The biggest application of "oppo research" we've seen from the Obama campaign.
Here's how Ezra Klein understands the relevance of this move:
13-minute documentaries aren't made in a morning. They've been holding this for awhile. Until they deemed it necessary. And then over the weekend, the McCain campaign decided it was time to elevate Ayers and Wright and dark suspicious about Muslim ties from e-mailed understudies to campaign stars. By Sunday night, the Obama campaign was previewing a 13-minute documentary on McCain's relationship with Charles Keating. And a web site detailing the links at more length.Thoughts? Who's going to watch this thing, besides nerds like us?
This isn't how they normally do attack ads. It's not how they normally do attacks. Which is the point. It's different. Bigger. This isn't an attack made for the air but an attack meant to dominate the new cycle. To ensure that McCain's invocation of Ayers, et al is paired with Obama's assault on Keating and thus folded into a fairly dry process story about the sharp and sadly negative turn the election is taking and that voters should ignore.
...
In that crisis, John McCain and his political patron, Charles Keating, played central roles that ultimately landed Keating in jail for fraud and McCain in front of the Senate Ethics Committee. The McCain campaign has tried to avoid talking about the scandal, but with so many parallels to the current crisis, McCain's Keating history is relevant and voters deserve to know the facts -- and see for themselves the pattern of poor judgment by John McCain.
The Obama campaign, in other words, has an argument as to relevance. And they've constructed their attack such that they don't have to stop talking about the economy to make it. But we'll see if they're able to keep control of their own message amidst the furor. The subtheme here is that John McCain is going to be very pissed off. Legendarily pissed off. It'll be interesting to see how that plays at tomorrow night's townhall debate...
I think Ezra is right on. Journalists will watch it. the story will be that Obama finally attacked McCain on the Keating 5 scandal. It might bump the tired Ayers charges off the front page.
ReplyDeleteAgreed with dave - no one needs to watch it if the content is going to hoovered up, distilled, and regurgitated by the cable news channels. And I think it will bump the Ayers stuff off because it's, you know, relevant.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, I think it's a pretty brilliant move, as far as negative campaigning goes, as it doesn't require the Obama campaign to pivot away from its focus on the economy. If anything, it further underscores how unfit McCain and the GOP are to deal with the current meltdown.
Ha. If I actually read the last paragraph instead of skipping over it, I see Ezra hit that point I made in the second paragraph. Quitting smoking does funny things to your head for awhile.
ReplyDeletecongrats on the smoking cessation..i 'wish i could claim the same victory, but i ramped up the smoking/cocktails since having stepped into the campaign that needn't be named.
ReplyDeleteone nice thing about my return to the seclusion/isolation/introversion of diss. research is that it might yet "chill me out." but the recent return of a certain North Country girl has motivated me and mine to hit the bars, lately.
I'm wondering if Obama has other attacks ready. This seems like a one shot deal.
ReplyDeleteQuestion: If Obama mentions Keating during the debate, will McCain suffer an aneurism?
I think this paves the way to mentioning the Keating 5 in response to McCain attacks. Gives journalists, many of whom do not remember 1988, background. Much more than anyone really remembers the Weather Underground. Make it easy for journalists to understand and sound smart. This is one of the best things the campaign has done in awhile.
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of people get their news from outside of CNN et al and on the Internet. It might be geeks watching this but they will - or should - pass it on to people who may not watch it in its entirety but will get the main points. That's why we should forward this on.
ReplyDeleteI hear you on the need to quit smoking/drinking/etc. I think we've had our catching up time and now we need to turn the volume down, way down. I quit smoking yesterday and, yes, it messes with the mind. Ick.
http://lexpat.blog.com
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