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Obama is fixing to be fighting a real battle down in North Carolina. Of course, there will be attacks from Hillary Clinton. However, the North Carolina Republican Party is running some statewide ads which link state politicians to Obama’s “radical” views associated with his former Pastor, Jeremiah Wright. The premise is that they’re criticizing the state politicians who have endorsed Obama as being associated with his liberal record.
A video report on it from CBS News:
This is the full ad the North Carolina Republican Party is running:
I would say picture that ad during the general election, only attacking Obama directly. That will happen endlessly I’m betting from conservative PACs and perhaps more state party entities.
McCain’s campaign has asked for the ad to be taken down, from Mercury News:
INEZ, Ky. - Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, on Wednesday urged GOP officials in North Carolina to pull a TV ad that brands Democratic candidate Barack Obama as “too extreme for North Carolina.”
“We asked them not to run it. I’m sending them an e-mail as we speak,” the Arizona senator told reporters aboard his campaign bus.
Brent Woodcox, communications director for the state party, said it still planned to broadcast the commercial.
“There’s no place for that kind of campaigning - and the American people don’t want it, period,” McCain said.
McCain said he had not seen the North Carolina ad, which states that Obama is too extreme and shows footage of the Illinois senator’s former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., shouting: “Not God bless America, God damn America.” In a March speech on race, Obama condemned Wright’s remarks but said the pastor was part of his life and he could not disown him.
So if Obama doesn’t have Hillary Clinton criticizing him, he’ll have the state party criticizing him indirectly, but keeping the Wright story on voters’ minds.
Update
Video of McCain condemning the ad, via the AP:
Second Update
The North Carolina Republican Party has pulled the ad, this according to Reuters:
NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - North Carolina’s Republican Party on Thursday withdrew an advertisement critical of Democrat Barack Obama’s links to a controversial preacher, Republican John McCain’s campaign said.
McCain senior adviser Charlie Black said he had been informed by the Republican National Committee’s representative in North Carolina, that the state party had agreed to withdraw the ad.
McCain, the Republicans’ presumptive presidential nominee, had appealed to the state party to withdraw the ad, saying he wanted to run a respectful campaign.
Good news for Obama, bad news for Clinton as she stood to benefit from the ad as well.
Third Update
The story keeps changing but apparantly the NC Republican Party does not have plans to pull the ad.
Here’s a press release from the NC GOP website:
RALEIGH—North Carolina Republican Party Chairman Linda Daves made the following statement:
“Contrary to any media reports, the ‘Extreme’ ad will run as scheduled next week. There has never been any intention to pull the ad and it will air.
The ‘Extreme’ ad has garnered attention around the country. I want to thank the people across North Carolina and across the country who have shown overwhelming support for us. Our aim is to tell the truth and ask difficult questions. We will continue to do so.
So that’s that, they’re still planning on running it, much to the chagrin of the McCain campaign.
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It looks like the Republican party is trying to help Hillary get the nomination.
Anyone want to guess why they would do that.
Just a thought.
I think this is where we begin to see the Maverick. McCain won’t back down on this, even though there is a large outcry today across the internet on blogs and commentaries against pulling the ad.
The strongest argument against McCain’s stand that I found was Hannity himself on Fox last night, pretty blunt talk here:
http://www.foxnews.com/vi.....b0c12f2749
If the “Democratic Diss” doesn’t come up when you use that link, click into it from the play list.
Thanks for the video babs, but god isn’t it funny to listen to some of these conversations? I mean, saying Wright’s had an pampered life when the man’s been a marine and served as a med tech in the navy? Not that I’d defend everything he’s said, but you think things such as this would come up in a conversation about his patriotism and the “easy life” he’s led…
Ms. Mary was really funny to listen to. Anyone who’s been frustrated with Obama occasionally seeming to both attack and attempt to take the high road at the same time must LOVE listening to her. I wonder if we’ll hear this sort of conversation a lot in the general election, as candidates disapprove of dirty politics, and many supporters simply won’t care.
Yes, it was funny all the way around to me. I knew what she was referring to about Wright’s “pampered life”, but it was still funny to listen to. I was surprised, though, at Hannity. I would have guessed he would applaud McCain’s stand on the ad, I guess he’s more against Obama than he is for McCain. And poor McCain won’t get a break in this, he’s damned if he does, and damned if he doesn’t. And no one will even notice how un-Bush-like it is to chastise the Republican party you belong to. They’ll still call him another Bush. =/
If there’s one thing McCain must have learned from Hillary’s past few months battling state to state with Obama, it’s that the more she tried to make him look bad, the worse she looked. It’s when he makes his own mistakes or slip-ups that he hurts the most in polls and votes. McCain’s no dummy and has seen the effectiveness of deploring negative campaigning this season.
Babs,
You hit the nail on the head. “I guess he’s more against Obama than he is for McCain”. I think a lot of the Republican party feels the same way…I know I do. It is more important to keep Hillary and Obama out of the White House than it is to get McCain in, but it’s really the same thing isn’t it.
McCain actually held his party back? huh. That shows an abnormal amount of class, and it may be a pretty smart move on his part - since Obama’s appeal is “a new kind of politics” and he has a lot more money on his side should he win.
It certainly will benefit McCain to clearly set a civil tone of mutual respect early on. And campaign politics aside, it just might benefit the country. I know I’m sick to death of attack ads.
I had read these news before and I came to the conclusion that McCain is strugglig to keep and ethical and healthy campaign. It shows his inherent moderate stances. BUT the Republican party has different plans, specially the right wing republicans.
This reminds me of an episode of South Park. People can say they think one thing, and yet do just the contrary. If McCain and the Republicans are working on the same line (in the improbable case that he isn’t being honest about his critic of the ad) then it would be a pretty smart move. The Party does the deed, and McCain repudiates it, so his campaign remains clean but his opponent is still damaged in the process.
Those are the advantages of beign the party candidate and having some of its (active) support already, something neither Obama nor Hillary have.
Yeah, Stalin, it is the same thing. You’ve still chosen a candidate, for whatever reason. =)
Indi, I think it shows a lot of class as well, but it also shows McCain has no problem bucking the Republican system or George Bush. Remember I said that. =)
Well, here ya go.
“Obama campaign spokesman, Hari Sevugan, just released this statement: “The fact that Senator McCain can’t get his own party to take down this misleading, personal attack ad raises serious questions about his promise to the American people that he will run a civil, respectful campaign.â€
And here’s a rather heated response to the Dems from the McCain camp on the subject.
McCain camp responds with some heat:
“Barack Obama has time and again refused to step forward and personally condemn repeated attacks on John McCain’s character and integrity by the Chairman of the DNC — not a state party — nor outrageous attacks by his surrogates Sen. Jay Rockefeller and Ed Schultz. We’ll start taking lessons from Barack Obama when he displays one ounce of the decency and courtesy that John McCain has shown in this campaign.†— McCain spokesman Brian Rogers”
You go, Brian. =)
I give McCain some praise for trying to keep the Republican party playing nice.
I personally now believe that Obama needs to wrangle in his people and keep them from making comments about McCain’s handling it. The fact that McCain is stepping in to do something says volumes about his character.
McCain’s playing nice for now, but it’s early for General Election attack ads. His handling of this matter says nothing about his character, all it says is some analyst working for his campaign thought that it might make him look good to react as he did. McCain is first and foremost a politician, with handlers, just like the rest. Trust me, he’ll play the same cards as Hillary before this campaign is over. When the argument gets weak, the argument gets personal!
If you believe that, Josh, you really don’t know McCain. This is his personality, has been for many years, since Obama was in diapers probably. He picks his fights, and Wright just isn’t one of them. Ayers, on the other hand, is. From the Foxs News imbedded reporter on the trail with McCain:
“On why Bill Ayers is a legitimate political issue against Obama but Jeremiah Wright not: McCain told reporters on the third leg of his bus tour today that while Wright has said that his more controversial, well-publicized comments don’t reflect his overall views, Ayers is a “unrepentant terrorist.â€
“Reverend Wright has said that those were snippets and those aren’t his views and he repudiates those kind of views. Mr. Ayers said right after 9/11, 2001 that he wished he bombed more, that he had destroyed more…that’s unbelievable to me,†McCain said, repeating his demand that Obama call on Ayers to repudiate his past. “And someone who launches your political career in their home–I think that’s more than a casual relationship.â€
Whatever reason McCain had to protest angainst North Carolina Republincans, I still respect that. Mabe he should have been a little more strong in his protest, but Obama’s surrogates shouldn’t have protested without at least thanking McCain for the gesture. I agree with Babs there. And McCain is doing a lot of smart moves lately, like criticizing Bush for his handling of the New Orleans hurrican Katrina disaster. He knows he has to distance himself as much as possible from G.W.Bush before it’s too late. BUT, of course, he is doing a lot of smart moves because he’s not under pressure at all. We’ll see after July.
Josh is right
McCain’s deputy campaign manager, Christian Ferry, sent an email to donors today with the subject line: “Hamas Weighs In On U.S. Presidential Election.” The email, which attacks Obama over his foreign policy stances, includes these paragraphs:
Barack Obama’s foreign policy plans have even won him praise from Hamas leaders. Ahmed Yousef, chief political adviser to the Hamas Prime Minister said, “We like Mr. Obama and we hope he will win the election. He has a vision to change America.”
We need change in America, but not the kind of change that wins kind words from Hamas, surrenders in Iraq and will hold unconditional talks with Iranian President Ahmadinejad.
looks like if he gets in he’ll use the policy of fear again. 3rd term of bush? I believe Bush 3rd term may be in reference to their stance on Iraq and looking at that email the great FEAR that Bush uses as a rebuttal to so many disagreements and support of the war.
McCain has been asked about Pastor Hagee and he has defended the endorsement and his support of the man because he says he doesn’t agree with those “anti” views but supports the man for the things they both commonly believe in.
He has to make some kind of effort to diffuse this Wright thing because the direct parallel of the people he has chosen to associate himself with will be drawn with those Obama has associated himself with on a much amplified level then it is now.
references from here
http://www.huffingtonpost.....98614.html
More fear
“All I can tell you Jennifer is that I think it’s very clear who Hamas wants to be the next president of the United States. So apparently has Danny Ortega and several others. I think that people should understand that I will be Hamas’s worst nightmare….If senator Obama is favored by Hamas I think people can make judgments accordingly.”
I guess this is a way to look at it, and but i believe that this trying to play on the fears of Americans. He could have spun this in a neutral way but chose not to.
Overall I do think Obama was right in saying that McCain would be better then bush.
“Overall I do think Obama was right in saying that McCain would be better then bush.”
Well, Dreadsen, thanks so much for your endorsement. Now you have it right. *L*
huh, I think the most interesting thing to take from that is that McCain is stating bluntly that he would actually SEEK to be Hamas’ “worst nightmare” as president. Does he think they’re still a ragtag terrorist organization rather than an elected government? Or does he hope for war with them?
Because when a presidential candidate says something like that, it sure sounds like thems fighting words to me.