John McCain has been accused of attacking Barack Obama with a calculated well-placed kick from his wingtip to Obama's groin. Is this the October Surprise we have all been waiting for? It certainly seemed to be a surprise to Obama...
Directly after the debate John McCain and Barack Obama were waiting together on the back stage for the crowd to clear and joking around with supporters when McCain ran over and allegedly kicked Obama with a direct shot to the nuts. McCain was quoted as saying, " "Here, you Kenyon-born elitist darky, check your family jewels."
The Obama camp released this statement: "John McCain needs to use his words and not resort to this type of violence. We strongly oppose nut kicking as a solution to all the problems facing the American people. We find his behavior to be inappropriate and not nice. We plan on an appropriate strong response soon and have not ruled out a vigorous towel snap. "
MSNBC's Chris Matthews is reporting this as a breaking news story that he calls Nut-gate. "All the details are yet to come out. Did Obama provoke McCain in some way? Did he give him a disrespectful look that signaled his lack of respect for McCain's military and POW service? Is "Darky, really a racial slur? Many questions that we have to get to tonight on Hardball-(-that's singular not plural.)
Sean Hannity reported that Obama probably deserved a whole lot more than a simple love tap from a decorated war veteran and POW after all the typical liberal personal attacks he has made toward McCain. He accused Obama of playing the race card in misquoting McCain out of context. "John has proven himself to be a man of integrity but even he has a limit on what he can tolerate from a man ill suited to be running for high office."
Rudy Giuliani, a spokesman for McCain said: "This man is complaining about a playful gesture from a72-year old war hero? We need a man who is tough enough to deal with the terrorists. His complaints and denial of his part in the incident show that he is ill-suited to deal with the threats from 9/11.
Sarah Palin claimed that she could not understand what all the fuss was about. "In the lower 48 it seems that the Washington press establishment will jump on any little thing. Up in Alaska this is just seen as a simple gesture of greeting between males. My husband Todd and his friends use this type of greeting often without whining about it. John McCain is a proven war hero and if he had wanted to truly hurt someone it wouldn't have been with a simple love tap.
The AP bureau chief, Ron Fourier, reported that there were conflicting reports and that they were actively seeking out witnesses to the incident. "It is unclear at this point who really got the worse of the exchange. McCain was seen limping and in obvious pain after the alleged incident while Obama was seen smiling and taking in some deep breaths without any apparent problems.
Joe Biden, Obama's running mate, was quoted: "It reminds me of what my Dad used to tell me. When you get knocked down, get up! That's exactly what Barack did! John McCain has been my friend for 33 years and he sometimes gets a bit emotional. "
McCain himself said, "My friends, I have been an imperfect servant for a cause greater than myself for all my adult life. I may have gotten passionate, but I don't apologize for my passion and never will. If Senator Obama can't take it, how can he be expected to lead the country against radical Islamic terrorists? I suffered much, much worse treatment at the Hanoi Hilton when I was a POW.
A reporter asked: "Senator is your foot okay?" as he left the quick unscheduled press conference. He smiled and gave a thumbs up.