McCain's Attacks Worrying Some In GOP

New York Times:

In recent days Senator John McCain has charged that Senator Barack Obama "would rather lose a war in order to win a political campaign," tarred him as "Dr. No" on energy policy and run advertisements calling him responsible for high gas prices.

The old happy warrior side of Mr. McCain has been eclipsed a bit lately by a much more aggressive, and more negative, Mr. McCain who hammers Mr. Obama repeatedly on policy differences, experience and trustworthiness.

By doing so, Mr. McCain is clearly trying to sow doubts about his younger opponent, and bring him down a peg or two. But some Republicans worry that by going negative so early, and initiating so many of the attacks himself rather than leaving them to others, Mr. McCain risks coming across as angry or partisan in a way that could turn off some independents who have been attracted by his calls for respectful campaigning.

The drumbeat of attacks could also undermine his argument that he will champion a new brand of politics.

"The McCain campaign, I think, is being pulled in two directions," said Todd Harris, a Republican strategist who worked for Mr. McCain in 2000. "On the one hand, this race is largely a referendum on Obama, and whether or not he's going to pass the leadership threshold in the eyes of voters. So being aggressive against Obama on questions of leadership and trust and risk are important, but at the same time I think they need to be very careful because McCain is not at his best when he is being overly partisan and negative."

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[Lisette]

The thing about McCain is that he is the one who
does not know what it is all about.
He just thinks of Iraq as a war game.
He has limited thinking and does not see the big picture, like Obama does.
McCain does not understand about taxes or economics either.
MicCain is a not to bright guy with a sharp tongue.

[only1Demvoter]

Lisette : Agreed...

His last ' original thought ' was three or four decades ago.


-ralph

[BookDesigner]

Unless you can tell us what that "last 'original thought' ... three or four decades ago" was, I think it more likely that the poor man never had an original thought. The inept way he strings words together shows a lack of any kind of thought.

[solarenergy]

And this was the BEST repub candidate!

Hate to be superficial, but it is a fact we would have to look at this guy daily for 4, 8 years.

And the truth is, his face is melting. This is a harsh truth, but who wants to look at an amorphous blob of cancerous flesh for 8 years? And it's being worn by someone who can't (or won't) get his facts straight, and has nothing positive to say.

No, thank you.

[Dave01]

Especially after the last 8 years of a cancerous flesh-eater.

[solarenergy]

Yeah. Exactly. How'd that turn out for us?

[CocteausTwin]

Disfigurement I can handle, dysfunctional and outright lying I cannot. It makes me so uncomfortable to watch him because of these reasons.

[markusmarkus]

Yeah 7+ years of the booosh continuous campaign against America is enough.

[abby4ever]

He wasn't---and isn't---the best they had to offer, why they didn't bring forward someone better and show more enthusiasm, I don't know. They just seemed to hand it to him, with a shrug.

Maybe they figured they are going to loose anyway, so why bother.

[likeicare]

They're already gearing up for the 2012 elections, haven't you noticed? They've been prepping David Just Call Me God Petraeus as their "Ike Eisenhower" for the last 2 years.

Ever notice how McSame goes to great lengths to include Petraeus' name in just about every speech & remark he makes?

The Rethuglicans know that McSame's candidacy is just a throw-away at this point, so they're looking ahead to the next one, figuring that Barack's already won this one hands down. Even my Bush-fanantic relatives in TX have resigned themselves to Obama's inevitable presidency. They're praying for a miracle, and looking at Bob Barr now.

[JadedAggie]

There really is not much room left for him to go further negative without going either blatantly racial or dirty in some other way. He's also making some ridiculous positive comments about W, like trying to credit lifting the presidential ban on offshore drilling with oil prices falling. Of course the real reason was that demand fell considerably and when that was combined with horrible economic numbers those speculating in oil absolutely panicked.

[mamacat]

I got a mass e-mail today calling Obama the n-word. I guess it was bound to happen, but it sure is a shame. I hate to see the campaigning reduced to this.

[recruitgal]

Forward it to the press and demand some answers.

[Kane]

The 2006 mid-term election was a watershed moment. The negative attack ads that have become a republican staple surprisingly didn't work. Despite the republican mantra that terrorists would win if Democrats were elected, and the promise that the country would be in a shambles with a Nancy Pelosi congress, the country voted overwhelming for Democrats ensuring a Democratic majority.

Despite a long presidential campaign and our national reputation of having a low attention span, the public remains energized and is tuned-in to the issues, and this election is being followed very closely. We have seen record turnouts in the Democratic primaries in state after state, with multitudes of new voters registering as democrats. And we have witnessed record numbers in small donations to the Obama campaign.

In previous elections, the negative attacks and misleading ads that McCain is using would certainly have been effective, but thus far they aren't gaining any traction. Such ads rely heavily on an uninformed and uninspired public. Not only are McCain's negative ads proving to be ineffective, but with each misleading statement about Barack Obama, McCain is damaging his own straight-talk brand. Ironically, McCain's negative attacks have become more of a negative on him.

[SouthPrairie]

Are you a VP possibility? I like you.

[recruitgal]

Maybe Kane is Kaine!!

[SouthpawSass]

I agree. The sleeping giant that was awakened over the past 8 years may just as well be America's conscience...

[metalpipe]

I can't help but be proud and think my age group is standing up and saying NO to the GOP BS.

46 and counting.

[elbzee]

I think you're being overly optimistic "but thus far they aren't gaining any traction" We have a populace of cows & sheep addicted to the boob-tube and Fox. They're gullible, especially if they WANT a reason to fear the black man running for potus. There are still people who swear he's Muslim. And there are others who swear he's a black militant. The existence of a broadcast email like Mamacat received proves there are people who willingly spew this sort of garbage. I am in no way sitting back confident that the people will see through the bull. No time to bask in the light yet.

[booksnmore4you]

>The old happy warrior side of Mr. McCain has been eclipsed a bit lately
>by a much more aggressive, and more negative, Mr. McCain who
>hammers Mr. Obama repeatedly on policy differences, experience and
>trustworthiness.

Gee, what "happy warrior"? And "been eclipsed a bit lately"??? Saying he's been "relatively unstable throughout his career" and that he has now morphed into on a McCarthyite-like tone is much more accurate.

[SouthPrairie]

That picture just gets me! McCain putting his country first? Really? Was McCain putting his country first when he walked in the market square of Iraq and sought to deceive by claiming that "We went to the market and were just really warmly welcomed. I bought five rugs for five bucks." When in reality he was accompanied by 100 soldiers, 3 Blackhawks, and 2 Apache gunner ships. Was McCain putting his country first when he voted AGAINST having waterboarding designated as torture? Knowing full well that the more brutal we are in our interrogation tactics, the more risk our military takes on if one of our beloved soldiers is captured. Is he putting his country first when he votes against expanding the GI bill, limiting the educational opportunities for our brave soldiers?

McCain is all lies. He distances himself from Bush because he has to; he talks environment because he has to; he caves to the religious right because he has to; he has lobbyists leading his way because he has to; he voted against water-boarding being designated as torture because he had to; he gave Bush a hug awhile back because he had to; he opposes pro choice because he had to; and he embraces the Bush/Cheney policies because he has to--he has to, to get in the running for the new czar of Constitutional erosion. His principles are as shallow rooted as his sentences are cogent.

[1differentdrummer]

Well said.

[mamacat]

That episode with the Iraqi market showed so well how out of touch with reality McCain is. After that, the only thing left for him to do would be to call daytime, nighttime, and the reverse.

[VSamuels]

Perhaps so, but without the corporate media looking the other and not bothering to confront McCain to this day about this event, McCain comes over as a knowledgeable voice about military affairs and Iraq and Afghanistan, respectively. We should not attempt to portray McCain's behavior separate from the many apologists throughout the media which have shored up his temperment and angry outbursts and transformed him into the 'maverick' and the 'reformer'. Several non-partisan organizations who have charted McCain's voting record have noted that he has voted consistently with his party's line more than 90+% of the time; yet, there are those in this same corporate media who persist for any number of reasons, still do infer that McCain bucks his party and the system.

In reality, the 'maverick' and 'reform' days are in McCain's past, as most folks who are about to turn 72 are hardly 'reformist' they are more set in their ways as they have settled in on those things which they now accept reflect their view. McCain's persona is more a gleam in the media's idea than in McCain's own, now.

[pcplz]

I particularly liked the blaming the gas crisis on Obama ad. I guess he just should not have gone on his trip......oil prices fell as soon as he got back home. Much to McCain's dismay. LOL

[Ajegunle]

As only an old, out of touch candidate would.

[Coinyer101]

i think the oil prices began dropping during his trip,just because his presence,in the middle east eased tensions,some.

[cafemocha]

The more I see him march around a stage, microphone in hand, hunched over, barking sour cranky lies - the more he looks like a has-been standup act opening for a young and more talented headliner, while oblivious that the audience doesn't like his shtick and can't wait for him to get off the stage so the real class act can take center stage. Sad, very sad, and even painful to watch.

[1differentdrummer]

Sort of a political, worn out Don Rickles wannabe.

[SouthPrairie]

LOL!

[Gitmo]

I don't even know what McCain stands for anymore. Why can't McCain put out any positive messages about himself? Why does everything have to be so negative? Doesn't his campaign think people will get sick and tired of his negative ads and attacks?

[partyofone]

It isn't just his negativity, it's McCain's DISHONESTY that is troubling and the indulgent MSM who give him a pass. He is either the most forgetful person in American politics or a big a liar as Bill and Hillary. Either is alarming.

McCain in his desperation seems to have embraced the Bush-Rove-Clinton brand of negtivity: lies , distortions and whispers.

McCain is making the choice easy, just like Hillary did. He and the Clintons are the status quo. We need CHANGE.

[Coinyer101]

if he put out positive messages he would have to adopt obama's positions,which,he appears to be doing,anyway

[metalpipe]

My money says that by November, McStooge is almost lockstep with O man on several key issues, and the message seeded by the great white GOP hope will be 'do you really want a n***** in the WHITE House'.

I see that happening, already. I don't think it will work, mostly because the majority of indepenents won't put up with it.

[AlieNation]

When McCain advisor, Mark Salter said, “There are no cheap shots”, he should have added “only cheap politicians”.

[IowaKid]

Yea he sold his soul to big oil to the tune of 1.1 million dollars so far.

[StillAmused]

McCain's Attacks Worrying Some In GOP... The Coherent Minority.

The rest are just fine with the bumbling, antagonistic, nasty, jingoistic coot and pray to Jeebus every night that he'll be their new Dear Leader in the imaginary war against all evildoers.

[HamletsMill]

Note the "Country First" banner! Note the "NAVY" hat in as many photos as possible! But has anyone noticed that the Neocon and right wing talk radio chickehawks have NEVER SERVED IN THE U.S. MILITARY THEMSELVES. Many people that have actually served know that this bravado is utter BS. One thing you learn if you have actually served in the military is that no one on this planet has any idea whatsoever what they are doing. My father said this from his experience in 18 months in the Pacific in WWII. I learned it as a 1st Lieutenant from 1969-1971. Nobody knows noth'in and if they think they do they are a danger to themselves and others. These ads will not work on people who have actually served in the U.S. military who can think above the cud chewing level. Anyone who has ever served is very cautious about the use of military force. JFK in the Cuban Missile Crisis is an example that comes to mind. We need someone who can think clearly and has sane advisiors who can think clearly. Obama has my vote. I hope he keeps a clear and thoughtful vision. We do not need any more knee jerk ideologues chased by their own inner demons.

[KOisGod]

So when is McSame going to be indicted for lying?

[awcbuddy8]

Whenever you get done blowing Olbermann.

[JiminNC]

Your love of all things McSpooge does not project easily onto us ... my friend ...

[StillAmused]

The elightened world view of a fourteen-year-old hiding in the cellar with a skin mag.

First thing that came to mind, dullard?

[zippywpinhead]

can't quit obsessing about other guys genitals, can you? Are you posting from the mens bathroom again?

[zippywpinhead]

careful, your homoerotic obsession is showing, people might learn your dirty little secret. Don't worry, we promise not to tell them that you're posting from the mens room again...

[ShamusNYC]

He's starting to remind me of Dana Carvey's "Grumpy Old Man" character.

[poliscibabe]

John McCain's campaign slogan for the youthful Obama supporters:

GET OFF MY LAWN!!!!!!!

[DRPike]

LOL!

[GabrielXL]

John McCain should "NEVER" put on a "NAVY" cap again. I want to vomit every time I see him with it on.