The McCain campaign invokes Barack Obama's association with William Ayers in response to a lobbyist question about the McCain campaign that was asked to Barack Obama. More Below.
Here is the question that sparked it today:
Q: Senator, Senator McCain has lost four or five staffers now because of lobbying activity. Can you give your take on what the American people should take from that?
BO: It appears that John McCain is very much a creature of Washington and one of the things that we have said at the outset of this campaign is that if we are going to change policies, if we are going to deliver on universal healthcare or have an energy policy that over the long term could bring down gas prices that we were going to have to change how Washington works. We can’t have special interests dictating what’s happening there. And that’s why I said at the beginning I wouldn’t take PAC money and I wouldn’t take money from Federal lobbyists. And it does appear that over the last several weeks John McCain keeps on having problems with his top advisors being lobbyists in some cases for foreign governments or other big interests that are doing business in Washington. That I don’t think represents the kind of change that the American people are looking for.
Here is the McCain campaign's response:
"Just a few years ago when Barack Obama was beginning his career in politics he was launching it at the home of William Ayers, an unrepentant domestic terrorist who his chief strategist said Senator Obama was certainly friendly with. If Barack Obama is going to make associations the issue, we look forward to the debate about Senator Obama’s associations and what they say about his judgment and readiness to be commander in chief.
While this is an obvious attempt at diverting attention from the McCain campaign's lobbyist troubles, you have to admit that it will end up working in grabbing attention by the media. The media would much rather try and make a scandal out of the Ayers problem with Obama than anything negative about McCain.
One thing I've noticed, is that the majority of quick responses, or even day late responses, come from spokespersons from the McCain camp. Whereas most of the responses to accusations are responded at the Obama campaign by Obama himself. My guess is they don't trust McCain to give a competent response.
Do you think that the media will be complicit with the McCain campaign and dredge up Ayers again? Wright? What about Rezko?
Also, here's what my General Election map looks like right now, I think that if the elections were held today, so this is Obama's floor. The only way to go from here is up:
Update: