McCain Adopts Hands Off Approach To 527 Attack Ads

Boston Herald:

GOP presidential contender John McCain says he can't control every attack ad aimed at Democrat Barack Obama and fully expects he'll face a similar barrage, sounding the bell for a raucous general election brawl.

"I can't be a referee of every spot run on television," McCain told the Herald in an exclusive interview. "I admire Sen. Obama and his accomplishments, but we all know there are groups who want to attack me."

Read the whole story: Boston Herald

Comments

[DragonMama]

Mr. McCain, quick question - if you can't even stand up to the idiotic bullies in your own political party when they smear your rival unfairly, exactly HOW do you expect us to trust you to stand up and protect America's interests domestically and internationally?

[Grannysue]

McNuts figures if he ignors them and let's them slime Obama and his wife then he can claim ignorance. Which he can claim anyway, he can run but can't hide because him and Rover are in cahoots on this!

[tinarm]

McCain Mr. flip flop extrodinare. Where is the ethics sir, oh, I forgot you are losing so that's when they go out the door.

[Barky]

They must have heard about this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlYp6slGYek

JonBoy calls Putin President of Germany

[lynnn]

McCain was against 527's before he was for them.

[lynnn]

This just proves Ross Perot right. McCain has no shame or honor.

[Sali68]

what a way to show strength. NOT

[MrDeadeye2U]

"I can't be a referee of every spot run on television," McCain told the Herald in an exclusive interview. "I admire Sen. Obama and his accomplishments, but we all know there are groups who want to attack me."

Well I say let the attacking begin. If they want to go down that road I guess that Obama is every but as much of a Muslim as John McCain is a VC collaborator. I guess that Obama attended a Madrassa in Indonesia at about the same time that McCain was having that Love Child in SC.

These right wingnut attack jobs are every bit as scurrilous as those leveled against Sen McCain in the 2K election and he should be called out on this. Someone should ask him how it made him and his family feel when his character was falsely attacked.

[debwarot]

So much for all his claims about wanting to run an honest campaign!

[DRaymond]

This is right out of the Karl Rove Playbook on how to handle outrageous attacks by surrogates.

1. Point out that the remarks are not from your campaign, you do not control them, etc.

2. If after a couple of news cycles they are still asking about it say that you 'regret' that those kind of things are being introduced to the campaign

3. If after a couple of more news cycles it still hasn't gone away then denounce the statements. If the 527 hasn't already dropped the ad already they will do so. The subject will immediately drop off of the news radar so you wound up with many more days of the attack being in the news than the retraction.

This is exactly what Bush did with the Swiftboaters and many others.

That is exactly the

[Daly]

Asking that 527s be held back was never Mcs plan he is a flip flopper proven to say an do anything to get elected where he will start a war with the countries he has already put on notice.

[k6007]

I don't think he can see out of that eye, anyway. It's always twitching.

[kdublya]

Uh-oh Spagetti-O,

Sounds like someone needs to go negative.
Didn't work last time. Tsk tsk

[filo]

"I can't be a referee"
Translation: I don't want to be attacked for this but I'm glad there are plenty of other people willing to lie and smear Obama,

[kellygrrrl]

so you don't think calling them c*nts in public would work?