McCain Camp Insists Obama Is Playing Age Card

The McCain camp is taking offense at an appearance of Barack Obama on Wolf Blitzer this week, claiming that Obama is playing the the age card.

Obama told Blitzer that he was "disappointed" by McCain repeating a smear connecting Obama to Hamas:

"I've said it's a terrorist organization and we should not negotiate with them unless they recognize Israel, renounce violence, and unless they are willing to abide by previous accords between the Palestinians and the Israelis. So for him to toss out comments like that I think is an example of him losing his bearings as he pursues this nomination. We don't need name calling in this debate."

The McCain camp released a memo in response, saying Obama using the phrase "losing his bearings" is a deliberate attempt to attack McCain's age:

First, let us be clear about the nature of Senator Obama's attack today: He used the words 'losing his bearings' intentionally, a not particularly clever way of raising John McCain's age as an issue. This is typical of the Obama style of campaigning.

You can read the whole memo below (and you should; it's quite a rant).

Obama's spokeman Bill Burton had this to say about the "age" memo:

Clearly losing one's bearings has no relation to age, given this bizarre rant that Mark Salter just sent out. It's clear why a candidate offering a third term of George Bush's disastrous economic policies and failed strategy in Iraq would want to distract and attack, but it's not the kind of campaign John McCain has promised the American people that he would run.

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To: Interested Parties

From: Mark Salter, Senior Advisor
Date: May 8, 2008
Re: Senator Obama's Attack Today

First, let us be clear about the nature of Senator Obama's attack today: He used the words 'losing his bearings' intentionally, a not particularly clever way of raising John McCain's age as an issue. This is typical of the Obama style of campaigning.

We have all become familiar with Senator Obama's new brand of politics. First, you demand civility from your opponent, then you attack him, distort his record and send out surrogates to question his integrity. It is called hypocrisy, and it is the oldest kind of politics there is.

It is important to focus on what Senator Obama is attempting to do here: He is trying desperately to delegitimize the discussion of issues that raise legitimate questions about his judgment and preparedness to be President of the United States.

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Through their actions and words, Senator Obama and his supporters have made clear that ANY criticism on ANY issue -- from his desire to raise taxes on millions of small investors to his radical plans to sit down face-to-face with Iranian President Ahmadinejad - constitute negative, personal attacks.

Senator Obama is hopeful that the media will continue to form a protective barrier around him, declaring serious limits to the questions, discussion and debate in this race.

Senator Obama has good reason to think this plan will succeed, as serious journalists have written of the need for 'de-tox' to cure 'swooning' over Senator Obama, and others have admitted to losing their objectivity while with him on the campaign trail.

Today, Senator Obama is complaining about comments John McCain made about a senior Hamas advisor stating that Hamas would welcome Senator Obama's election as president. Indeed, on April 13th, senior Hamas political advisor Ahmed Yousef said, 'We don't mind - actually we like Mr. Obama. We hope he will (win) the election and I do believe he is like John Kennedy, great man with great principle, and he has a vision to change America to make it in a position to lead the world community but not with domination and arrogance.'

The McCain campaign has never suggested that Senator Obama supports Hamas' agenda, but it is more than fair to raise this quote about Senator Obama because it speaks to the policy implications of his judgment.

Just today, the president of Iran, whom Senator Obama wants to meet with unconditionally, called the state of Israel a 'stinking corpse.' Iran is the paymaster and state sponsor of Hamas.

In his victory speech this week, Senator Obama stated that 'wisdom' is meeting with our enemies, including Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, North Korea's Kim Jong Il, Venezuela's Hugo Chavez and Cuba's Raul Castro. John McCain couldn't disagree more. Rather than giving tyrants and dictators the prestige of meeting with an American president, John McCain will instead meet with the champions of human freedom around the world and opposition leaders fighting for liberty .

We understand why Senator Obama doesn't want to engage in a debate over leadership and judgment with John McCain, but the American people demand that debate take place.

These are serious times that call for a serious debate on the profound issues facing our future. John McCain is ready for that debate and we hope Senator Obama will one day get serious and join it.

Comments

[MelDel7365]

Good. Obama (or Clinton) SHOULD play the "age card" - Unlike gender or race - AGE IS RELEVENT and it is fair game. McCain is too old to be a judge in some states. Age, unlike gender or race, can impact fitness and judgment. This is just a FACT...and the only reason the Republicans are freaking out about this is that they don't want a legitimate concern brought to ligh. I know this is terribly politically incorrect - but it is absolutely true, and Obama (or Clinton) should point it out - albeit subtly.

[mlaiuppa]

Actually, "losing his bearings" isn't playing the age card. It's playing the sanity card. McCain has consistently misremembered to the point my friends and I are making Alzheimer's jokes ala Reagan. While Alzheimer's can attack at any age, you are more susceptible as you age. If McCain doesn't want people to assume he has mental problems and is "losing his bearings" then he needs to get the facts correct and demonstrate a clear memory. Age isn't as much a consideration as mental competency.

[LoloZ]

That's exactly it! He is totally losing it. One huffpo commentator wrote several weeks ago that McCain is just as crazy as any homeless vet living under a bridge, and he is. Obama will slay him in the fall.

[goo]

I'll play the age card.

I think that his age and health issues DO play a part in his poor decisions and his seeming confusion when it comes to Iraq, Iran and other foreign policy blunders he's made. McCain is following a rope. He's not creating anything new or adding any strength to that rope. He offers America nothing but the same old thing and probably a less civil version of the same old thing.

He would be a complete disaster for Democrats and Republicans.

[rollingdivision]

Obama isn't old but he certainly seems confused. Read the whopper Obama keeps repeating about talking to our enemies. " In defending his stated intent to meet with America's enemies without preconditions, Sen. Obama said: "I trust the American people to understand that it is not weakness, but wisdom to talk not just to our friends, but to our enemies, like Roosevelt did, and Kennedy did, and Truman did."

That he made this statement, and that it passed without comment by the journalists covering his speech indicates either breathtaking ignorance of history on the part of both, or deceit.

I assume the Roosevelt to whom Sen. Obama referred is Franklin D. Roosevelt. Our enemies in World War II were Nazi Germany, headed by Adolf Hitler; fascist Italy, headed by Benito Mussolini, and militarist Japan, headed by Hideki Tojo. FDR talked directly with none of them before the outbreak of hostilities, and his policy once war began was unconditional surrender.

FDR died before victory was achieved, and was succeeded by Harry Truman. Truman did not modify the policy of unconditional surrender. He ended that war not with negotiation, but with the atomic bomb.

Harry Truman also was president when North Korea invaded South Korea in June, 1950. President Truman's response was not to call up North Korean dictator Kim Il Sung for a chat. It was to send troops." By Jack Kelly

[Scarllatti]

Your argument is MEANINGLESS. Where did you keep your brains during this tortuous endeavor?

[EspritDeVoltaire]

He's always like that, just ignore him. The old codgers stick together with their erotic dreams of war glory. It's their brand of pornography.

[MrKINOKO]

A "whopper" refers to a lie, sir, not to a rational decision to speak to "our" enemies. Interesting choice of words, tho'..."our". I don't recall making enemies with Iran. Did they do something untoward to you? And as per your historically biased comment about FDR, sorry, but the Japanese tried fervently to address the unprovoked strangle-hold levied against it's shipping and imports by the US and it's allies...prior to Pearl Harbor. And he watched silently as Hitler retook the Sudatenland and annexed Poland. He was happy to watch Italy degenerate into facism, as he thought this would help alleviate our "Mafia problem". And I suggest you think hard about labeling dropping atomic bombs on civilians as "ending the war". Sounds more like an unnecessary show of power to impress the USSR, genocide, and the ultimate act of State-sponsored Terrorism to me.
As per your "North Korea invading South Korea" comment, well, they were both Korea, and none of our business....other than because we chose to insinuate ourselves into a civil conflict for the sake of "stopping" Communism. Seems to me that if the US spent more of it's time on self-improvement and minding our own business, we could become the great nation our forefathers once invisioned. But of course, you Warpigs don't want that, right? Because then GE would have to go back to making refrigerators...instead of Vulcan mini-guns.

[08timefortruth]

Way to go Obama, keep McBush on the defensive. Don't let him get away with anything.

Obama '08'

[KMan1]

I'm so freaking tired of the word "card" in this election.

[going2ireland]

Beats the heck out of "elitist", "Neo-con", "My friends . . .", "swiftboating", and "day one".

[shelobo]

Theres been a lot of questions concerning McCains adopted daughter ,Bridget McCain .I admire some one who adopts handicaped children ,regardless of their ethnic back ground,I do NOT admire some one who USES the child for political reasons,I had said once that IF Obama does not get the nomination legally ,I might would vote for McCain ,NOT NOW after reading several articles about how McCain has used the child in campaign mailers recently ,I want to be able to sleep peacefully at night .WHY are these politicans USING their Children to do this? This shows the WORLD how cold and uncareing OUR country is,and is being promoted by radical hate groups .The Clintons are using their daughter and now McCain has used his to futher their political careers !! http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=bbd23d59-2190-4065-8a09-44e8b0be7ba2

[going2ireland]

Don't forget the little jab he made about Chelsea's looks at a GOP dinner. I won't repeat it, but you can google it . Google "McCain Janet Reno Chelsea" That should get you there.

[Wheatstraw]

I bet if you ask to see McCains birth certificate...its chisled on a stone tablet.

[Wheatstraw]

And the date is writen in Roman numerals

[Bertha40869]

And he was in the graduating class of Bethlehem High.

[PennLawyer]

If Obama wanted to deliberately attack McCain re this incident and McCain's age, he could have said, "It appears someone left the front door to the nursing home unlocked, and Senator McCain is wandering around in his pajamas, talking to fire hydrants."
As primary care giver to my mother for 15 years until she died last year at age 94, I've spent a LOT of time in a nursing home and been around dozens of people facing this difficult stage of life, as well as their families. One observation: personality traits become more exaggerated in old age - and bad temper/anger is such a trait. Memory loss, whether standard dementia or Alzheimer's may come on gradually, but it appears in the vast majority of elderly. Add to that the fact that McCain underwent years of torture and isolation as a POW. As a psychologist friend of mine observed, such an experience has a lifelong, negative impact on an individual. Put all of that together, and McCain is a time bomb waiting to explode - as in bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran.

[jhink465]

The last time we elected a president so advanced in age, we ended up with a president that didn't have his mental faculties working and the country was run by surrogates and a first lady. With all that is going on these days it's far too risky to try that again.

[26eaj24]

Mr. McCain you are in fact really really old.

[DanoS]

Obama didn't imply age, the McCain camp did. How is saying "loosing your bearing" any different than McCain saying "out of touch".

Besides the real issue is what is McCain implying by "Hamas supports Obama"? Thats what needs explanation.

[Wheatstraw]

McCain is so old...his memory is in black and white.

[Wheatstraw]

Is sound like McCain did not have his Prune Juice this morning...He really needs to let this Sh!t go!

[Bertha40869]

LOL!

[InjunTrouble]

What on earth is the age card? Nobody is against old people. My parents are older than McCain.

We just don't want this old man to be our president. Still, he should watch his step in the bathroom, we don't want him to fall and hurt hmself.

[steamboat]

Age card v. Experience card

Slick used car salesman card v. old-warrior card.

Rich elitist snobby wife card v. angry chip-on-shoulder elitist wife card.

---------ah, and we've only just begun.