Posted on 05/21/2008 11:44:10 PM PDT by Red Steel
FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida (Reuters) - A senior adviser to Republican presidential candidate John McCain said on Tuesday that he was stepping down to keep a commitment he made not to campaign against Democrat Barack Obama.
Mark McKinnon, who was in charge of the McCain campaign's advertising message, said he was still backing the Arizona senator, but that he was simply moving from active campaign participant to cheerleader.
"I'll still be around occasionally in my lucky hat," said McKinnon, who often wears a distinctive hat.
McKinnon, who was a key aide in President George W. Bush's two election victories, has expressed admiration for Obama and pledged not to campaign against the Democratic front-runner if he became the party's presidential nominee.
A McCain campaign official said McKinnon had notified the campaign of his decision to leave but declined further comment. The McCain campaign had been expecting McKinnon's move for some months and was not surprised at his decision.
Obama, an Illinois senator, remains locked in a battle with New York Sen. Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination and the right to face McCain in the November general election.
Projections showed him losing the Kentucky primary to Clinton on Tuesday, but he was favored to win the later Oregon contest. His showing on Tuesday was expected to give him a majority of the elected delegates to the party's nominating convention in August.
Neither of the Democratic candidates have enough elected delegates to win the nomination, leaving the race to be decided by so-called superdelegates -- party leaders and elected officials who can vote for the candidate of their choosing.
The Cox News Service reported that McKinnon told McCain last summer that he would not work for him in the general election if Barack Obama became the Democratic nominee, saying
"I just don't want to work against an Obama candidacy."
At the time, Obama and McCain each looked like long shots for nomination.
On Sunday, McKinnon told the news service that he will continue to support McCain.
"I will still show up from time to time (and) talk to the candidate still, but not about Obama."
(Writing by JoAnne Allen; editing by David Alexander)
This is pathetic.
It is more like a disease going through American culture.
It is much more then just pathetic. It is the death of the United States that is taking place.
What a load of horse-hockey. Admiration for Obama? McCain sure can pick em.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBleP145SyU
why worry now?
Doesn’t speak highly of McCain’s ability to select staff - does it?
We are sooooooo screwed.
I had to re-read this about 3 times before it sunk in...and I am still asking WHAT???? I am looking for the silver lining in the cloud and I keep coming up with dog poo-poo.
Much less inspire a following.
What a useless POS, Who would hire him in the first place? -— Oh John McCain would-— He is fixated on these liberal types
This dopes resignation tells you more about John McCain than it does about him
Pathetic.
This has all the stench of a "special" relationship of some kind with B. Hussein Obama, maybe the Larry Sinclair kind. If I was McCain, I wouldn't let this little weasel McKinnon anywhere near my campaign.
I love your tagline... I have always had trouble with that turning the other cheek thing even though I try:-)
I think this is good, better than staying with McCain but doesn’t feel that he’s in the ‘right team’. Besides, it’s time McCain has a better strategy if he wants to win the election.
<”...McKinnon, who was a key aide in President George W. Bush’s two election victories,...”>
There is much about Bush I’m learning too late. When I voted for him I believed what the GOP said, that he was a conservative, but must admit he made me uneasy and I didn’t trust him. Couldn’t have told you why at the time. He just did. Now I find out he had this McKinnon person working for him. Probably an open borders supporter. McCain - he’s just weird.
What IS it with some of you people? You read junk like this from Yahoo, and you take it for the gospel truth.
http://hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com/archives/2006/08/post_57.html
August 23, 2006
Exclusive: McCain's Web Team. And Nicco Mele.
Over the past several months, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has quietly recruited for his presidential campaign some of the most influential online strategists in the country, including one of the main architects of Howard Dean's pioneering website.
John Weaver, McCain's chief political strategist, confirmed today that Nicco Mele, the webmaster of Dean for America, is among those who have committed to help. Mele’s work on Dean's campaign, which including , led Esquire to name him as one of the country's “best and brightest.” His firm, EchoDitto, lists more than twenty major Democratic and liberal firms and candidates as clients. Mele did not respond to an e-mail seeking immediate comment.
Also committing, according to Weaver: Mike Connell of New Media Communications. He designed, developed and managed the Bush campaign's websites in 2000 and 2004.
Max Fose, McCain's webmaster in 2000, is also back on board. And so is GOP technological entrepreneur Becky Donatelli, the CEO of Campaign Solutions. Donatelli helped to coordinate online fundraising for McCain in 2000.
“We're honored such top professionals in this field support a potential McCain candidacy,” said Weaver.
The range of experiences brought by these consultants suggests that McCain's web strategy will be integrated with the campaign's message, donation and political operations — just like Dean's was in the primary, — and certainly hewing to example set by the Bush campaign in 2004. Bush raised more money from the ‘Net than any candidate in history and campaign used its website to track thousands of volunteers and motivate Bush supporters.
Mele is considered an expert in web community building and networking. His recruitment suggests that McCain's campaign recognizes the dynamic nature of online campaigning. Online activists on the left and increasingly on the right now demand access and feedback from candidates and top political officials. Elite bloggers, in particular, wish to be treated as fledged members of a campaign, rather than as parts of a restive constituency waiting to be coddled.
It's hard to generalize, but the disparate reaches of the conservative online activist community tend to view McCain with skepticism. Almost to the blogger, they opposed the “Gang of 14” compromise on judicial confirmations and sneer at campaign finance regulations with scorn. A large number of prominent bloggers disdain his position on immigration reform. More recently, however, McCain's role in sponsoring pork-busting legislation has garnered him some praise. And the most important center-right blogger — Glenn Reynolds — is more sympathetic to McCain than others.
McCain himself is not especially comfortable with the Internet. But he has reached out in substantive ways. His PAC now pays prominent conservative blogger Patrick Hynes a consulting free, his chief of staff has blogged, uninvited, on Huffingtonpost.com, McCain has participated in podcasts with Instapundit’s Glenn Reynolds and his wife Helen Smith, and he has contributed to the Porkbusters online effort to reign in government spending. Rick Davis, who managed McCain's 2001 campaign, helped to corral the current roster of talent.
In the days after his New Hampshire primary victory in 2001, McCain's team raised more than $1 million off the Internet — then a record setting performance. And he held one of the first online fundraisers, participating in a web chat with donors who ponied up $500.
With the recruitment of Connell, the incipient McCain campaign has pulled off a coup of sorts. It has now attracted top talent from nearly every major division of the Bush-Cheney campaign. Terry Nelson, Bush's campaign political director, will probably take a major managerial role in McCain's 2008 campaign. Bush's media guru, Mark McKinnon, consults for McCain on strategy. Nicolle Wallace, who oversaw communications for Bush in the campaign and at the White House, will help McCain. Her husband, Mark Wallace, a former deputy campaign manager for Bush who is now an ambassador at the UN, gave advice before he entered the government. A gaggle of major Bush donors and fundraisers are also on the team. [SHIRA TOEPLITZ and MARC AMBINDER]
Posted at 05:34 PM ------------ Democrats in Michigan and Florida were encouraged to vote in the GOP primary since the Democrat delegates were not going to be seated in those states.
Remember that Bush had a Democrat staffer who sent a debate practice tape to Gore in 2000 and Rolling Stoned Magazine had a Democrat voting “volunteer” write missives from within the Bush campaign offices.
The shadow government operates at all levels to undermine the administration.
What do we expect?
These are the ENEMEDIA's nominees (McPain and Osama Hussein)!!!
The lesser of two or more evils... is still EVIL!!!
Third party schmird party!!!! It's one party right now. Throw away your vote on "THE PARTY", would you like a red flavor or blue?
I'm gonna vote Duncan Hunter. It's the RIGHT choice, not the lesser choice!
When Hunter decided to support the Huckster, my enthusiasm for Hunter faded.
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