New DNC Web Ad Uses McClellan To Blast McCain

You didn't really think Democratic ad gurus would sit out the Scott McClellan contretemps, did you?

Republican-on-Republican combat is like catnip to the DNC, and this morning, they're hoping to catch Sen. John McCain in the free for all by inserting him into the "political propaganda campaign" the former White House press secretary says was used to sell the case for war in Iraq. By splicing three early McCain remarks on Iraq alongside a comment from Vice President Dick Cheney, the new web ad says the Arizona Republican was "marching in lockstep" with the Bush administration's efforts to dupe the public.

"This week, the American people are getting a fresh look at John McCain's key role in the propaganda machine that Scott McClellan describes in his book," said DNC spokesman Damien LaVera. "Given that he was part of the drumbeat that misled America into war and continues to misrepresent the facts as he defends his willingness to keep our troops in Iraq for 100 years, how can Senator McCain be trusted to not continue the Bush policy of cherry picking the facts on the ground in Iraq and misleading the American people?"

Will the ad be effective? Watch it and tell us what you think.

Script:

DNC Web Ad: "Propaganda"

GRAPHIC: Scott McClellan: White House Used Propaganda To Lead Us To War.

MCCLELLAN: "As we accelerated the buildup to the war, the information that we were talking about became a little more certain than it was. The caveats were dropped. Intelligence that you know, contradictory intelligence was ignored. Intelligence that had a high level of confidence was combined and packaged with intelligence that had a low level of confidence. And together, that made it sound like the threat was more urgent and more grave and gathering than it really turned out to be." [Today Show, 5/29/08]

GRAPHIC: Where Was John McCain?

MCCAIN: "I believe that Saddam Hussein presents a clear and present danger to the United States of America with his continued pursuit to acquire weapons of mass destruction. [CNN, Later Edition, 3/3/02]

CHENEY: "My belief is we will in fact be greeted as liberators." [Meet the Press, 3/26/2003]

MCCAIN: "There's no doubt in my mind that once these people are gone that we will be welcomed as liberators." [MSNBC, Hardball, 3/24/03]

MCCAIN: "I believe that we can win an overwhelming victory in a very short period of time." [CNN Late Edition, 9/29/02]

GRAPHIC: ...Marching in lockstep the whole way. John McCain: The Wrong Choice For America's Future.

Comments

[lizr]

great article by Frank Rich in NYT on McLellan.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/01/opinion/01richedit.html?em&ex=1212552000&en=9f124ac0ca1bac34&ei=5087%0A

[Gary47]

Ineffective, unfocused. Needs to be more pithy, not so rambling.

[barackobama4prez]

"THROW THE BUMS OUT!"

[obamanation31]

McSame. McFlip. Mc Flop. McWar.

[RaraAvis17]

Nice - now play it over and over and over again in the Midwest and the South please. We know who we want up here in Oregon. Something has to soak in to some of the people sooner or later.

OBAMA 08

[researcher]

take a trip thru the midwest and south then you will understand how they think.

ohio and penn state will not be happy until all the workers in their states are wal mart greeters. the more the repubs screw them the better they like it.

they are not about to put a black man into the white house.

by the time fox noise gets thru with obama americans will want him arrested as a muslim terrorist. I have already heard repubs accusing obama and his wife of being unfit parents for allowing their children to go to that black church.

they are going to make obama look like a hostile black out to get whites. they know what works with a dumb downed racist white society. fear mongering and lies worked with gore and kerry now how well will it work with a black candidate. oh yea like clock work.

the corp media will set this up as blacks against whites and inject fear mongering and the whites will run to the polls to elect a white man even an old lying white man that is a war monger that will make bush look like a peacekeeper.

to control the american people inject fear works every time for the repubs. they play the american people like a fine violin.

repubs will go to any lenghts to win. obama has not seen anything yet. there will be white women coming out of the woodwork to discredit obama like they did ford.

[lizr]

well then people will get a clear choice.

And it will behoove us all to get out and work for an Obama victory - give it everything we've got, even people who never worked in a campaign before.

These people who dont read the newspapers, get their news from Fox.. well, we'll have to convince them somehow to wake up and smell the coffee.

[Madampotential]

The DNC rocks!! Thanks Howard Dean. We will hit McCain on the economy and the war during the GE. I hope they get his on s votes against the minimum wage.

[Janemas]

The Dems new political power is kicking the Republicans butt all the was to Texas and beyond. Out with the old and in with the new way of American Politics! There are some good Republicans who have been lost in this Bush/Cheney/Rove control. I think Obama should nominate a REAL Republican as his running mate! That will turn Washington upside down and inside OUT!

[CaseyBabes]

"Out with the old and in wioth the new." Gawd, how I wish you were correct, but the truth is Obambi is the "old", too. He's a zealous partisan democrat with complete socialist objectives, without, up till now, any remarkable accomplishments in the Congress. Unfortunately, all three presidential candidates are "old" types, devoid of anything new and there will be no changing "of the way Congress does business" (Obambi's mantra) because it is self-sustaining business. Both parties' members are devoted to (1) re election (2) obscene benefits in office (3) managing grossly over filled staffs doing the actual work (10) somewhere after the best seats at events, the country. Examine the seniority of Congress and see most with decades in office. Think the old is going anywhere? No chance, they'll remain senators & representatives while presidents come and go...........and that's the real cause for problems with this country, a do-nothing bunch sitting on their butts while convincing voters they're useful. Sad thing is, voters buy it, ergo, we have the "new" in Barack Obama..........don't bet on it.

[glaze]

CaseyBabes, you most certainly could be correct in what you say. I have long held the view that people in general and some Americans in particular apply an invisible mantle of holiness, or near divinity on certain elected officials. And this has always proven to be to our detriment.
On the brighter side, at the very least, the new president definitely WON"T be Greorge Bush, and PROBABLY WON'T BE John McCain.

[lizr]

what is this crazy obsession with socialism and communism that you right wingers have?

Dont you know that the US is so far behind Europe in every way, from vacations to work wks to benefits to workers, to medical care?

We have been so screwed by our corporate bosses up one way and down the other til we dont know which end is up.

What we have now is a few elements of socialism in a robber baron capitalist economy that serves no one but the super rich. And that needs to come to an end.

Buzz words substituting for real thought are not going to help solve our problems.

[gladys46]

Way ta go .... Would somebody also please tell McCain that there is no "Military," "army," "navy," etc., to surrender to in Iraq!!!

Please ask him just who it is that he'll NEVER surrender to? Perhaps he continues to wake up each morning (2008) in viet nam, captured and being tortured ... yeppers, today!!

[barackobama4prez]

You are right. I think his P.O.W. experiences definitely have something to do with his warmongering. I hope the media wakes up and starts asking McCain questions and DEMANDING answers. I think I'm going to write a letter to the DNC and the Obama camp this weekend, with my thoughts on how to "break" McWar down in front of the American people.

[IslandGyal]

Four more years; four more years; four more years....

[merle7]

What WMD McCain were any ever found?

McCain said a short period of time , Well how short is short it's been what 6 years

We will be seen as liberators Cheney said I think he meant Annihilators,of the Iraqi people as well as causing the Annihilation of our own soldiers. America's presence in Iraq probably killed more Iraqi people than Saddam ever did.

[dadw5boys]

NO TERRORIST IN IRAQ.
NO WND'S.
SO WHAT EXACTLY DID CHENY MEAN?

When all the people are gone we will be welcomed as liberators?

All what people? IRAQI'S?????

hmmmmmmm

[rachel88]

And the worst part is that Cheney knew what was gonna happen, judging by that tape of him from 1994, I believe, in which he basicly says that Iraq would fall apart, if you took aout Saddam without an alternative.
Up until this day I honestly still don't know why we invaded Iraq, since that WMD story was obviously made up.

[Janemas]

For their oil tycoon friends. The profits are unforgivable! Think they cared about the american people? They used 9/11 as an excuse to manipulate the people into believing what any child could figure out on their own.... that Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11, and still american citizens bought into the dumbest lie ever told! These men don't care about anything but MONEY.

[nyboomer]

Ineffective because what the White House did was not with any confidence and any collusion on their part with Mccain.

All that said, Mccain is a doofus. He has no concept of what reality is.

[buddhistMonkey]

Effective, because McCain supported what the White House did lock, stock, and barrel as their number two cheerleader (right behind Joe Lieberman).

[frankifrost]

THE SIGN OFF DELIVERS A
"HEAVY"
SUBLIMINAL MESSAGE;
CHECK IT OUT !

[Chillinout]

As in two-faced McCain? I noticed that immediately, and I don't think it is very "subliminal."

[DesertLight]

You are right. It would be a hard sell to conservatives to sell McCain as a conservative because he is not.

[SouthFloridaDem]

My only comment is that the last frame would have been better if Bush's face was the other side of McCain's face.

[CommonSensePlease]

Great idea! Yes!

[Fotios]

I think showing Cheney instead of Bush makes an even stronger point, but yes, I agree that every chance possible, everyone needs to tie McCain to Bush. He can't escape his negative associations with this administration.

[TNT2008]

Go DNC! Kick Butt and take names!

[TNT2008]

Go DNC! Kick but and take names!