Is Obama Stepping into Another Trap?

Sure looks that way.

The newest ad showcasing their hard line includes unflattering footage of McCain at a hearing in the early '80s, wearing giant glasses and an out-of-style suit, interspersed with shots of a disco ball, a clunky phone, an outdated computer and a Rubix Cube.

"1982, John McCain goes to Washington," an announcer says over chirpy elevator music. "Things have changed in the last 26 years, but McCain hasn't.

"He admits he still doesn't know how to use a computer, can't send an e-mail, still doesn't understand the economy, and favors two hundred billion in new tax cuts for corporations, but almost nothing for the middle class," it says. It shows video of McCain getting out of a golf cart with former President George H.W. Bush and closes with a photo of him standing with the current President Bush at the White House. "After one president who was out of touch, we just can't afford more of the same."

Obama spokesman Dan Pfeiffer said the campaign was not making an issue of the 72-year-old McCain's age, but the time he's spent in Washington.

"Since taking office, Obama has voted for nearly a billion dollars in pork barrel projects, including $1 million for his wife's employer and $100,000 to this guy."

(quick shot of Father Pfleger saying something dumb)

In the same amount of time, John McCain never requested pork. He never has.

"Can we trust Obama to bring change? After all, it only took him 143 days to embrace Washington's free-spending ways. John McCain has resisted for 25 years."

"Consistent. Principled. Country First."

Obviously the language would need some tightening. It would be great to get someone like Fred Thompson to narrate it.

Another potential response below:

"Barack Obama promises to bring change to Washington, and yet his first major act as a presidential candidate was making a Washington insider who's been there for 30 years his running mate."

(Images of 1973, including early photos of Biden, some Nixon and people wearing horrible 70s clothes.)

"One of Biden's early votes was against the Alaska oil pipeline, which now provides the country with **% of our current domestic oil needs. Since then, Biden and Barack Obama have voted against offshore oil production and other forms of domestic energy production."

(Montage: gas lines, high prices, etc)

"As governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin worked to increase domestic energy production and lower our dependence on foreign oil. She understands how important this issue is to our national security, our economy and your pocketbook."

"Barack Obama and Joe Biden promise change, but their energy policies would bring more of the same."

"McCain/Palin. Energy. Independence."

Again, language would need to be tightened, but it would highlight the very real difference between the two candidates.

It's interesting (and by that I mean hilarious) that almost every avenue of attack Obama tries to open up on McCain/Palin comes back to bite him. Ed at Hot Air suggests hitting Obama on the fact that he's never fought the corruption that surrounded him in Chicago politics, while both McCain and Palin showed political courage in that regard.

I can't wait to see what Obama comes up with next.

Update - Just thought of another potential ad.

In front of a slide show of Obama at fundraisers, surrounded by celebrities, put these words on the screen:

“It's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations,"

Then, as pictures of McCain and Palin at rallies in rural America show, play the following bit from Palin's speech:

in small towns, we don’t quite know what to make of a candidate who lavishes praise on working people when they’re listening and then talks about how bitterly they cling to their religion and guns when those people aren’t listening.

(APPLAUSE)

No, we tend to prefer candidates who don’t talk about us one way in Scranton and another way in San Francisco.

(APPLAUSE)

As for my running mate, you can be certain that wherever he goes and whoever is listening John McCain is the same man.

posted by Slublog at 09:29 AM

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