[Grovenet] Nothing good to say in favor of McCain . . .

[Katie Allnutt]

There was an interesting prediction by one of the pundits today.
During the Nixon/Kennedy debates, people who heard it on the radio  
thought Nixon had done the better job, while  people who watched it  
on TV thought Kennedy did better because of the visual image of a  
young, suave, Kennedy vs a sweaty Nixon.
The same visual divergence is predicted to influence voters who own  
digital or high definition (or both) TVs.  People are struck by how  
much older and more frail McCain seems when you watch him on TV where  
you can see every detail.  It is to McCain's advantage then, that the  
switch to all digital won't happen until Feb of next year.
Interesting how history repeats itself in various ways.


Katie

On Jun 13, 2008, at 5:38 PM, Bob Browning wrote:

> John McCain has little or nothing to offer to middle-class  
> Americans except more of the same as the last 7 years, so now we'll  
> tear down the other side -
>
> bob "let the carpet bombing begin!!" browning
>
>> <ma_nws_1.gif>
>> <ap_logo_106.png>
>> One down, more to go for Republicans aiding McCain
>>
>> By CHARLES BABINGTON and JIM KUHNHENN, Associated Press WritersThu  
>> Jun 12, 4:31 PM ET
>>
>> Having worn down Barack Obama in one dispute this week, Republican  
>> operatives are helping John McCain hit other targets, sometimes  
>> without waiting for his cue.
>>
>> Republican activists see the aggressive efforts as a way to help  
>> McCain's presidential campaign — which some regard as less nimble  
>> and opportunistic than it should be — compete with Obama's  
>> superior fundraising and well-regarded national organization.
>>
>> To be sure, Democratic surrogates are helping Obama, their party's  
>> presumed nominee. But Republican activists scored the bigger win  
>> this week when they forced a top Obama adviser to step down. They  
>> are vowing to use it as a blueprint to hammer Obama on other issues.
>>
>> The Republican National Committee was quick and relentless in  
>> jumping on an article published Saturday in The Wall Street  
>> Journal, which questioned favorable mortgage loans obtained by Jim  
>> Johnson. A former chairman of mortgage lender Fannie Mae, Johnson  
>> was leading Obama's effort to select a running mate.
>>
>> Obama largely ignored the criticism on Monday and Tuesday. But on  
>> Wednesday, Johnson stepped down.
>>
>> When he did, the RNC increased its criticisms of another member of  
>> Obama's vice presidential vetting team, former Deputy Attorney  
>> General Eric Holder. Using e-mails, conference calls and other  
>> outlets, the committee challenged Holder's role in a pardon given  
>> to fugitive financier Marc Rich in the final days of Bill  
>> Clinton's presidency.
>>
>> Their carpet bombing cleared the way for McCain to jump in  
>> Thursday, when reporters in Boston asked him about Johnson and  
>> Holder.
>>
>> "People, media and observers will make a decision as to whether  
>> these people, individuals should be part of Senator Obama's  
>> campaign," McCain said. "I think it is a matter of record that Mr.  
>> Holder recommended the pardoning of Mr. Rich. And all of those  
>> things will be taken into consideration by the media and the  
>> American people."
>>
>> The GOP's rapid-response efforts also involve key lawmakers. Some  
>> of them have differed sharply with McCain over the years, and he  
>> was not their first choice as the nominee. Now largely united in  
>> their effort to retain the White House, however, they seized on an  
>> Obama statement this week that the McCain campaign ignored for  
>> three days.
>>
>> In a CNBC interview taped Monday in Raleigh, N.C., Obama suggested  
>> that the main problem with high gasoline prices is their rapid  
>> rise, not their total of about $4 a gallon.
>>
>> "I think that I would have preferred a gradual adjustment," Obama  
>> said. "The fact that this is such a shock to American pocketbooks  
>> is not a good thing." But if the government gives middle-class  
>> families tax cuts and encourages the market "to adapt to these new  
>> circumstances more quickly, particularly U.S. automakers, then I  
>> think ultimately, we can come out of this stronger and have a more  
>> efficient energy policy than we do right now."
>>
>> Even before he saw the video, Senate Minority Leader Mitch  
>> McConnell, R-Ky., was alerted to Obama's remarks by transcripts  
>> released by CNBC. With the McCain campaign preoccupied by other  
>> matters, McConnell quoted the remarks to reporters in the Capitol  
>> on Tuesday, adding: "A gradual adjustment to $4 gas is not an  
>> energy plan for America."
>>
>> The next day, in a Senate floor speech and a news release,  
>> McConnell said Obama had suggested "that rising gas prices aren't  
>> the problem." Minutes later, House Republican Leader John Boehner  
>> of Ohio issued a similar statement.
>>
>> It was Thursday before the McCain campaign took up the issue,  
>> which many Republicans saw as ripe for exploiting. In a conference  
>> call with reporters, Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., said Obama "is out  
>> of touch with what Americans are going through."
>>
>> McCain, meanwhile, gave Obama surrogates a chance to retaliate.  
>> Appearing Wednesday on NBC's "Today Show," he said estimating a  
>> time for U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq was "not too important."  
>> It is more important, he said, to reduce U.S. casualties there.
>>
>> Obama supporters including Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, the  
>> party's 2004 presidential nominee, denounced the remarks in a  
>> conference call.
>>
>> On Thursday, as Obama told a Wisconsin audience about his plan for  
>> middle-class tax cuts, Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and Rep. Paul  
>> Hodes, D-N.H., told reporters by phone that McCain's tax proposals  
>> were far worse for working Americans.
>>
>> McCain's surrogates may have had the better week because of  
>> Johnson's resignation. But Obama's friends are bringing new  
>> firepower to his hometown of Chicago, where his campaign is  
>> headquartered. The Democratic National Committee said Thursday its  
>> political and field operations are relocating there, making it  
>> easier to coordinate the effort against McCain.
>>
>> Jim Kuhnhenn reported from Boston.
>>
>> Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The  
>> information contained in the AP News report may not be published,  
>> broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written  
>> authority of The Associated Press.
>> Copyright © 2008 Yahoo All rights reserved.
>>
>
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