McCain's Top Pollster: Wright Attacks Wouldn't Have Worked

Politico:

John McCain's top pollster, Bill McInturff, said this evening that attacking Barack Obama over his relationship with Rev. Jeremiah Wright would not have helped McCain's campaign and could have destroyed his presidency, had he been elected.

Some Republicans were angry during the campaign that McCain had -- reportedly for reasons of principle, and out of concern that he'd be viewed as racist -- refused to air ads with Wright's inflammatory sermons, and believed they were fair game and a silver bullet against Obama. An outside group did air one such ad in the closing days of the race.

Read the whole story: Politico

Comments

[spandautoseattle]

Some Republicans were angry?
That's the reason why the other Ladies and Gentlemen in the GOP should get their rational thinking back to work to avoid losing what's left of their party to a minority of radical extremists.

[hortonhearsawho2]

Had been able to fly or walk on water then, maybe, just maybe, he might had stood a chance.

[sueno]

The one thing that I will give McCain was that he was the first
GOP guy running for president to actively meet with the African-American community.
McCain reached out and painfully met an listened to the concerns of Black folks.
After those meetings McCain knew that he couldn't win their votes based on
inherent race and class issues that the GOP thrive on-

[SimJack]

So glad we got that all cleared up. Now go away you insignificant speck.

[independent32955]

What I find the most telling from this article is the fact that the GOP wanted so badly to attack Obama over the Wright issue...it would seem that scorched earth mentality is alive and well in the modern day GOP...how can anyone NOT consider them the biggest threat to America today?

[08politicaljunkie]

Wright stayed on the minds of those who needed him.

Whether McCain himself ran the Wright ads or not, the ads still played. And they only played to those who had difficulty voting for the Black man anyway and Obama lost in those areas -- my heavily Democratic county included.

Problem for McCain was, those who were/are against the War in Iraq sympathisized with Wright's sermons -- at least the part that was in one of the ads. You see, we know the US has done some dirty deeds in the world -- foreign and domestic. Otherwise, how would those "Third World" nations have arms?

Running those ads AGAIN would have been a waste of money -- money that couldn't be spent on Palin's wardrobe and stylists. Hillary ran the ads and lost. The world hadn't forgotten about Wright. Every day news articles, tv pundits, radio personalities, and BLOGGERS questioned/commented about Rev. Wright. Wright never left the scene.

[walleymr]

Yeh, those Wright ads they ran in Alabama, whether approved or not, did wreck his campaign.

[Oonagh]

What is this guy talking about..... They ran the ads in Florida, constantly, in the last few days of the election. They were disgusting.... like every twenty minutes... John McCain disgraced himself, everything he said he was not going to do he did....

[YellowDogInRedCounty]

Actually, it was not the McCain campaign who ran those ads, it was an independent 527 organization that did - similar to the Swift Boat attacks on Kerry in '04.

[bungalow]

In a total waste of time, money and air time--not to mention moral decency--those ads also ran incessantly in California just before election day.

[vjoseph]

Same here in Georgia, but it was not the McCain campaign, it was the GOP

[KarenT]

They ran in Michigan also.

[FebM]

Did anyone catch the GOP hailing Joseph Cao (lawyer, community organizers) of LA after his congressional win? Shameless guys who never gave him a chance, maybe finally they will realize Community Organizers do have responsibilities as he is one.

[militarymomforobama]

As Axelrod said in response to BO's speech, "this is why you need to be president"

The Wright thing, the Blagojevich thing--both of these situations only serve to reveal Obama's stellar character.

[ZimboChick]

I didnt know today was the 1st of April

[nellie]

What presidency?

[Last-LiberalRepublicans]

THEY DID RUN Rev. Wright Attack Ads EVERY DAY of the Last 2 Weeks Here In Florida and we Kill Them on Election Day!!

[postman606]

That wasn't the campaign, but the slimy 527s.

[Oonagh]

Same thing. John McCain under cover.

[dspencer3491]

McCain never had a chance to win anyway. Bush did too much damage to their party.

[leeman79]

You lost because you had nothing to offer.

[Georgia1992]

Very well said! Re-thuglicans still offer 18th Century policies, ideas, and issues. Times have changed and we have a new up and coming generation who don't want to hear that old mess. They don't get it.

[KarenT]

I don't remember any ideas or issues discussed in their campaign. I only remember the scare tactics and incitement of racism.