Obama swats back at McCain
Posted on Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Democrat Barack Obama used his appearance Tuesday at a Veterans of Foreign Wars convention to attack Republican John McCain’s critique of him to the same group a day earlier, but he got a cooler reception than the Vietnam veteran did.
McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, continued to hammer his Democratic rival Tuesday. Posing atop an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, McCain charged that Obama lacks a realistic grasp of energy issues.
Obama, speaking in Orlando, Fla., denied McCain’s accusation that he favored failure in Iraq or that he was shifting his anti-war stance out of expediency or tailoring his foreign policy to win the presidency. “Let’s have a serious debate, and let’s debate our disagreements on the merits of policy, not personal attacks,” Obama said.
Obama said he wouldn’t attack McCain’s support for the Iraq war because “I believe that he genuinely wants to serve America’s national interest,” and “now it’s time for him to acknowledge that I want to do the same. I will let no one question my love of this country.” While first perceived as lower key in his response to recent Russian aggression against Georgia, Obama told the veterans Tuesday that “I reiterate my demand that Russia abide by the cease-fire” and “Russia must know that its actions will have consequences.” Saying that he supports aid to the nation of Georgia for rebuilding after the Russian invasion, Obama also invoked the name of “my friend Sen. Joe Biden” of Delaware, who just returned from a visit to Georgia and is calling for reconstruction aid. Biden is considered one of Obama’s possible running mates. Obama is expected to announce his choice soon, but it remains a secret for now.
Obama drew applause for his pledge to expand health-care coverage for veterans and for saying that he had “no greater priority” than routing al-Qaida and the Taliban in Afghanistan. He also said that McCain had been wrong to predict that U. S. troops would be greeted as liberators in Iraq and in other strategic judgments.
“For all of his talk about following Osama bin Laden to the gates of hell, Sen. McCain refused to join my call to take out bin Laden across the Afghan border. Instead, he spent years backing a dictator in Pakistan who failed to serve the interests of his own people,” Obama said, referring to former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, who resigned Monday.
McCain was the clear favorite among the predominantly older, white, male VFW crowd, and there was little indication that Obama’s speech changed minds. Fewer VFW members attended Obama’s remarks than heard Mc-Cain’s — at least partly because of heavy rain and tornado threats from Tropical Storm Fay.
Obama ended the day with a rally in Raleigh, N. C., where he tried to cast doubt on McCain’s reputation as a maverick, saying McCain voted with President Bush 90 percent of the time and was now adopting Bush’s political tactics. He also linked McCain to lobbyists and oil companies. OFFSHORE DRILLING SPARKS During his Monday visit to the Chevron Genesis oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico, McCain called for increased offshore drilling that he claims would lower the cost of food and heating homes.
He criticized Obama for not supporting such a plan.
“He says it won’t solve our problem and that it’s, quote, not real. He’s wrong, and the American people know it,” McCain told reporters.
McCain traveled 130 miles by helicopter to tour the massive facility, which produces 10, 000 gallons of oil a day.
Obama’s campaign, meanwhile, called the four-hour excursion a stunt. Obama supporter and former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack compared McCain’s position to the Beverly Hillbillies television program, where the main character, Jed Clampett, stumbles onto an oil gusher. McCain, he said, has “a Jed Clampett energy policy.” McCain and his aides believe that the pocketbook approach can connect with voters — and, in turn, suggest that Obama wants people to pay more for gas, food and heating. “Americans across our country are hurting, as we all know, because of the cost of energy,” McCain said aboard the rig. “Gas prices are through the roof. Energy costs have seeped into our grocery bills, making it more expensive to feed our families. Now as we prepare for the winter, it’s time for us to be more serious about our home heating oil needs.... And that means we need to start drilling offshore, at advanced oil rigs like this one.” Experts note that lifting the offshore drilling bans, even if accomplished early in a McCain presidency, would not produce oil for five to seven years. McCain himself acknowledged that drilling “will not solve this problem alone.” He also emphasized need for such other technologies as nuclear, wind and clean coal.
WESTERN SHOOTOUTS Americans have trekked West in search of riches for more than 150 years, and Obama is doing the same. He wants to win in McCain’s domain and is targeting fast-growing Nevada, Colorado and New Mexico while watching, likely in vain, for a potential opening in Arizona, the state his opponent represents in the Senate. “This region is very much in play,” said Brian Sanderoff, a nonpartisan pollster in Albuquerque, N. M. “The fact that McCain is a Westerner from a nearby state will be offset by the Democratic mood of the nation, thereby making the race really competitive in the West.” Tight polls and constant attention from both candidates attest to that little more than two months before the election.
Democrats dominate liberal coastal states, compete strongly in the swing-voting Midwest and typically cede the conservative South to Republicans. They have fiercely competed for the West in recent presidential elections, seemingly with little place else to turn to try to ramp up their electoral vote count.
They’ve had mixed success.
After decades of Republican dominance in presidential elections, Democrat Bill Clinton won Nevada, Colorado and New Mexico in back-to-back elections in the 1990 s with the help of independent candidate Ross Perot, though he lost Arizona. Democrat Al Gore won only New Mexico in 2000, and by a razor-thin margin, and Democrat John Kerry lost all four in 2004.
This year, for reasons both political and demographic, Obama has been pouring money and manpower into Nevada, Colorado and New Mexico as top targets to seize from Republicans in the Democrats’ bid to reach the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House. Combined, the three offer 19 votes.
McCain has a comfortable lead in Arizona polls, so for now the state is getting little attention. VICE PRESIDENTIAL LOTTERY Obama’s newly minted running mate will be hitting the trail with the Democratic hopeful Saturday.
A senior Obama adviser told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Tuesday that Obama and his choice for a vice presidential candidate will appear together in front of the former state Capitol in Illinois where Abraham Lincoln once served.
The last time Obama appeared there, early in 2007, he announced he was running for president.
The disclosure narrowed the window for Obama to reveal his running mate. The campaign says the announcement will come in a cell phone text message to supporters. The Obama campaign remained in a near blackout for information about his decision and the exact timing of the announcement.
Those believed to be on his short list also were keeping mum. Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, considered a possible choice, professed no inside knowledge of when word would come.
After speaking in Orlando, Obama headed off for a bus tour of North Carolina and Virginia to discuss economic issues through today, so his schedule remains open at the end of the week for an announcement. The Democratic National Convention is to begin Monday.
The list of potential running mates is widely believed to be down to four names: Sebelius, Biden, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine and Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh. Obama’s major rival for the nomination, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, was seen by some Democrats as a long shot. Information for this article was contributed by Margaret Talev, William Douglas and Rob Christensen of McClatchy Newspapers, Liz Sidoti, Kathleen Hennessey, Christopher Wills and Philip Elliott of The Associated Press.
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