still were in place after WWII.
Not very patriotic, hmmm?
August 21, 2008 11:57 AM | Reply | Permalink
Truly? Reciprocity time. And it doesn't have to be getting into the dirt with the pig. "For the McCain campaign to continually mention Rezko, who has been convicted of fraud but found to have NO questionable dealings with Obama, is as irrelevant to this campaign and the important issues facing our country as the fact that Cindy McCain's father and brothers, who are connected to McCain's wealth in very real ways, were convicted ......." or something to that effect.
August 21, 2008 12:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
Wonk, Wonk, McCain's dumb a$$ is busted!
August 21, 2008 11:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
Ahh, it feels good to be on offense while the other guys issue lame statements for once.
August 21, 2008 11:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
McLame response from the McMansion camp.
August 21, 2008 11:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
"It's the McSame...old song...
I'll be glad for November...when McLame is gone..."
August 21, 2008 12:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Obama campaign's response should be immediate and rung like a bell through the weekend. "Senator Obama has earned his money." The contrast will make itself.
August 21, 2008 12:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
that's a very good point. obama is a self-made man; mcLame marrried into money.
August 21, 2008 12:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes -
Seven houses. Seven houses. Seven houses.
Self-made man. Self-made man. Self-made man.
Perfect!
August 21, 2008 12:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
Aye, "Obama made his money the old fashioned way . . . he e-a-r-r-r-r-n-e-d it."
August 21, 2008 1:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Or reverse it:
McCain made his money the old fashioned way... he married it.
August 21, 2008 2:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
McCain made his money the old fashioned way.
I dumped his poor old wife to marry the young rich one.
How can any "values voter" know that and still support McCain.
Or maybe more relevant, how can non-rich woman know her husband is supporting McCain and not be nervous?
August 21, 2008 6:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
I just don't understand how the failure of the media to do their job has become so systemic and pervasive.
McCain was asked to define 'rich'. The question came in the context of statements about tax positions and policies. Both Obama and McCain (and everyone) else talk about tax policy in terms of how it effects the 'rich', the 'poor', and 'working people'. Asking him what he means by 'rich' is a question for which some meaningful answer is required.
Instead, McCain babble some sentimental twaddle about how he believes being rich means having a home (or, apparently, an uncountable number of homes), and having a family, and being happy, and how some billionaires are poor. And the audience applauds this smarmy pandering.
But forget the audience - isn't it now the job of the media to say, "So, Senator McCain, if you say your tax proposals will help the poor, does that mean you intend to help unhappy billionaires? And, when you say that the rich already pay a disproportionate share of all income tax revenue, did you mean that people with homes and families did that?"
Where are these people? What are they doing? What do they think their job is, after all?
August 21, 2008 12:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hope Obama will not forget to hit McCan't on the draft! He needs to do some great counter punching today! Draft..in favor of it...wars..need more of them...homes..too many to count...keep it up and no let up! Punch the man silly!
August 21, 2008 12:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
Agree. That's a job for the Next Generation Vets for Obama. It fits for them perfectly.
August 21, 2008 12:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
Agreed. This could hit home with the young vote...
Do you want to be drafted to fight against the russians in Georgia?
Looks like a job for the Next Generation Vets for Obama. It fits perfectly for them.
August 21, 2008 12:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Crap! I post it twice. Sorry.
Still, a good remainder.
McCain: Reckless abroad, seven houses at home.
August 21, 2008 12:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
When they bring up both Rezko, Cling and Arugula, you know that Team Obama has hit the Motherload of Jackpots here!
August 21, 2008 12:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
They didn't see it coming.
And it will be worst for them.
Stay tuned...
McCain: Reckless abroad, out of touch at home.
August 21, 2008 12:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
McCain: Reckless Abroad. Out of Touch At Home.
I like that. It's the kind of simple distillation that resonates with late-deciding voters.
Hopefully you don't mind if I use at every available opportunity...
August 21, 2008 12:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Go ahead. "Mi casa es su casa". (Ironic, isn't it)
To be honest, I saw it at DailyKos.
Spread the word.
McCain: Reckless abroad, seven houses at home.
August 21, 2008 12:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, dear. The hotheads have walked right into it, haven't they?
Typical trigger-happy response that leaves them open to even more of a counter-attack.
This is going to be fun to watch.
August 21, 2008 12:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Barack Obama eats food and lives in a house" and other pathetic storylines.
McCain is the vegetable.
August 21, 2008 12:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
i guess the veep can wait till tomorrow. too much of a gold mine today.
August 21, 2008 12:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, Obama didn't make $5 million, so by McMansions standards, he's middle-class, right? :-)
August 21, 2008 12:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
That is exactly what I was thinking!!!!
This back and forth is going to be fun!
August 21, 2008 12:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
After the past month, this is some damn good catharsis. More, please!
August 21, 2008 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
I love the Hawaii vacation thing. I hope they keep using that as your rebuttal. Attack: "McCain has $13 million of houses." Response: "Obama took a vacation that cost several thousand." One is valued at thirty- or forty- or fifty-fold more than most middle-class families would ever live in in their lifetimes. One is valued at exactly what millions of middle-class families would *like* to do for their vacation and what millions of middle-class families, in fact, *do* for their vacation every year. Keep it up, McCain campaign!!
August 21, 2008 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, not to mention that Obama grew up in HI and his grandmother still lives there.
So I guess Obama shouldn't visit his grandma? What a perfect example of Republican Family Values.
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Let's throw some 'scarole on this puppy
August 21, 2008 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama's trip to Hawaii was to go back to his home town, to see his grand mother who helped raise him, to visit the grave of his grandfather who is buried in Punchbowl.
Obama made $4M, which according to McCain doesn't even classify him as rich.
Arugula (which I thought was a cheese) vs $520 shoes and a private jet to get around Arizona...
Cling to guns and religion vs Nation of whiners, economic problems imagined.
What economic crisis? McCain denies one exists...
As was mentioned the "celebrity" meme wasn't even touched here. In stead of "Does a guy..." it could have easily been "Does a celebrity...". Proof positive that they were rattled.
August 21, 2008 12:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
An impotent response from the McCain campaign. My guess is if you asked John McCain what Arugula is, he'd say it's an island in the Caribbean.
August 21, 2008 12:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Don't forget...
"Arugula is a Caribbean island that we're going to attack because it threatens our security."
August 21, 2008 12:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh...and let's not forget that they own so many homes and propertiees that they forget to pay the taxes on them as well and it's such a burden to be responsible enough to pay the taxes on time!
August 21, 2008 12:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
give the guy a break. put yourself in his shoes (while expensive, he probably has fewer pair than he has houses).
So quick. How many shoes do you own?
Did you Count the boots? (Condos)
Or the slippers? (ranches)
Don't judge a man until you walked a mile in his primary estate. (probably best to borrow one of the golf carts in back, because nobody in his shoes would actually walk there)
August 21, 2008 12:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
I mean, you can get arugula at Applebees, can't you?
August 21, 2008 12:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
But you can't get Ferragamos at Florsheim's!
August 21, 2008 12:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Now let's attack the draft gaffe McCain made. I want that comment on all over the news, on an endless loop.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1264930389490481967&ei=ZpOtSL7MNISC4wKzpqQx&q=mccain+draft&vt=lf&hl=en
August 21, 2008 12:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
It was not a gaffe. He meant it exactly.
August 21, 2008 12:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
Geez, whatta buzzkill, Greg. But I imagine you're right. I hope you're just flat out wrong in this instance, but I suspect you aren't.
August 21, 2008 12:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, I think this is going to go far beyond the $300 haircut territory, if only because McCain is so much more prominent a candidate now than Edwards ever was.
August 21, 2008 12:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
By the way: More like this, please -- Obama can really get under McCain's skin.
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
I still don't get the arugula thing. Most people don't even know what the fuck arugula is.
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think that's the point.
Me? I LOVE arugula. Wish I could grow it in my garden. Can never find enough of it in the supermarket.
August 21, 2008 12:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
The phrase "latte liberal" is weak but people at least know what a latte is and it has a definitive "elitist" image attached to it. Arugula's too obscure of a reference to have some sort of image attached to it. An insult is really ineffectual when you have to explain to people.
"What's arugula anyway?" "Oh, it's a green plant. Sort of a niche market here in the States." "Oh."
Obama camp's response should be, "At least Obama has to look at the price of things, you seven-housed, beer baroness-marrying dipshit." Well, with cleaner language, maybe.
August 21, 2008 12:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Slamming Arugula as elitist as the hidden perk of alienating McCain from Italian-American voters.
August 21, 2008 12:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
No, I think that language is just about right. Needs a couple of well-placed f-bombs.
August 21, 2008 2:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ahhh, but isn't one of the cardinal rules of comedy that if you have to explain the joke, it's not funny. I'm with middlename -- I eat pretty well and frequent the local farmer's market, and I couldn't have told you what arugala was before this dustup. Middlename's point is that it's an attack that doesn't stand on its own -- it needs the explanation to even make sense.
August 21, 2008 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
I see both your points, but I think "arugula" sounds, well, dare I say it, "exotic", and that's why they use it. If people actually knew what it was, they'd say "What's wrong with like something that's like lettuce?"
August 21, 2008 12:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
The white hair dude is out of touch.
Barack Obama is going to clean the Rethug's clock, wait to when he unveils his vice president to be Al Gore.
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Question: Can Al Gore be VP again? Legally speaking?
August 21, 2008 12:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
There's no term limit on Vice President like there is on President which is 2 terms.
August 21, 2008 9:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
On one hand, I see where you're coming from, Greg: I wouldn't be surprised Edwards's haircuts get more play than this. The media likes their narratives short and simple.
On the other, when housing values are plummeting, major lenders are on Congressional life support, and your candidate doesn't even know how many houses he owns, that's going to raise a lot of eyebrows - even in the media. If this isn't McCain's tank-riding moment, its really close to it.
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Part of what made the Edwards haircut stick was the "I Feel Pretty" video. The media ate that up. It was like the Youtube version of a Maureen Dowd column. In that spirit, I want a video of McCain at his dandiest (the $500 shoes, the Architectural Digest spread, the 27 houses, etc.) all set to "Material Girl."
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Kenny, you're a genius. Seriously.
August 21, 2008 12:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Where are slink and dansac when you need them?
August 21, 2008 12:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
I like this one too: "Gold Digger" by Kanye West - wouldn't even need the lyrics. The instrumental would be a dog-whistle for the youth vote, and the text on the screen would sock every other demographic between the eyes. :-)
August 21, 2008 12:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
the $500 shoes
Everybody Cut Footloose!
August 21, 2008 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, Kenny you've changed since the days in S.G.! You have such Angry Eyes. And good suggestions.
August 21, 2008 2:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Go go Mr. O.
August 21, 2008 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Meanwhile, McCain is taking a few days off at his ranch near Sedona, AZ, one of his SEVEN homes ...
August 21, 2008 12:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Lol, nice, you know when you touch a nerve because they inevitably throw out the same old discredited Rezko shit. How pathetic.
But yes, they missed "latte-sipping" and "celebrity".
And c'mon, the Obamas still made under $5 million last year (mostly book sales, unlike McCain), so they are still solidly middle class right? ;)
Hell, if it was the McCains you could be sure that they'd actually OWN the private beach, not just vacationing there. I don't think someone like Obama has much choice, the Secret Service couldn't handle security at a public beach in Hawaii. Give me a break. A pathetic comeback.
August 21, 2008 12:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Good point on the private beach for security reason call.
August 21, 2008 12:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
This would make total sense. Except that Kailua Beach (where Obama was staying) is NOT a private beach. There are *no* private beaches on Oahu. Some beaches can be difficult to get to, but Kailua Beach is not one of them.
August 21, 2008 5:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
Points should be made that McCain's wealth is inherited and he was born to privelege. Obama came from nothing and worked his way up the ladder the hard way. Also, his wealth no where near the McCains (does his net worth even approach 10 & pf theirs?). Besides, since when does taking holiday in Hawaii qualify somebody as elitist. I make $40 K a year and I spent a week in Hawaii last year - does that mean I'm out of touch?
August 21, 2008 12:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Good point. Tell the people...
August 21, 2008 12:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
I say come back with:
"The day John McCain stops wearing $500 Ferragamo loafers is the day he can start to tell us how much of an elitist Barack Obama is."
"By the way: they have arugula in the salads at Appleby's. I know the McCain folks don't get out much to know that, but the average American is trying to eat a little more healthy. We can't afford personal trainers to help us work out in the private gym like John McCain has in his California ocean front condominium. So we watch our dietary intake a little better."
"But let's get back to the real issues in this campaign: Paris Hilton, God bless her heart."
August 21, 2008 12:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Time to bitch slap McSame with the 4 year delinquent tax problem he had in La Jolla, California again.
McCain really doesn't have a clue what ordinary Americans must go through to survive under McCain's repressive and war-mongering bullshit.
August 21, 2008 12:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
The part of the McCain campaign response that bothers me the most is the bit about: "The reality is that Barack Obama's plans to raise taxes and opposition to producing more energy here at home..."
That is simply a lie. But that's what the average person is going to remember.
August 21, 2008 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Things I'd like to hear more on:
1- Obama's Healthcare plan. Single payer (yes, yes, yes!).
2- Economy/populist message (seeing that today).
3- More on McCain's DRAFT gaffe- I've yet to get any clarification from the McC. camp.
4- Social Security/Medicare.
August 21, 2008 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
This makes me feel pretty.
August 21, 2008 12:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hint to obama:
DO NOT RESPOND TO ANY OF MCSHRILL'S COUNTER ATTACKS!
DO NOT DEFEND ANYTHING! SILENCE IS GOLDEN.
August 21, 2008 12:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Exactly.
Ignore McGoo's response and DON'T GET DEFENSIVE! He's the one playing defense now.
JUST. KEEP. PUNCHING.
August 21, 2008 12:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm a big supporter of Obama, but I think this is a very bad move to get into this issue of the "seven houses" with McCain. McCain's response is, I think, effective. Obama cannot defeat McCain by trying to win the "who is an elitist" game . McCain is a veteran, former POW, and most importantly, a conservative white male. There's no way Obama is going to convince Joe Sixpack Swingvoter that McCain is the bigger elitist, even if it's absolutely true.
It is a deeply rooted American belief that anyone can become rich. But it's also a deeply rooted belief that having cultural capital is a sign of favortism or elitism. Being wealthy, for most people, is not a sign of being "out of touch." Class warfare will not work anymore, because ever since the 1950s, the market has been enshrined as a source of opportunity, rather than unfairness. That's not the case with cultural institutions, such as elite institutions of higher education -- of which Obama is identified as being a product. (The negative view of affirmative action among working-class whites is an issue underlying all of this.)
Obama needs to play to his greatest strength: his ability to get people excited about the future and about our chance to finally fix the problems of the last 8 years, which have weakened this country both militarily and economically. McCain fears Obama's youth, intelligence, optimism and energy, so he wants to get him into the mud, and especially want to change the focus back to "elitism." Who is rope-a-doping who??
August 21, 2008 12:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
oh...please, McCain cannot keep using his POW experience as an excuse to get elected. McLame falsely attacked Obama a 'celebrity, Obama is simply responding to his attacks.
August 21, 2008 12:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
He's not hitting him for being rich, he's hitting on him for being so out of touch he doesn't even know how many homes he owns. The Obama camp and most hard core politicos have known for a while that The McCain's have between 7-10 homes, but Obama never hit on it because there is nothing wrong with success. There is something wrong with being so out of touch that you don't know how many houses you own though - and that's what they're hitting him on.
The McCain response reeked of desperation. they were throwing anything and everything short of Rev. Wright.
August 21, 2008 12:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
That strikes me as a nuance that will get lost in translation. The MSM will only hear that Obama is attacking McCain for being rich, and that McCain responds by pointing out Obama's yuppieness. That's not a good dynamic for Obama, in my view.
August 21, 2008 12:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
Here's how it's being "nuanced", if you will, by traditional media:
"McCain not sure how many houses he owns".
Not: Obama attacks McCain for being rich.
August 21, 2008 12:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ok, maybe you guys are right. I certainly hope so. The "not remembering" meme is key. But, of course, there will be a strong counterpunch by FoxNews and those types -- emphasizing Obama's wealth (even if self-made) and yuppieness. My only point is that, in this back and forth, Obama is at a disadvantage with white "non-college" swingvoters -- for various reasons.
August 21, 2008 12:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
"I'm a big supporter of Obama, but I think this is a very bad move to get into this issue of the "seven houses" with McCain. McCain's response is, I think, effective. Obama cannot defeat McCain by trying to win the "who is an elitist" game . McCain is a veteran, former POW, and most importantly, a conservative white male. There's no way Obama is going to convince Joe Sixpack Swingvoter that McCain is the bigger elitist, even if it's absolutely true."
Respectfully, this is nonsense - if Democrats were fearful that John McCain would hide behind his POW status every time he was attacked, then Obama shouldn't be running. This is the perfect line of attack for Obama, because not only does it clarify McCain's wealth, shows how out of touch he is, but it also subtly plays the age card.(..not remembering how many houses he has)
August 21, 2008 12:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hamiltonian, you've got the big picture right -- modern market worship, the weird way that cultural capital generates more envy than actual wealth, etc.
But as commenters above have illustrated, the deal here is not that McCain has seven homes, but that he *couldn't remember* how many he had. Which makes him look, not "rich," but arrogant and out of touch.
August 21, 2008 12:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
Remember John F. Kerry? Veteran. War hero. Decorated.
Yet his chicken hawk, elitist opponent was able and allowed to label Kerry as the elitist without any backfire.
Here, it should be easier for Obama to label the war hero an elitist, because Obama himself is not one.
August 21, 2008 12:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
WRONG. This is exactly what the populace needs to hear. They listen for 20 seconds these days, and "I can't remember how many houses I own" will get heard, trust that.
The other hit today should be on McCain agreeing to the draft reinstatement. I am amazed Obama's camp has not jumped on that one.
August 21, 2008 1:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Unhinged old John McCain is angered by his confusion over how many mansions he owns, he irrationally hates vegetables, he misses the draft, and is more obsessed with supermarket tabloid personalities than anyone in American politics ever should be. It's not simply that he will say anything to win, but rather: Does John McCain even know what he says, or is he just making it up as he goes along?
August 21, 2008 12:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
The latter...
August 21, 2008 12:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
Wrong. How come all these years later every single one of us can remember the image of President Bush I marvelling at the grocery store scanner? Because it blows out of the water any "guy I can have a beer with" concept. As Doug H. said above, when house prices are plumetting, voters at least want somebody who can somewhat identify. Which is why the brillant part of the ad is the first ten seconds that links Sen. McCain's gaffe with something middle-class Americans can identify with.
August 21, 2008 12:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bush Senior was a New Englander running against Bill "Downhome" Clinton who had a gift for connecting with middle class voters, and who was a white Southerner. More recently, in 2000, Gore tried to attack Bush Jr. for being super rich, elitist, and out of touch, and that didn't work very well (although, of course, Gore won the popular vote). Bush Jr., for all his millions and old family connections, seemed more of a "regular guy" than Gore. I think Obama is facing the same problem here, and even more so because he's not white, and thus already "other" in the minds of many Americans.
August 21, 2008 12:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Remainder:
Gore won Florida, the SCOTUS elected Bush.
August 21, 2008 12:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Rove and Diebold "elected" him the second time.
August 21, 2008 4:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
And Obama ≠ Gore, and McCain ≠ GWB.
McCain's gestures toward "regular guy" are pretty creaky.
Obama can actually do it better, race notwithstanding.
August 21, 2008 12:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
I remember Bush 1 more for his wonder at the mapping of the "Human Gnome" than anything else.
August 21, 2008 4:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
McGoo is squealing, and that means the fork hit pork.
TWIST IT!
August 21, 2008 12:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
More McCain House hypocrisy?
I've heard it before:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axrgFGZYFzE
Let's have some fun now:
The McCain-Nixon-Bush Tango
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyvJVy_7LYU
August 21, 2008 12:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Y'know, I make less than 50K a year & I frickin' love arugula.
Is this attack still effective? Doesn't everyone tune into FoodTV now and then these days?
August 21, 2008 12:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's not a smear to say that Obama buys arugula at Whole Foods, he admitted that himself when discussing crop prices with Iowa farmers (a al Dukakis's endive remark). Maureen Dowd has had fun with that all year.
Few regular guys have ever purchased arugula (sold by itself) at Whole Foods.
Obama's seven houses attack is a good one, though.
August 21, 2008 12:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
Finally...
Even the ape agrees. That means it really works.
August 21, 2008 12:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
...arugula is also available at Wal-Mart and most other grocery stores as well. Next!
August 21, 2008 12:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
SEVEN HOUSES
SEVEN HOUSES
SEVEN HOUSES
$500 SHOES
SEVEN HOUSES
SEVEN HOUSES
SEVEN HOUSES.
(keep it simple, folks)
August 21, 2008 12:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
Question for john McFuddle: How much money does one need to make yearly to qualify for the middle class? In other words, to get out of the poor house?
August 21, 2008 12:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Like Saddam before him, McCain needs to sleep in a different house every night to avoid assassins. It's hard for him to keep track.
August 21, 2008 12:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
ROFL! LOL!
August 21, 2008 12:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Good one. The jokes just write themselves. Letterman, Leno, I know you're listening!
August 21, 2008 12:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't think the blue-collar swing-state folks are the ones who are making "class warfare" distinctions anyway. They have crappy paying jobs, live in houses they may lose and want someone to relate.
SHOULD BE DONE BY THE SURROGATES!
August 21, 2008 12:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
McCain house blunder ad up! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpmFd25tRqo
August 21, 2008 12:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Can Al Gore be VP again? Legally speaking?
Yes. But it's not likely to happen.
August 21, 2008 12:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Can you post the legal basis for that.
Curiosity, I guess.
August 21, 2008 1:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, for one thing, there is no mention of the vice president anywhere in the 22nd Amendment (which is what limits a president to two terms) at all.
August 21, 2008 1:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
Josh has posted a link to photos of one of McCain's homes on the front page.
It gives us a little window into the real tragedy about GOP fatcats. It's not just that they're obscenely rich. It's that they're rich *and* have godawful taste. Oh sweet Jesus the pastel earth tones. The kitchy folk art, the knick-knacks.
http://www.architecturaldigest.com/homes/features/archive/mccain_slideshow_072005?showall=true
August 21, 2008 12:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
Having worked through and survived a corporate merger between two Wall Street powerhouses ten years or so ago (one "blue blood", the other "Main Street"), I quickly learned from working from the Main Street side of the equation that being nice for niceness sake and thinking we all wanted to work together towards the same goal was naive at best. I realized that all these folks recognized and respected was "raw power" and when they came at you, you kicked them in the cajones and when they came at you again, you just kicked harder. It actually worked. Was not my preferred modus operandi, but hey, ya gotta do what ya gotta do.
Same thing here . . . even though it might be silly and petty, keep kicking them in the cajones with the houses, ignorance on economics, etc. It's unfortunately the only way to control the "buzz".
August 21, 2008 12:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Obama camp needs to find a brawny, man's-man arugula farmer who finds himself on the ropes in this economy, and feature him in an ad.
August 21, 2008 12:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
excellent idea!
'is john mccain saying that i'm elitist? I don't feel elitist when I get up at 3 am to go tend to my farm every morning. i don't have fancy shoes or a lot of houses so i have to work hard to keep the one I got. this arugula I grow can't be outsourced and it's keeping jobs right here in America!'
or something like that...
August 21, 2008 1:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Absolutely! Great idea!!
August 21, 2008 1:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
The houses story is all over the news now. ABC, CBS, CNN. I think this will cause McSame to blow a fuse soon.
August 21, 2008 12:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
A bigger question:
How can you not know how many houses you own?
What other facts about his own life does McCain not know . . . or has forgotten?
THAT is another underlying meme that can be mined:
he is so rich and out of touch, he doesn't even know how many houses he has, or
he is so old, he has FORGOTTEN how many houses he has!
August 21, 2008 12:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
I wouldn't touch that "he's so old" line. Too easy to turn into an anti-senior slam.
Everything else is good, though . . .
August 21, 2008 1:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
McCain's I agree we should reennact the draft story died pretty quickly----------but this one is better.
August 21, 2008 12:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Obama campaign clearly smells blood. From Jonathan Martin at Politico:
Absolutely love this.
Link: Dems take advantage of "Seven Houses" McCain
August 21, 2008 12:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, I *love* that last line. There's a follow-up ad just waiting to happen. "Man on the street" style interviews of people being asked, "How many houses do you own?" and "Do you know anybody who doesn't know how many houses they own?" ending with Sen. McCain's statement. Only thing that could be better is video of Sen. McCain himself! Where is the video / audio of Sen. McCain actually making this statement?
August 21, 2008 1:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama needs to watch out for the "Obama doesn't know where his own brother is" counterattack from McCain's surrogates in the right-wing media (already visible in comments on Politico).
August 21, 2008 1:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh yeah, THAT will fly. Please. You're killing me here.
That kind of thing goes over great with the cheetos / Mom's basement crowd.
August 21, 2008 1:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Dude, if my half-brother (from a father I never knew) was on another continent speaking another language, I wouldn't know where the hell he was either.
This will kill him with the Luo tribe, but I don't see it doing a lot of damage in Ohio.
August 21, 2008 1:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
There are millions of people from families which didn't have picture perfect two parent upbringings who DON'T know where all their siblings are. That's not something that's exclusive to Obama. That's just folks in this country. Add in an international aspect where part of the family is on an entirely different CONTINENT and it would seem obvious that it's not out of the question to lose contact especially if they weren't raised in the same household as children.
Another sign of McCain being out of touch if you ask me.
August 21, 2008 1:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's not just that he has seven houses and couldn't recall..
it's that his servants will get back to you on that.
White Gloves McCain is back!
August 21, 2008 12:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
I feel that the houses comment is something someone like MoDo (who loved the haircut story and loves gaffes more than anything else) will treat like a shiny new toy. I can't see Frank Rich or Gail Collins letting this one go either. The editorials will write themselves.
August 21, 2008 12:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
GO! GO! GO!
August 21, 2008 1:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Is there a terror alert in Hawaii now?,....don't swim at the beach,..it's unamerican. Don't eat salad,...it's un american. And if you don't own at least 15 houses you're not really rich.
August 21, 2008 1:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
What is it with DC types thinking Hawaii is considered an odd and elite place to go?
I know a lot of everyday folks who go to Hawaii and love it. You don't have to make $5 million a year to hit the islands. Blue collar, white collar... lots of people take trips to Hawaii.
August 21, 2008 1:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama should do an appearance with Colt Brennan.
August 21, 2008 1:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Especially if it's your home and where your grandmother, who is too elderly to travel, lives. Forget about "Hawaiian vacations" for other people ... this was going home to see grandmom and sister, his only immediate family. And he was at her apartment (the same apartment, I belive 2 bedrooms, where he was raised) every day. It's outrageous that they would attack him for going home - doesn't matter where 'home' is!
August 21, 2008 1:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Commercial:
"Last year, more than a million people foreclosed on their own homes.
John McCain owns TEN houses. Is he really going to care about whether or not the average family can battle corrupt creditors, make healthcare payments, or even feed their kids?"
August 21, 2008 1:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
I would amend as follows:
"Last year, more than a million people foreclosed on their own homes.
John McCain owns TEN houses. But don't ask him that, because he doesn't know! [Flash clip of McCain not knowing how many houses he owns] Is he really going to care about whether or not the average family can battle corrupt creditors, make healthcare payments, or even feed their kids when he can't even keep track of how many houses he owns?! [Flash clip of him saying his staff will get back to you on that]
John McCain: Reckless Abroad and Out of touch at home."
August 21, 2008 1:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
@smiley: i think there is only audio, but i could be wrong. it can be found here: http://share.ovi.com/media/thepolitico.public/thepolitico.10064
when i get home i think i may try to chop up the interview audio and put it over the beat for kanye's "gold digger" a la the o'reilly remix video on youtube (f-f-f-fuckin' thing sucks!!). add a slideshow of big mccain houses...
August 21, 2008 1:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Nice. That's exactly what I was looking for. That'll definitely show up in a future ad. Wish the interviewer hadn't said, "Ok" in response to McCain's answer, but still, that's good stuff.
August 21, 2008 3:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
With a guy who is worth over $30 million and can't keep track of how many houses he has? You bet.
August 21, 2008 1:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
There's are so many different ways this is good.
1. As SpaceCat mentioned, this is late-night gold, and in that forum it should have a pretty long shelf life.
2. This could really defuse McCain's whole "celebrity" attack line. There's not a direct comparison here, but definitely enough to severely damage that attack's credibility.
3. If they were planning to hit the "Obama's an elitist" thing hard in the final months here, that strategy just got severely compromised.
4. This pretty much has to bring up the fact that Cindy is McCain's sugarmama.
5. Should inform more voters about McCain's silver-spoon upbringing.
6. It brings the focus back to the economy, particularly the housing crisis which is one of McCain's weakest areas.
And that's just the angles I can think of at the moment . . .
August 21, 2008 1:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Cindy Sugar Momma and Johnny McNopoly
August 21, 2008 1:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
That's great but it needs a better rythym - How about this?
John McCain: Clueless at home, Reckless abroad.
Just a thought . . . echoing the form makes it more sing-songy and more likely to stick in the head plus 'clueless at home' can point to any of his wacky domestic policies, not just this.
Kid Zemo
August 21, 2008 1:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
John McCain: Reckless Abroad and Out of touch at home!
repeat until you lose your voice. take a break. repeat again!
August 21, 2008 1:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
McCain's attack on Obama isn't just about a million dollar house. He's attempting to trivialize him by making the arugula remark.
It's classic Karl Rove.
August 21, 2008 1:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Just as an aside, there really are no "private" beaches in Hawaii, particularly not Kailua beach. (It's a nice beach and all, but it's not really an "elite" beach.) The beach is owned by the State of Hawaii in trust for the public.
I was going to add that surely somebody who wants to be president of the United States (with Hawaii being one of those states) should know this. But the man can't even remember how many houses he owns . . .
August 21, 2008 1:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
Whenever you can get a spokesman for the McCain campaign to repeat the word "arugula" with a straight face, you know you've landed a cockpunch.
I mean, LOL! That was so lame!
August 21, 2008 2:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
Forgive me if the point has been made above (I didn't wade through the 200+ comments), but it strikes me that the appropriate response from the Obama campaign is: McCain can't recall whether he has four or six or ten houses, but regular people sure do know when they are being foreclosed out of their ONLY homes at a pace not seen since the Great Depression.
August 21, 2008 2:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Except the truth is that it *wasn't* a private beach. He stayed at a home in Kailua, on the windward side of Oahu.
There ARE no private beaches in Hawai'i. It is all public land. And where he stayed is a well-trafficked area, which is why people crowded on the beach to see him....
So, it was wrong.
August 21, 2008 2:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
McCain's response was lame! Obama's response was much better.
August 21, 2008 3:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
When they do something like this they are on the defense. There is really enough material out there on McCain to keep them on defense indefinitely through the election.
August 21, 2008 4:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Mr Rogers, where is the private beach in Hawaii that Sen. Obama went? For your information there are no private beaches in Oahu. Do your research first before you put out this garbage.
August 21, 2008 4:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
To be nitpicky...there's actually no such thing as "private beach" in Hawaii. All beaches there are public. Even in Lanikai, which is that area of Kailua where O was staying. I think the Secret Service prevented anyone from approaching the house for obvious reasons. But Brian Rogers' "private beach" retort is technically impossible.
August 21, 2008 5:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Just noticed that Leila posted the same info upthread. I should learn to read deeper into threads!
August 21, 2008 5:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's interesting that McCain stated Obama doesn't want to "produce more energy here at home", rather than that he's opposed to lifting restrictions on off-shore drilling. McCain is trying to make his talking points as elastic as possible.
August 21, 2008 5:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
When PBS Newshour picks up the McCain homes story (with-Jim Lehrer and reporters noting that they know how many homes they own), you might suspect that your campaign has lost something or is it that Obama gained something.
August 21, 2008 6:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Contrary to what the McCain campaign states, there are no private beaches in Hawaii. By law, all beaches are public and must have public access.
August 21, 2008 7:35 PM | Reply | Permalink