McCain Stacks Fox News 'Town Hall' With Supporters

Tonight was the first in a much-hyped series of 'town hall' forums scheduled by John McCain's campaign, in which Barack Obama had been challenged to show up to discuss the issues directly with the GOP nominee.

Except, as Fox News reported, McCain's campaign misled the public about the nature of the event. The forum was "billed by the McCain campaign as a town hall with independent and Democratic voters," but Fox News noted at the end that the audience was actually "made up of invited guests and supporters," the Democratic National Committee said in a statement.

Here is FNC's Shepard Smith breaking the news:

SMITH: "I reported at the top of this hour that the campaign had told us at Fox News that the audience would be made up of Republicans, Democrats, and independents. We have now received a clarification from the campaign and I feel I should pass it along to you. The McCain campaign distributed tickets to supporters, Mayor Bloomberg, who of course is a registered Republican, and other independent groups."

DNC Chairman Howard Dean issued the following statement:

"Once again John McCain's campaign is trying to mislead the American people. Senator McCain should understand that after seven years of a President who has divided Americans and pursued a scorched earth policy full of misleading propaganda campaigns, we need a leader who understands he is the President for all Americans not just his supporters. Copying the Bush campaign model of stacking events with his prescreened supporters is not the transparency Americans are looking for. If that is Senator McCain's idea of straight talk, the American people are in for a long and disappointing campaign season."

Comments

[saun8934]

Why....am I not surprised! John McCain is a phony.

[findingthetruth]

Okaaaay, why are we getting reports of the McCain's $100,000 debt? That's pocket change to them. Motive?

[nonofyabusiness]

Sonofa....................................

[BigVic]

Figures...what a bunch of Morons

[Lonw]

.

The FOX News staff is an irrelevant gaggle of pugnacious village idiots that wouldn't recognize honest journalism if it was shoved up their collective asses.
.

[bobbuck]

You've got to love it...lol
Well said

[CindyKay]

You are 100% Correct

[LMT]

No surprise here, except that McBush's campaign was so incompetent to let the details out of the bag. McBush has proven over and over again that he hasn't had an original idea in decades and that, to paraphrase Hillary, he stands only for "change we can Xerox" from the Bushie play book.

[bobbuck]

"That's not change we can believe in...? hehehehe..."

[MyAudacity]

No...don't forget the green backdrop....That's not a "Leader" we can believe in!

[willfarnaby]

Standard operating BS from the Rethuglican-cer Party.

[agedparent]

"Rethuglican" -- that's a new one. Mind if I use it?

[stryker]

mcCain have to offer to pay for the Early-Bird dinners to get people to show? Listening to him talk would put a whirling dervish to sleep.

[XME]

Fox may as well just change their name to Official Broadcasting Nework of the Republican Party...Your 24/7 source for Republican infommercials.

[ProfessorDuh]

At least that would be honest, but then that's why they can't do it. No such thing as honest fascist propaganda.

[bobbuck]

At the least they should change their name from Fox News to Fox Opinions...
You can't call what they do "News"

[Boboday555]

The saddest part is that McNasty's supporters let this kind of stuff slide.
"What, he totally lied to me?"
"That's cool, as long as he hates gays."

[Boboday555]

Do you mean to tell me that Senator McNasty tried to pull a fast one on the dullards who watch FOX-KIDS?
Gosh; what were the chances?
1 in 1.5?

[waters96]

This is not a news story. This is standard operating procedure. It would be a story if the house wasn't papered with sycophants. I wonder how much they have to pay them to show up and look interested.

[ProfessorDuh]

Oh, it's a news story all right. When you announce a "town meeting" and fill your "town" with nothing but Stepford Republicans, that's deception, and it's disgusting.

[in4success]

why is this a surprise? --more evidence he is an aloof bush-like puppet following the typical propagandistic MO of his neo-con, corporate fascist masters.

this should raise a red flag to barack obama regarding the "town hall debate challenge"

but america is too dense in denial to even scream foul when this type of behavior is even EXPOSED!

and by FOX, nonetheless.

we're doomed. -- we deserve everything we get.

[cynicalidealist]

This opens a door for an opportunity -- or duty. A form of civil disobedience wherein Indies and Dems crash these "Town Halls" with impunity and TEST the law with regards to access during the general election. If you'll recall, the Bush campaign ejected, even arrested, outliers in the past. We need to focus some resources on attending these events. Worst case scenario is still a win: We get in, and clobber McCain with the hard questions on the War, the economy, and climate change... ****

[ProfessorDuh]

That's a great point. Let's see some real citizens arrested for trying to attend a fake "public event."

[Heressay]

This is the way to take back our country - grass-roots, active, participation in our government - its a contitutional imperative! The true picture of America in this time and of this current presidential election is here, on the 'net where the silent-no-more majority is speaking. More specifically, dialoging. The old-guard, old boy's network is soon to crash and given admissions such as McCain's that he "doesn't know how to use a computer", they don't see it coming...good, better for us, and so much more fun... Okay, where are these townhall meetings at? And what time should we be there?

[coinier]

way to go dean!