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McCain's New Strategy
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ShareJuly 30, 2008 7:59 PM
ABC News' Jan Crawford Greenburg Reports: McCain's tough new "celebrity" ad campaign, designed to portray Obama as an empty suit who -- like Paris Hilton -- is devoid of substance, is the first part of a broader strategy that ultimately could have ramifications for McCain's VP selection.
The campaign will continue to hit hard that Obama is not an agent of change -- but a man who merely plays to his audience and is unwilling to risk losing his adoring crowds by making the tough decisions. This is only the first volley, sources close to McCain tell ABC News.
There's a bigger point -- and this initial volley, they say, lays the groundwork for it. They will be sharpening McCain's message that he, not Obama, is the true change agent, a man who's repeatedly taken unpopular stands, made the hard calls and forged bipartisan alliances.
Part of the calculus now is how his VP choice will further sharpen that message. There is significant support among top McCain advisers that he make a "transformative" pick who would change the Republican Party -- someone who would appeal to moderate Republicans and Democrats.
This pick would be someone who, like McCain, has taken the unpopular stands, made the hard calls and stood firm on principle.
A person who fills that bill, these advisers say, is Joe Lieberman.
Lieberman, an Independent Democrat, flatly denied his interest to ABC's Ron Claiborne earlier this month, but McCain is now seriously considering him as that "transformative" pick, sources tell ABC News.
McCain is close to Lieberman, admires his willingness to stand alone on principle and shares his views that Islamo-fascism is the most serious threat to the nation's future.
What's more, some McCain advisers believe Lieberman would dramatically enhance the point they are now trying to make about Obama in this "celebrity" ad campaign.
McCain and Lieberman are anti-celebrities, the argument goes. They have, as one top adviser said, felt the heat after taking unpopular positions because they were willing to do "what's right for the country" -- whatever it meant for their own popularity.
Tom Ridge also would be that kind of pick -- and he, too, is on McCain's very short list, sources say. As a Republican who was Bush's director of Homeland Security, he is less dramatic than Lieberman. He also ran into some problems at Homeland Security with his color-coding system.
But as a moderate pro-choice politician and former Pennsylvania governor, he, too, could make a statement--and open the Party to moderates who now are up for grabs.
And looking at the map, Ridge also could deliver Pennsylvania -- a state McCain badly needs.
McCain has not decided which route to take. The transformative pick would anger a slice of the base, and he could decide, at the end of the day, to pick the conventional conservative.
That would be Mitt Romney, Minn. Gov. Tim Pawlenty or former Ohio Rep. Rob Portman, sources tell ABC News.
But of those three, only Pawlenty would help with McCain's "change" message.
Romney, a flip-flopper extraordinaire, is vulnerable to the "celebrity" tag himself--and Portman is defined as Bush's budget director.
July 30, 2008 in Hunter, Duncan, Romney, Mitt | Permalink | User Comments (143)
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Paris Hilton can buy MCBUSH a few times and still have a few milion in change, He is the biggest phony i ever saw, applies for a marriage license to marry 1 women before he is divorded from the first one> nice work if you can get it. I wonder what other laws he has broken.at least it is against the law where I live.
Posted by: Rose Szymanski | Jul 30, 2008 8:24:02 PM
McCain is definitely NO American hero. He is a DISGRACE.
Posted by: Tamrya | Jul 30, 2008 8:27:33 PM
I could have sworn that John McCain said earlier this year that his campaign was going to take the high road........what has happened to change his approach? In fact, I thought that he said that the American people wanted, and deserved, better......what has happened to change his approach? Simple put: I guess that John McCain has nothing positive to say. In fact, he has NOTHING TO SAY about how he's going to move our country forward. How sad.......McCain.......more of the same old politics as usual!
Posted by: Howard Gallas | Jul 30, 2008 8:28:51 PM
I kind of hope that McCain keeps putting out these negative ads, because everytime he puts these ads on TV every faction of the media can debunk it as lies. The Washington Post and the New York Times have done just so.
Posted by: Jennifer | Jul 30, 2008 8:32:41 PM
What the McCain campaign fails to grasp is this presidential election has been going on for two years. McCain may-be trying to reach people in his own base, but most Americans know Obama due to the extended Dem primary. McCain's campaign has now stated on two seperate occasions that McCain does not speak for his campaign. (stated once on affirmative action and another on his raising taxes) If McCain does not speak for his own campaign, how do we expect him to lead in any capacity?
Posted by: Paige | Jul 30, 2008 8:45:03 PM
i think mccain has totally lost his mind----what little he has-----wow totally wacky.
Posted by: rodney | Jul 30, 2008 9:01:44 PM
This really makes me like McCain. Don't get me wrong I am a Clinton supporter who was never going to vote for the corrupt Obama, but I'm really considering McCain especially if he chooses Lieberman.
Anyone but Obama the arrogant!
Posted by: John25 | Jul 30, 2008 9:08:52 PM
"could have sworn that John McCain said earlier this year that his campaign was going to take the high road"........Howard Gallas
Maybe this is the high road for McCain, he seems to have lost all moral fiber he ever had in his increasingly desperate, desperate try for the white house.
Posted by: JR | Jul 30, 2008 9:11:20 PM
The more I read about Obama the more frightened I become. He is sleazier than any other politician that I have ever seen. I wish the press would cover it.
Democrat for McCain/Lieberman 08'
Posted by: Alice | Jul 30, 2008 9:11:47 PM
help everyone alice is frightened----tell us why and no bs please.
Posted by: rodney | Jul 30, 2008 9:13:39 PM
Obama is so deceiving that it takes a lot of strategy to expose him. I hope McCain eventually will find Obama's archilles heel, which I think is Obama himself.
Posted by: young_voter | Jul 30, 2008 9:14:06 PM
John25, your no Clinton supporter and certainly no democrat or you wouldn't be talking up two republicans.
I'll go you one better, anyone but McCain the childish, ill-tempered, incapable Bush clone.
Posted by: JR | Jul 30, 2008 9:15:24 PM
hey young voter someone is using your post name--go get them
Posted by: rodney | Jul 30, 2008 9:15:52 PM
obama is like paris and brittany-----i dont think so unless you are gay.
what is this guy going to come up with next.he gets more and more like a cartoon character
Posted by: rodney | Jul 30, 2008 9:21:46 PM
wow mccain is that bad that the party has crawled under a rock.
Posted by: rodney | Jul 30, 2008 9:42:03 PM
Wow,
If McCain want a "transformational" VP to move the GOP closer to the Democrats, I'm off his bus for sure. Why go through all the crap of transforming when you already have Obama and the Democratic party available where McCain seems to want to go? Just vote for Obama and make it easy.
This guy is a trifle " nuts"
Posted by: craig | Jul 30, 2008 9:42:27 PM
LIEberman and McSame deserve each other. Neither one has a bit of honor or integrity.
Posted by: jefferson | Jul 30, 2008 9:43:37 PM
Another Democrat for McCain ... Lieberman wouldn't be my first choice, but I guess I could live with it.
Posted by: mlwheeler | Jul 30, 2008 9:45:37 PM
"could have sworn that John McCain said earlier this year that his campaign was going to take the high road"........Howard Gallas
Maybe this is the high road for McCain, he seems to have lost all moral fiber he ever had in his increasingly desperate, desperate try for the white house.
Posted by: JR | Jul 30, 2008 9:46:44 PM
I love how McCain flatters himself to be this guy of integrity yet he's putting Britney and paris in an add. uuuhhh, didn't Britney support Bush? And I'm SURE paris is a republican as well, after all, republicans want to be sure she gets all the money her father earned when he dies, although she hasn't earned a cent. That's a republican thing. odd strategy to put two sorry arse republicans in an add iwth a democrat and say he's liek them. How odd. Surely obama will grab the fact that both are republican and reem is back up mcCain old sagging white arse.
Posted by: jess | Jul 30, 2008 9:48:03 PM
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