McCain Adviser Endorses Obama

The Wall Street Journal today rounds up the horde of prominent Republicans jumping ship to Barack Obama. Now one of John McCain's actual advisers has switched sides:

Charles Fried, a professor at Harvard Law School, has long been one of the most important conservative thinkers in the United States. Under President Reagan, he served, with great distinction, as Solicitor General of the United States. Since then, he has been prominently associated with several Republican leaders and candidates, most recently John McCain, for whom he expressed his enthusiastic support in January.

This week, Fried announced that he has voted for Obama-Biden by absentee ballot. In his letter to Trevor Potter, the General Counsel to the McCain-Palin campaign, he asked that his name be removed from the several campaign-related committees on which he serves. In that letter, he said that chief among the reasons for his decision "is the choice of Sarah Palin at a time of deep national crisis."

TPM has the press releases touting Fried's presence on the McCain campaign.

Comments

[TopDog]

I wish that I was a senior adviser in McCains campaign so the I could endorse Obama too.

[Paul Peete - Huffpost Blogger]

This reminds me of the end of the Clinton campaign when folks started abandoning Hillary to join Barack's campaign. I see the writing on the wall, I know it aint over til it's over, but I feel sunshine headed for D.C. and I'm not talking weather.

[Star2000dancer]

And Clinton will be the one to get us out of this mess again. The rats that deserted her ship will desert yours or my ship too. If the Clinton's were'nt backing Barack, I know many would not be voting for Barack.. There's still alot of undecided Hillary voters. This comment does'nt help make them want to vote Obama.

[ILikeH00ters]

You can't be serious. People are now beyond Obama / Clinton drama. If you vote for McCain, you can't be a true democrat. I myself didn't like Hillary's campaign during the primaries. Now that I am looking back, if Hilary is nominated, I will whole heartedly vote for her after seeing how badly McCain and the dimwit Palin are running their campaign. I think this is how all the Hillary supporters feel.

[KJsanfran]

still a HIllary hater Paul?

[citizentm]

I repeat my mantra: the best service Hillary Clinton could do for the United States would be if B.O. nominated her to the Supreme Court and she accepted. She is a terrific lawyer and not such a great executive.

[GeoLee]

Can you ever get over Hillary or are you just trying to find a safe place if the repbulicans mange to steal this one so you can blame her for the loss? I am a Hillaryite who today voted for Obama...I woulder if you would have been so generous if things had turned out differently or if you would have jumped to Palin like so many men have.

[christianmama4change]

wow! this ship is sinking first. Obama = real change!!!

[cagney57]

Either some Repubs are jumping ship like rats from a slowly sinking ship, or they really do know a great man when they see one.

Keep 'em coming!!!!

Obama/Biden '08

[AZ85283]

From the New Republic, E.L Dionne writes:

Conservatism has finally crashed on problems for which its doctrines offered no solutions (the economic crisis foremost among them, thus Bush's apostasy) and on its refusal to acknowledge that the "real America" is more diverse, pragmatic and culturally moderate than the place described in Palin's speeches or imagined by the right-wing talk show hosts.
Conservatives came to believe that if they repeated phrases such as "Joe the Plumber" often enough, they could persuade working-class voters that policies tilted heavily in favor of the very privileged were actually designed with Joe in mind.

It isn't working anymore. No wonder conservatives are turning on each other so ferociously.

Keep working for Obama!

[nomoreofthesame]

Obama is a class act. McCain is a a$$ acting out.

[slaxx]

i'm so glad that there are still some people out there with common sense. obviously, i think that some of these republicans don't agree with obama's policies, but are choosing to do what's best for the country. for me, mccain's picking plain was a last straw, a nail in the coffin (i'm not repub, i'm an independent and social liberal).

maybe if more republicans were like this and stopped trying to legislate people's pirivate lives and bodies, stopped their go-it-alone, world-policement foreign policy, etc., they'd have more support. or maybe they'd just be democrats.

[time2impeach]

Now that two prominent Republicans have publicly stated the're jumping ship, both citing the selection of Palin as the primary reason they decided to do so, McCain has nothing to lose...

If he sticks with Palin, he will go down in flames, potentially in an electoral landslide.

So -- HERE"S THE OCTOBER SURPRISE:

McCain throws Palin under the Straight Talk Express and brings Tom Ridge aboard as the new VP in a desparate attempt to win PA, which is necessary for him to have a shot at securing 270 electoral votes.

He's on Meet the Press on Sunday -- Look Out!!!!

[phoenics]

McCain would hemorrage his conservative base, imo. Even if Palin is totally not qualified, for some reason the religious right loves her and would likely stay home if McCain 'betrayed' her and threw her under the bus. You could be right, but it would just look like another hail mary pass.

[tigerakabj]

I wouldn't put it past him. Rational choices just are not what John McCain is all about.

So much confusion and infighting is taking hold in his camp that he will once again do something stupid. Like his crashing-5-planes, and parachuting into the $700 billion rescue package, he will once again screw something up. That will in turn equal more defects from his party.

I toast to the implosion of the McCain campaign.

[landoffools]

Mid. 2010 Phone Call:

Ring,Ring, Ring !!!
Republican National Committee !
Hey Guys, It's Sarah !
Sarah Who ?
Sarah, Sarah Palin !
Hold Please !
Tick,Tick,­Tick,Tick,­Tick !
Dial Tone !!!

[IDV82]

The rats are leaving the sinking ship.
Nice to know that even rats have a conscience.
Go Joe the Rat.

[skibiketrash]

It's not a conscience! It's selfpreservation! Once it's clear that the ship is going down, they want to make sure there is a space on a lifeboat for them.

[BuckNaked]

Its a beauty that Palin is likely the 2012 candidate. GOP in disarray and she is queen of the dolts.

[mamazboy]

Queen of the Dolts is a good label for her - though she claims she "doesn't like labels"...

[Crit]

I'm still amazed that McCain is the best the GOP has to offer. And then don't get me started on Palin.

[Star2000dancer]

He's not the best they have to offer, he's the easiest to control & keep wars & occupations of countries continuing for profit. Iraq did not attack us. Those supposed pilots were Arabic & Egyptian. Since Hitler was close to grandpa Prescott Bush who was President Of the World Bank, & the younger Bushes even had the Bin Laden's at their home as guests when 911 happened..­.. welll let's see. Arab pilots hit the twin towers while the Arabian elite Bin Laden's are staying int the USA with the Bushes...w­ell, what do you think?

[Greg285]

McCain is and always has been a 'Flawed' candidate as proved by Bush & Rove in 2000...He'­s going to lose by a landslide

[edwarvir]

This was some week. Now I am waiting for
Sec Condi Rice to endorse him. Opie is
endorsing him, along with the Fonz .This
is great.

[Star2000dancer]

I'd like to see all blue dog republicans voted out. All 43 of them. And I'd like to see Bush/Cheney/ &Pelosi Impeached.

Then I'd like to see Dennis Kucinich or Ron Paul as house speaker. People do'nt believe them because they're part of the few who tells it like it is. No theories, it's all facts. See videos all over you tube about the Bushes connections to Hitler & the Bin Laden's.

millions of people still think Iraqui's attacked us. No folks it was Saudi Arabians & Egyptians. They are not our friends, they are the Bushes & Cheney's friends. Get receipts, videos, copies , prrof of ypu voting this time, so when they say you did'nt, I lost my vote in 2000 & 2004, you can prove you did. Even just asking for a copy will slow down voter fraud because they wo'nt know who has copies,& videos.

[RoobyTooShews]

Yes, Yes, YES! I agree 100%.

[oandjoe08]

FIST BUMP!!!!