Newsweek admits McCain's attack ads contain lies, but calls his strategy "SAVVY" anyway...

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Posted Wednesday, July 30, 2008 11:24 AM
McCain's Savvy Ad Strategy
Andrew Romano



Breaking news, MSM: John McCain's presidential campaign isn't run by a bunch of morons.

Reading the political press over the past week--in which reporters have happily cataloged McCain's streak of seemingly avoidable public relations mishaps--it'd be easy to believe otherwise. The cheese-aisle press conference in Bethlehem, Penn. The bratwurst lunch alongside a used-car salesman in Columbus, Ohio. The canceled trip to a Gulf Coast oil rig. And, lest we forget, the golf-cart photo-op with 84-year-old former President George Bush in the resort town of Kennebunkport, Me. Not exactly the best way to counterprogram the images of a "young," "vigorous" Barack Obama swanning around the globe with foreign dignitaries, seducing 200,000 starstruck Europeans in Berlin and sinking three-pointers while playing pickup basketball with U.S. soldiers. "July has been a cruel month for McCain," wrote the Washington Post's venerable David Broder. "The worst week of his campaign," added Clive Crook of the Financial Times.
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But Team McCain--now led by savvy Bush-Cheney veteran Steve Schmidt--may be a lot less idiotic than the chattering classes suspect. It's not just that the average polling gap between the Arizona senator and his rival from Illinois has narrowed to 2.6 percent in the wake of the latter's overseas adventure, or that 65 percent of voters say the trip left them with either a bad taste in their mouths or no opinion at all. (We predicted last week that Obama's jaunt would have little net impact.) It's that while Obama was abroad the campaign actually launched an crafty two-front ad strategy carefully calibrated to inflict maximum damage on the Dem with minimal backlash. The press may have been too focused on McCain's easily-mockable blunders to get the message. But we're willing to bet that swing voters weren't.

Here's how the strategy worked. Last week, the McCain camp released two ads. The first, "Pump," implicitly linked Obama's opposition to off-shore oil drilling--a stance that two-thirds of the country opposes--to skyrocketing gas prices. The second spot, "Troops," suggested that Obama canceled his visit to a German military hospital because "the Pentagon wouldn't allow him to bring cameras." Both claims were demonstrably false. I've already called McCain's "Troops" accusation "baseless." FactCheck.org says "Pump" is "absurd."

Sadly, however, a political ad doesn't have to be accurate to be effective. Just ask John Kerry.

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/stumper/archive/2008/07/30/mccain-s-savvy-ad-strategy.aspx

[rzemanfl]

1. I have no idea who Andrew Romano is, but he can go fuck

himself with a rusty exhaust pipe.

[quantass]

2. And tons of free air time ... a lot of LIV are listening that is for sure

based on polls...lets hope Obama and co. get the message and actually fight dirty too...
Now i miss Hillary and her dirty ways...i figure she would attack with equal lies against mccain.

Nice guys never finish first.

[Gabi Hayes]

3. gee....wonder how long before these 'journalists' will keep covering up the fact that

the FAT, repulsive PIG who's running the campaign now is a CLOSE ASSOCIATE and acolyte of Rove?






wonder why they 'forgot' to mention that?

I've seen two articles today dealing with the Schmidt ascension, and neither one mentioned Rove

the other one was in a WashPost blog

surprised?

http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/archives/2008/07/mccain_shakes_up_campaign_staff_again-2/

http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2008/07/mccain_campaign_shakeup.html

[crimsonblue]

4. WTF.. This article is full of blatant lies.

the polling gap decreased? How do you explain the 8% bump Obama got? Or that most people viewed the trip as successful? How could obama's trip possibly have benefited mcsame? Fucking worthless hack writer.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

5. Romano has steadily moved into the "Fox News Mindset"...

...it happened over time, but each new piece seemed to have a greater degree of spin than the one before it. He's definitely completed his journey over to the dark side.