Hey, John McCain: Have you bothered watching the ad you condemned yet?

Michelle Malkin ^ | 04/26/08 | Michelle Malkin

[coffee260]

Did you know that John McCain lambasted the North Carolina GOP’s anti-Obama/Jeremiah Wright ad without having seen it?

Yes, this noxious little tidbit was tucked into an AP story three days ago when the controversy broke and has been little remarked upon since. When I mentioned this fact at the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference dinner last night, much of the audience gasped. Obviously, the word hasn’t gotten out there enough:

The ad opens with a photo of Obama and the Rev. Jeremiah Wright together and a clip of Wright, whose incendiary comments about race have bedeviled Obama.

“He’s just too extreme for North Carolina,” the narrator says in the 30-

second spot. “We asked them not to run it,” McCain told reporters traveling with him in Kentucky. “I’m sending them an e-mail as we speak asking them to take it down.

“I don’t know why they do it. Obviously, I don’t control them, but I’m making it very clear, as I have a couple of times in the past, that there’s no place for that kind of campaigning, and the American people don’t want it,” McCain said.

McCain said the ad was described to him: “I didn’t see it, and I hope that I don’t see it.”

Let me repeat that:

“I didn’t see it, and I hope that I don’t see it.”

He didn’t bother to watch the 41-second video before his campaign leaned on the NC GOP to withdraw it.

He doesn’t want to see it, lest he sully his delicate eyes.

Yet, he’s so indignantly sure “that there’s no place for that kind of campaigning.”

And then he has the gall to turn around and knock Obama’s elitism.

Congratulations, Sen. McCain: You’ve out-snobbed Snobama.

Yes, without having seen the ad or talked directly to the NC GOP officials, he’s absolutely convinced that he’s right about his knee-jerk assessment of their supposedly bigoted motives.

McCain Math is the same as MSM Math: Southern + Republican + video featuring radical leftists who happen to be black = RACISTRACISTRACISTRACISTDANGERWILLROBINSON!

Naturally, McCain’s New York Times editorial board endorsers at the NYTimes were happy to oblige and pile on with a Pavlovian editorial this morning calling the ad racist and divisive, “shameful and ugly.” Congratulations for giving them the rope to hang North Carolina Republicans:

The assertion that Mr. Obama is “just too extreme for North Carolina” is a clear bid to stir bigotry in a Southern state…Senator McCain was right when he said, of the new ad, that “there’s no place for that kind of campaigning — and the American people don’t want it, period.”

Now he needs to get his party to listen.

Here’s the vid from yesterday’s Today Show interview with McCain that I blogged about yesterday:

The transcript:

VIEIRA: Okay. I want to switch gears here and talk about the latest controversy. It’s over an ad in North Carolina coming two weeks before the Democratic primary.

VOICE OVER: For 20 years, Barack Obama sat in his pew, listening to his pastor.

REVEREND JEREMIAH WRIGHT: And then wants us to sing God bless America? No, no, no.

VIEIRA: The ad says, quote, “just too extreme for North Carolina.” Now, you have called this ad degrading and you’ve asked the state party to pull it. But so far, they’ve refused to do that. Why do you think they’re not listening to you, a? And why do you believe they would continue to raise questions about Senator Obama’s patriotism?

McCAIN: They’re not listening to me because they’re out of touch with reality in the Republican party. We are the party of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan, and this kind of campaigning is unacceptable. I have said that. It will harm the Republicans’ cause. And I’ve done everything that I can to repudiate and to see that this kind of campaigning does not continue. I have engaged in and will continue a respectful campaign of either Senator Obama or Senator Clinton.

VIEIRA: Senator Obama said if you wanted to, you could get that ad pulled because you are, after all, the nominee and the standard bearer. So if you can’t get the ad pulled, does it raise any questions about your leadership?

McCAIN: I don’t know exactly how to respond to that, except that I would hope that Senator Obama would repudiate and apologize for his remarks concerning the heartland of America where his elitist remarks indicated that people who are hardworking dedicated people, who harbor traditional values and principles and value their religion and the Second Amendment of the Constitution would not be treated in an elitist fashion. I hope he’ll apologize for that.

How about you apologize first, Sen. McCain, for running to the liberal media to once again trash conservatives as racists for exposing hard truths about the hard Left?

“Calm down?”

Not bloody likely.

***

Following the cue of McCain and Howard Dean, there are now two TV stations who refuse to play the ad because it is “offensive.”

Always happy to show it here again (with a reminder that the NCGOP could use your financial support):

Meanwhile, McCain continues to give himself special dispensation to challenge Obama’s relationship with Weather Underground radical Bill Ayers.

Because, you see, raising questions about a Radical of Color is “not appropriate and unhelpful,” but raising questions about a Radical of Pallor is McCain-tested and RNC-approved.

[counterpunch]

This isn’t surprising, and it explains a lot about his reaction.
Because of this, McCain has an opportunity to correct this unforced error on his part and apologize to North Carolina Republicans, saying he misspoke. He should say he hadn’t seen the ad but was told by the media that it was racist. Then he should say after seeing the ad, he sees nothing wrong with it and that the media lied about its contents, that it was tame in comparison to what Hillary Clinton’s campaign has been saying. Then he should say he won’t let any of these false charges and double standards against Republicans from the Democrats and news media stand.

McCain wanting to generally distance himself from the ad is fine. But he went way, way too far in calling North Carolina Republicans “out of touch with reality.” He has offended the very voters of an entire state who he needs to win the election. This is no different than Obama’s “bitter” gaffe. In fact, the damage is far worse. Obama offended voters who weren’t going to vote for him anyways. McCain offended the REPUBLICANS of an entire state HE MUST WIN. It was as stupid as stupid gets. He must work to undo some of the damage. I believe there is now a good chance that Mike Huckabee will win the North Carolina primary now, despite having dropped out of the race. Perhaps that would send a message to Mr. McCain.

[sportutegrl]

Bashing Obama makes no sense now if Hillary ultimately wins the nomination. He is going to want to court those Obama voters and blacks. If however, Obama wins and he refuses to attack, then we can critize. Now is too soon.

[Man50D]

We are littered with spineless Republicans socialists.

[Coldwater Creek]

The same tactics hasn't worked for the liberal white Memphis Congressman. He even begged to join the Black Caucus.

[Dr. Scarpetta]

Hillary loves that Rev. Wright ad but probably was afraid to put it out. You wouldn’t believe it if you didn’t live around here, but Hillary is well-liked...My son-in-law works with people who mostly voted for Hillary last week. Even his father who has a good job voted for Hillary.

[Dacula]

You got that right. No matter what happens this November, we will be saddled with a democrat.

[DTogo]

Yet another Juan McCain daily reminder why NOT to vote for him.

[hosepipe]

The NC republicans STOLE McQueeqs strawberries..
AND hes outraged..

[popdonnelly]

McCain’s a genius. His campaign was cruising along without a care in the World, while Clinton and Obama tore each other up. Then he decided to pick a fight with - wait for it - North Carolina Republicans. If there’s a way to lose, McCain will figure it out.

[Enchante]

Yes, Hillary is loving this - it’s a two-fer for her, to see Obama damaged and Rs damaged by the MSM, McCain, et al. I’m watching to see how the Clintonistas will try to pump that ad without putting their fingerprints on it — maybe they will start a campaign of denouncing eviiiiilllll NC Republicans while forcing the ad to be much more widely viewed and discussed. It’s hard to imagine the Clintons passing up this opportunity to stick it to Obama.

[Melchior]

It is likely that McCain — a man of limited intelectual ability — will continue to anger Conservatives and thus ruin his chances for election. The result should be four years of Obama (Jimmy Carter redux) followed by a massive resurgence of conservatism in 2112 if the proper candidate can be found.

[JACKRUSSELL]

"MAN UP," SEN. McCAIN

[popdonnelly]

“If they were so offended, why did they play the sermons in the first place?”

Exactly. Are they trying to curtail their own freedom? No one is taking away Reverend Wright’s freedom of speech by questioning his remarks.

[BibChr]

I just saw the ad, and I really, truly, don’t get it. I don’t get the shock and horror over the ad. It’s like that idiot Barbara Boxer emoting about how awful it was to have partial-birth abortion DESCRIBED on the Senate floor — but the procedure itself? No big.

Idiots.

[Pravious]

“McCain’s a genius. His campaign was cruising along without a care in the World, while Clinton and Obama tore each other up. Then he decided to pick a fight with - wait for it - North Carolina Republicans. If there’s a way to lose, McCain will figure it out.”

McCain is either a complete nutcase, or thinks the 21% of so-called “moderates and independents” who will be drawn towards his pathetic “can’t we all just get along?” BS are more important to attract than the 20% of conservatives who are appalled that the person most against us in this election seems to be our own candidate.

And, he might be right... he might get more votes that way in the long run. Since I’m of the 20%, however, he won’t get mine... not until hell freezes over and Hillary Clinton skates nude on my front lawn.

[don-o]

until hell freezes over and Hillary Clinton skates nude on my front lawn.

You will doing so well until that last part.

Gack!

[RetSignman]

Let me preface my comment by saying I am NOT a McCain supporter BUT, as I view it, he is taking advantage of the democrat dilemma, while clinton/obama are self destructing and the whole party is in chaos, he is be presenting himself as a candidate the dims can vote for.

The dimocrats have used this tactic for decades of moving to center to garner republican’s vote but the difference is, the democrat politicians, their MSM and the base KNOW they are lying and will return being the liberals they are as soon as they are elected.

[Will88]

“McCain is obviously trying to pick up the black vote for the GOP, hopefully for the long term. Not sure I agree with him, but that is what it looks like to me.”

Well, if McCain or anyone seriously thinks this is the year Republicans will pick up more black votes, then he needs to put in a straight jacket and taken to the nearest institution.

We’ll see the largest black vote ever, with 90%+ going to Obama (barring some very unlikely switch to Hillary).

[BluH2o]

A month, or so, back a local Cincinnati radio personality was asked to fire up the audience at a McPain rally, just prior to McPain showing up. Bill Cunningham, the radio personality, had the temerity to mention Obama’s middle name Hussein, as in Barak Hussein Obama. McPain upon learning of this from his buddies in the liberal MSM immediately condemned what Cunningham had said ... as Cunningham put it, McPain thru me under the bus ... the straight talk express bus.

[Zombie Lincoln]

McCain is doing everything in his power to hand this election to RATS. I see this maneuver as something which will set a standard on how McCane will be evaluated by the media. When he finally gets his head out of his a** and attacks the RAT nominee the left wing media will point to this and call him a hypocrite for failing to do what he initially promised.

This whole episode is sickening and I can’t imagine who is advising him on these things. He’s going to undo our party if the campaign people don’t wake him up and explain that this is not how you win elections.