McCain-Backing GOP Senator: Obama Did Not Play the Race Card

Ah yes,The race card, I think irrespective they both did. It is a race bait. They both goaded each other on. John McCain is playing to the POW game. As A former Navy man myself, I am disgusted about John McCain using the POW card. When he made that comment about while I was in gthe POW camp I went with out a kitchen table for 21/2 years, commenting on the number of homes he has, well guess what Senator many people go with out kitchen tables there whole life. Wake up look, listen and feel. I am a die hard republican and its a prett sad state of affairs. Yes we need change.

I am an independent and will not vote for mccain, he is playing the race card. That is not the only reason I would not vote for him, look at the last sven years and tell me it what areas the country is moving forward. John Mccain plan to keep us going in the wrong (Bush)direction. Look at the economy and the war, for six years the president and a republican controlled congress destroyed this country. It is time for them to go.

So tomorrow morning we could save 3-4% by taking a little personal responsibility?
And any oil from offshore wells would be 10 years off (or if you want to say 4 or 5 years fine.
What is wrong with conserving with some personal responsibility?
I thought Republican's were for personal responsibility?
Or is McCain just against anything Obama is for?
Please be an informed voter and go to the primary sources for information!
God Bless You!

He played "The Race Card" screams McCain as if someone stepped on his $500 shoes!! It is negative,shameful and wrong he goes on to say----ahhhh
Brittney and Paris may feel you are negative ,shameful and wrong-putting Obama (Black) with two white women. What is that all about?? The pot sure looks like he is calling the kettle black. Mccain is very childish- The Republican Party always used their "famous tactic of choice"-FEAR- AND oBama is right -McCain want us to fear Obama when the one we SHOULD FEAR IS MCCAIN. He knows he has nothing to offer-The man is not smart -he told you he knows NOTHING ABOUT THE ECONOMY- and he wants to stay in IRAQ 100 years-He has already told the American people he in not qualified. American should listen.

Good on you, Senator. On what planet would Obama benefit by "playing the race card"...that game is won by McSame/Rove. The Republicans have been playing the race card in one form or another since LBJ signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and said "we've lost the south for generations to come."

Do any of you really think that it was a mere coincidence that the Democratic "solid south" turned Repbulican that year and has been Republican ever since?

As an African American woman, I am appalled by thr ignorance shown on these messages. Obama was clearly making a reference to the sordid web ad that John McCain and his henchmen put out. Obama just can't win with you people. if he replies to the stupid ads, he crying race. if he does not reply, then he's being a wuss. Where were you folk who say say that it is not mccain that is interjecting race when this scurrulious ad was placed? I did not hear a peep out of you. Wonder why. It's ok for the white male to attack, but not ok for the black male to answer back. And what was Mccain's answer to the ad. he was just having fun with his doners. if this is ot racist, then what is?

This is sort of amusing given Obama's admission.

Obama had made the comment before, but since then the Rove people have come aboard, and the tenor of the ad campaign has changed. McCain has been told that he damn well better agree with his ads, so he does. He is the epitome of what Senator Clinton was accused of: someone who will say anything to get elected.

Chea Prince, you misunderstood my comment.

What I was meaning was the person who is vehemently accusing someone of playing the race card is racist. That is McCain.

As David Gergen said today,
"On Sunday, longtime Washington hand David Gergen took umbrage with John McCain's recent attack ads, charging that the Senator was using coded messaging to paint Barack Obama as "outside the mainstream" and "uppity."

"There has been a very intentional effort to paint him as somebody outside the mainstream, other, 'he's not one of us,'" said Gergen, who has worked with White Houses, both Republican and Democrat, from Nixon to Clinton. "I think the McCain campaign has been scrupulous about not directly saying it, but it's the subtext of this campaign. Everybody knows that. There are certain kinds of signals. As a native of the south, I can tell you, when you see this Charlton Heston ad, 'The One,' that's code for, 'he's uppity, he ought to stay in his place.' Everybody gets that who is from a southern background. We all understand that. When McCain comes out and starts talking about affirmative action, 'I'm against quotas,' we get what that's about."

As has been widely reported on HuffingtonPost and elsewhere, back in June, McCain put out an ad photoshopping Obama onto US currency, Mt. Rushmore, and the Statue of Liberty.

Obama said that McCain and the Republicans are trying to say he "doesn't look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills." Not really a stretch--especially considering how they made him look on that bill.

But this is a subject where Obama has to play very cautiously, perhaps with "one hand tied behind his back". Even so, he could have used a surrogate, spoken more deftly, or maybe even better just not taken any of the bait on this juvenile kind of ad.

But this blog also may have erred by jumping to the conclusion that Obama's comment sounded "pretty inflammatory", giving some cover to McCain's campaign to play the "race card" card now that they had some MSM support. I do feel that Josh Marshall may have stated some things too bluntly, but he is right on about the subtexts in McCain's campaign of late.

McCain is using subtle but clear subtexts, a whole host of schoolyard tactics like feminizing a male opponent and associating him with white females in a way reminiscent of the Harold Ford ad. Apparently "manliness" is going to be one of McCain's campaign themes.

Overall, though, I found McCain's series of recent ads and statements utterly revolting and a bit chilling, Obama's responses confused and not very effective, and this blog's reaction to be initially very biased toward McCain and a bit inflammatory itself.

Though I do appreciate the ongoing efforts here to follow up, be fair, and give equal time to both sides. And I can understand this blog's omission of any mention of McCain's initial Obama on the currency image when Obama's campaign doesn't even seem willing to bring it up.

Like David Gergen said on This Week, I've also been thinking that taking on these kinds of tactics might be a job for Hillary Clinton (though a video of her saying that she won the most votes is still up on her website!).

At this point I think I may need to just watch Wipeout instead of the real life version in the Presidential campaign. I'm not even kidding.

look into the ad mccain ran in late june for the source of obama's remark this week about not looking like other presidents on US currency ... it places obama's face on a dollar bill.
obama did not pull the line out of thin air and mccain & co.'s feigned outrage is confused and deeply cynical.

chea prince
hartwell, ga

"...nor does anyone scream louder about someone using the race card than a racist."

Um, Margaret, have you already forgotten that the one here who played the race card is Obama.

But I agree with you, he is a racist.

And it appears most people agree with me:

Only 22% Say McCain Ad Racist, But Over Half (53%) See Obama Dollar-bill Comment That Way

"We will know as a nation in November whether we have turned the corner or are still going in a straight line of status quo."

The Democratic Party says Americans are racist. Vote Obama.

The Republican Party says Americans are smart and capable. Vote McCain.

That is how Reagan Beat Carter.

How long before Obama plays the race card again?

Because you know he will.

It's all he has.

Just to clarify what the poster len intended to say:

Everyone agrees that Senator McCain is trying to inoculate himself against future charges of racism by preemptively claiming race baiting. While morally reprehensible, it is a viable tactic that both provides insulation if he does launch race-based attacks and draws the support of the more racially divisive elements of the electorate. Of course, no one is really surprised because this is exactly the sort of tactic we've learned to expect from the Bush-McCain crowd, and particularly from the Rove-trained team running their campaign. That's why McCain has spent the last two weeks attacking Obama and ignoring every issue that concerns the American people. It's also why experts agree--independent and partisans from both side--that McCain's campaign has yet to provide any policy details on the economy, national security, fiscal discipline, or anything else of consequence to the American people.

Everyone admits that Obama has been playing the race card. This is not the elephant in the room as Donna Brazille suggests: it is the Emperor's New Clothes.

The new DNC trial balloon as floated by Brazille is that only Obama can use this card. If that's not a stacked deck it sure isn't a new expensive suit.

I don't think DNC hypocrisy can be more clear but we haven't seen the convention yet.

The RoundTable was revealing. David Gergen says Obama needs to reconsider Clinton. Brazille says Hillary can't be considered with Bill in tow. So evidently the price of being VP is a divorce. Will says the color of Obama's skin is about as boring as Paris and Brittany. Brazille says only Obama can talk about race. Tapper says Paris and and Brittany are ditzes. Brazille asks if that is because they are blond. Tapper replies, no they are stupid.

It seems the DNC representatives are determined to use divisiveness as their campaign strategy. Why? To distract from the economic proposals. Think about it. Gergen was on CNN talking about the US taxpayer paying India and China to use less fossil fuel calling it a necessary sacrifice. Obama is talking about sending billions to the third world for poverty and another lump sum for reparations.

Only McCain is talking about energy policies to help the US. Only McCain is talking about tax relief for the middle class.

Only John McCain seems to be on our side.

Bill Clinton DEMOCRAT said Obama played the RACE CARD against him and his wife Hillary

But Obama did play the race card. And if elected, all indications are that he'll play the ultimate race card in the form of reparations.

"I consistently believe that when it comes to whether it's Native Americans or African-American issues or reparations, the most important thing for the U.S. government to do is not just offer words, but offer deeds," he said.

People! People! We need to recognize that these ads (ex:celebrity) and baiting about racism speak more about US as Americans than they do about the candidates. They give us what they think WE want to hear and they play on our fears. This is ALL about irrational motivations, not about the issues. The very best thing we could do for ourselves is steel ourselves against the negative ads and comments and concentrate on the issues of substance - admittedly hard to do. That's why these Rovian style campaigns work - let's learn and not get fooled again! I'm an ex-Republican (McCain 2000) who is now an independent because both parties play to our stupidity, and because this McCain isn't who I supported in 2000. I will support Obama this cycle because he is especially right about 1 thing: as they are currently constituted, the Republicans know how to run presidential campaigns like nobody's business but they've forgotten how to govern. It's that simple, folks. God bless us.