McCain feels he can’t take 2 hours to debate Obama? Someone should let McCain know that a President has to deal with multiple problems at once, it’s clear he isn’t up to the job.
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NEW YORK - Republican John McCain says he’s directing his staff to work with Barack Obama’s campaign and the debate commission to delay Friday’s debate because of the economic crisis.
In a statement, McCain says he will stop campaigning after addressing former President Bill Clinton’s Global Initiative session on Thursday and return to Washington to focus on the nation’s financial problems.
McCain also said he wants President Bush to convene a leadership meeting in Washington. Both he and Obama would attend the session.
First of all, it takes so much more than those mere 2 hours to produce a presidential debate. Its an affair that takes days to develop, practice, produce and put on the air. What we see on TV is a very small fraction of everything else that goes into the whole production of it.
And since McCain happens to be involved and connected to this "other issue" which happens to be a problem in the magnitude of about 700 BILLION dollars, .... just perhaps, he is doing the best thing for the country by putting a name-calling, mud-throwing match on hold for a week or so while he tries to assist in this other matter. You can toss around the mud NEXT week.
First of all, I don't think, and frankly no one should think that this "crisis" will be over in a week. Assuming that Congress approves the $700 billion bail-out package, and assuming Paulson gets everything he wants, its still going to take a fair bit of time before the markets settle. And by the way, both these assumptions have almost no chance of coming through. This $700 billion is a hot potato right now, and all these congressmen listen to Bernanke/Paulson with one ear; and their constituents with the other. This is not going through the way Paulson wants.
McCain has played a brilliant move here, though. He has stumped Obama campaign where whatever Obama does now, could be painted as a lose-lose. If Obama keeps campaigning, he will be shown as uncaring for the real problems facing America and prioritizing his personal ambitions over those of the nation. If Obama suspends his campaign, he will appear to meekly follow McCain's lead showing McCain as the visionary and experienced leader.
Crisis are of many kinds and many magnitudes. A hurricane hitting a major metropolis is a clear crisis, because people are dying. A terrorist attack in a major city which kills hundreds or thousands is a crisis. Not sure if the panic at Wall Street qualifies here. A bunch of greedy people bankrupted their companies and want tax-payers to bail them out or the sky is gonna fall. Crisis? I don't think a lot of people will call it a matter of life or death. Yet.
The Top Ten Questions People are Asking The John McCain Campaign
10 “I just contributed to your campaign – how do I get a refund?
#9 “It’s Sarah Palin – does this mean I’m pars’dent?”
#8 “Can’t you solve this by selling some of your houses?”
#7 “This is Clay Aiken. Is McCain single?”
#6 “Do you still think the fundamentals of our economy are strong, Genius?”
#5 “Are you doing all of this just to get out of going on Letterman?”
#4 “What would Matlock do?”
#3 “Hillary here – my schedule is free Friday night.”
"It’ll be interesting here to see if Barack Obama feels the need to suspend his campaign to go down there and work on the economy. He’s also a senator. And his running mate, Joe Biden, he’s also a senator. So there, those two guys have to get back to work. So of course, they’ll suspend their campaign. Don’t you think?
“The Democrats are now at a real disadvantage because Barack Obama has got to race back and fix the economy. So does Joe Biden. He has to race back and fix the economy. But the republicans have Sarah Palin, the governor of Alaska. The Alaska economy is fine. It don’t need fixing. It’s fine. So she’ll continue the campaign. So the democrats are really in a hole now.”
#2 “Is this just an excuse to catch up on napping?”
#1 “This is President Bush – what’s all this trouble with the economy?”
Regarding his foreign policy experience, I was watching msnbc with Keith Olberman and he was asked about situation in Afghanistan, the troop surge, and what they could do to quell with voilence in the border region, he refered to the region as “Pakistan and Iraq border”
This is very important! We are trying to raise funds for the Obama Campaign as a personal goal. We all know how important that is specially during these times and I’m sure no one wants another 4 years of Republicans in the White House. Even $5 of your donation would be greatly appreciated.
First of all, it takes so much more than those mere 2 hours to produce a presidential debate. Its an affair that takes days to develop, practice, produce and put on the air. What we see on TV is a very small fraction of everything else that goes into the whole production of it.
And since McCain happens to be involved and connected to this "other issue" which happens to be a problem in the magnitude of about 700 BILLION dollars, .... just perhaps, he is doing the best thing for the country by putting a name-calling, mud-throwing match on hold for a week or so while he tries to assist in this other matter. You can toss around the mud NEXT week.
I dont think he has altruistic reasons. Remember fundamentals of economy were sound for him just recently. He knows he will get smacked around all over, and he wanted to delay it so he can then point at his bi-partisan leadership in solving the gridlock, which seems to be manufactured last minute anyways. He has now agreed to go at the debate and I bet he will say that and that he had said something about issues at freddie and fannie a few years ago (and just did not have the ability to puch it through), what is his recod on the economy, banking and financial stuff this congessional session.
and early indications are that he was there, picture opps were plenty but he did nto contribute much, if anything to the discussion.
McCain has played a brilliant move here, though. He has stumped Obama campaign where whatever Obama does now, could be painted as a lose-lose. If Obama keeps campaigning, he will be shown as uncaring for the real problems facing America and prioritizing his personal ambitions over those of the nation. If Obama suspends his campaign, he will appear to meekly follow McCain's lead showing McCain as the visionary and experienced leader.
It seems to have backfired though right now, maybe over the enxt coiuple of weeks his campaign will try to portray it as some act of responsibility and leadership. and now it appears he has agreed that he will be at the debate anyways. I bet that his answer for the economic issues will be tilted heavily to his role in the 26 hours before the debate and not the 26 years before that.
It was a poltical dramatic ploy that didn't work. McCains campaign is built on cheap gimmicks, we saw it with his choice of VP and this latest backfired stunt.
As Obama said,
*"I've been able to stay entirely on top of negotiations" through phone, e-mail and staff communications, Obama said. "We can do more than one thing at a time; that's part of what's required if you want to be president of the United States." *
It looks like McCain got the message and will follow Obama's lead and in fact be at the debate tonight.
It seems to have backfired though right now
You are right, it backfired. And pretty badly. Several things happened.. and most of them helped Obama.
Pres Bush invited both McCain and Obama to WH on Thursday. Both agreed to be there. That saved Obama from appearing like a McCain follower, as he graciously went to WH on invitation.
All reports coming out of that meeting made McCain appear clue-less and lacking any leadership. Reports are that while Obama peppered Paulson with questions, McCain largely sat silent.
While on Wednesday night a deal appeared imminent, on Thursday afternoon, Republicans balked from a deal, and pretty much the entire press corp and leaders on the Capitol blamed it on McCain's grandstanding and lack of any leadership initiative.
On Friday, McCain meekly backtracked on his earlier statement and agreed to be at the debate even if no deal on the bail-out is reached.
On a more irreverent note, Letterman just laid on McCain's no-show and is continuing to make McCain look far worse than ever possible.
Even GOP leaders (Huckabee etc) are now criticizing McCain on his handling of this issue.
McCain's only saving grace from all this would be if somehow a deal is reached, and he can then claim that he distanced himself from White House's package and so he is not gonna by Bush's 3rd term. The way McCain wrecked the deal yesterday, it seems that was his entire focus. To distance himself from Bush White House.
