"Fox & Friends" agree McCain's housing gaffe a big deal, still try to cover for him
By SilentPatriot Thursday Aug 21, 2008 8:00pm
John McCain should realize he's in serious trouble when even the dupes at "Fox & Friends" are willing to admit that he messed up big time with his housing gaffe. Although Gretchen Carlson and the rest of the crew do their best to cover for McCain by saying, "You need to have gazillions to become president" and "You have to be an elitist to some extent to become president of our country," the overall consensus is that this will come back to haunt McCain.
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Download | play (h/t David Edwards)
The Obama campaign could not have played this better. By injecting into the mainstream dialogue the idea that McCain is really the one out of touch with average Americans, he not only deflects that false characterization off of him, but he also gives the media a reason to make the connection and push the meme every time McCain acts "elitist" (e.g. $520 Ferragamo loafers, Cindy's private planes). The fact that the McCain campaign responded with the Ayers/Rezko/Wright/POW kitchen sink says a lot about how damaging they perceive this attack to be. Brilliant.
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McMansion(s) sums him up really
McCindy and McSame, slumming in a condo here there and every where, or in a McMansion.
But have to love how the FAUX people cover for McSame for not knowing how his wife makes money, buying or selling, but Obama is supposed to know how or what someone else is making money selling plots?
Hypocrite much?
Give it up, John, you're NOT going to get a job in the Fox News control room.
I still can't get past those $500 shoes he wears.
this time it's because his wife makes a lot of money, not a "senior moment"?
"The fact that the McCain campaign responded with the Ayers/Rezko/Wright/POW kitchen sink says a lot about how damaging they perceive this attack to be."
Should be noted that this isn't an attack. This is only reiterating what McCain stated. I don't see any attack in this at all. McCain is ridiculously loaded and can't be bothered to know how many dwellings he owns. He simply isn't in line with the majority of America.
That said, this whole debacle is only damaging to McCain because he and his camp tried to play Obama out of touch with America. If they never attempted that angle, this wouldn't even matter. But it was played and it was stated, so, have at it.
By injecting into the mainstream dialogue the idea that McCain is really the one out of touch with average Americans, he not only deflects that false characterization off of him, but he also gives the media a reason to make the connection every time McCain acts “elitist.” The fact that the McCain campaign responded with the Ayers/Rezko/Wright/POW kitchen sink says a lot about how damaging they perceive this attack to be. Brilliant.
Ain't it great?
Now the narrative must be broadened. Obama should make it clear to people that he's not picking on McCain because he's rich. Hell, we all should be so rich. In fact, it's not even so much that McCain is an elitist. It's that he's a LIAR. He's a POSER. He's trying to say, "I'm John McCain, and I'm one of you, whereas Obama is not." Why would you trust someone who says he's just like the ordinary American when he can't even remember how many mansions he owns?
Obama is a genuine person of faith. McCain actually converted during the race to attract a demographic! Obama has worked hard for the issues he believes in. McCain has changed every position he ever held dear whenever it was politically expedient, and tries to parlay such cynical opportunism into "maverickness." Obama's been against the war all along, and his plans to bring it to a responsible close have been endorsed by the Iraqis themselves. McCain...well.....McCain just wants us there for 100 years.
Obama: Judgment You Can Trust.
Babushka Blue @ 4:
FORGET THE SHOES! He spends $273 000 per year on SERVANTS! :D I think the 'shoes issue' just moved to the back of the cue.
>> You have to be an elitist to some extent to become president of our country
Well, THAT'S certainly a new tune coming from an old piano, but unfortunately it doesn't parse.
McCain's gaffe is not that he OWNS multiple houses, it's that he doesn't KNOW how many houses he owns.
There's nothing wrong with being wealthy, and if McCain was asked about ties or pairs of shoes or lucky dimes, it wouldn't matter.
But for someone running on the idea that they have the exceptional knowledge, experience and command of the facts required to get us out of the mess we're in to appear so clueless about a subject that even a relatively wealthy person should be able to at least ballpark undermines our confidence in him as a reliable leader.
Taken by itself, and with the proper "Cindy handles the finances" spin, this might be recoverable, but along with looking to stop "al-Qaeda-in-Iran" from finding a safehaven on the "Iraq-Pakistan border," this makes him look like he doesn't know what he's talking about.
Confidence that you know what the hell it is you're talking about is at a premium here.
You also have to love the way Steve Doocy tried to deflect the issue by saying "Why does Obama hate John McCain's SICK AUNT?"
Babushka Blue @ 4:
It seems quite outrageous to us average working wage slaves, but thats the norm in the world of the super rich.
In the stratified universe of the privileged, fortunate son/daughter(s) $500 shoes, $1000+ for an outfit is their day to day wear.
$100K cars to DWI drive and crash, then walk away giggling, multiple houses dotted around the country and the world, and legions of little people to satisfy their every whim.
They are the masters of the universe, we and our 401Ks, our CDOed mortgages their monopoly monies to gamble on the worlds stock markets.
They gamble, we suffer, they dont give a sh1t.
Welcome to the world of the Republicans, the enabling servants of the Über rich.
Senator John Sidney McCain the Third, the kept man of Cindy Lou.
What the bleep'n hell was up with that guy saying the houses were bought for his wife when she had a stroke, and other sick relatives?
JasonS @ 9:
Bingo! And that's the more broad narrative Obama should run. Who cares that he's rich? Good for him! But he's an incompetent bozo you can't trust!
JasonS @ 9:
McCain is a pre dementia Reagan wannabe, maybe in 2000 he would have been better than Chimpy,
2008 he misses the cerebral bus, now hes a liability and would spell doom for America.
Has anyone heard whether or not the Baptists in the South, who are Red State loyalists give a damn that the McCains get their money from big time sales of beer? That alone should encourage them to boycott the elections.
Pericles @ 8:
Oh come on fellers, His name is John Sidney McCain III and he wooed and won (while still married to the mother of his children) a young heiress who had a prenuptial because her daddy smelled a gold digger.
Let him have a few perks.
All I can say is anyone who watches that crap on Fox deserves what thaey get when they vote for Republicans.
I didn't find the ad so brilliant. They are missing the big hit with McCain the housing crisis. They should tie the remark by McCain that people with mortgage problems should skip their vacations to the McCains' purchase on the same day of a 2nd condo in the same building as one they already owned, because it was too small.
I like this line from the story .... "You have to be an elitist to some extent to become president of our country, ..."
Is that like ... "Yeah, he's an elitist, be he's our kind of elitist"
They need to find a way to disarm the McCain camp on Ayers, Rezko, Wright.
Beef Jerky @ 18:
But we do not deserve this jackass, so keep a positive thought for us!
McCain is running an ad here in Michigan blasting Obama not only for the house but for making $4,000,000 last year. It's hilarious because it comes just after McCain stated that you're rich if you make $5,000,000 or more a year. So according to McCain, Obama isn't rich! Hysterical. I haven't heard anyone bring this up yet.
not a big deal most Americans are naive enough OK dumb enough to think that maybe someday they will be that rich like mc cain.
it is a class struggle going on in America but few have the courage to admit to that for fear of being called a commie.
we Americans brag about our economic system as the best in the world while we borrow from communists, socialists, and kings and steal every penny from social security to keep it afloat. now that is dumb OK self righteous.
it will take years of corp and media fascism for most American to realize they are losing this class struggle to the have mores.
give the have mores credit they are twice as smart as the have nots formerly called the middle class. Reagan is their hero as he knew better than anyone how to eliminate the middle class. ie deregulation.
I mean create a war on a russian border two months before the election and create a perception of a threat from russia. pure genius better than anything I could have imagined.
the demos are no match for the repubs nancy and reid are proof of that. one is spineless ok both are spineless.
obama is out of his league they will eat him alive so to speak. rove is proving that week by week.
obama is yet to realize that this is a dumbed downed very conditioned capitalist society but the repubs know americans the very best.
obama is about to join gore and kerry in the loser column. they just dont get the demos they cannot be spineless and win the big ones.
it will be close up to the last two weeks then the repubs will unveil their white blonde woman and like ford in tenn then obama is toast.
VP candidate Romney is prepping an answer for the question "How many wives do you have?"
Isn't it wonderful to see these retards stumble all over something Ailes/Murdoch/Cheeney don't have an answer for....Just like fish in a barrel....KoolAide truck late???
LOL!!!!LOL!!!
lj @ 16:
I get the feeling you're joking. In any case, we shouldn't misunderstand what theocrats want. They really don't care if the person willing to build a theocracy is a hypocrite. First, a believer can be forgiven any sin. More importantly, though, as long as a candidate appears willing to transform the country into a Christian Republic, they don't really care if that candidate is himself a devout Christian.
Republicans have been falling all over themselves trying to talk up "John's money" vs. "Cindy's money" as a way to deflect this. She's not his girlfriend. They're married! It's THEIR money!
McCain doesn't even know which house his daughter lives in??? That's the dumbest argument I've ever heard. What a schmuck-up that guy is.
Can they please run Fox News on network TV and slot them right after Jerry Springer? At least it would make some sense!
Fox & Fiends! Three Monkeys and a teleprompter.
Thank Christ Bill Richardson isn't Obama's VP.
When Larry King asked about the timetable for withdrawel from Iraq, and who it benefits, Richardson took an eternity to answer the question. Basically your typical milqetoast response. Kay Baliey Hutchison, on the other hand, had her talking pints ready - the SURGE worked and Iraq is a success. King even cut Richardson off for giving a long-winded answer to who he thinks Obama will pick for VP. Usually I'd be pissed at an anchor. But in this case, King was right.
I'm now of the opinion that Richardson should serve as Energy Secretary, and instead pick Susan Rice or Hillary for State.
BTW, Lars Larsen is a dickhead.
ferrofluid @ 15:
Hear, hear! My dear neighbor friend, whose 71-year-old husband was diagnosed two years ago with Altzheimers, remains indignent the media remains in denial of McSame's near identical symptoms of the tragic condition her beloved husband exhibits.
PorridgeGun @ 31:
I was kinda hoping for Al Gore as Energy Secretary, though I know it probably won't happen.
Susan Rice would make a good Secretary of State.
I wouldn't mind Hillary Clinton as Secretary of Health and Human Services.
Whatever. I know I won't have any input into that. :)
It would be kinda cool, though, for Obama to start naming his cabinet now, though. Give the people a taste of what a good administration would look like.
That's rich from the goofs at Fox: now you "have to be" an elitist to run for president!
this is one gaffe that came around and bit him in the arse, cause he tried to pull the whole Obama is an "elitist" crap. well, lookie now, what comes around goes around and apparently it goes around in a lear jet.
It's only a big deal because McCain makes everything else a big deal.
That John McCain looks more like John Kerry everyday!
I can't wait for the Keating 5 ad!
Now I know what McCain meant when he said he was going to have an economic surge of the housing market. If the middle class gets to surge in Iraq, it is only fair that the rich get to have their own surge. What else should a tax break for the rich during a war be used for???
Wow, Steve Douchey is working soooo hard here to cover for McCain, he almost wets himself. "There's the house they bought while Cindy was recovering from a stroke...the one for the dying aunt..." Hey, Steve, you might not want to remind people about health-related catastrophes in this context, since most Americans with major health problems end up moving in with a family member--they can't just buy a new condo on the beach for their recovery.
this gaffe really is indefensible and anyone who tries is toying with whatever credibility they have left. the strategy is "let's forget the silliness and talk about issues". this from people who put the britney/paris ad.
obama should do variables of this until it's bled dry. it just cannot be defended.
lj @ 16:
Inbev a foreign brewing company no less.
This is really a silly issue. The man is a gigolo. He didn't make the money with which the houses were purchased. His wife runs the show there. I bet if Kerry (another gigolo) had been asked the same question back in 2004, he wouldn't have known either.
Let's concentrate on real issues here (which are sad enough in the case of both McCain and Obama). There are plenty of legitimate things to attack both candidates about. Whichever one of these jokers win, the country loses.
Just an idle question, why is Brian 'carbomb' Kilmeade still on US television and not in Gitmo where he belongs !?
Karen @ 33:
I think it would b great idea for Obama to make it clear to Hillary supporters he intends to have her serve an imprtant role in his administration (Attorney General, State would be ideal for her), especially after John Edwards literally screwed himself out of AG.
After Richardson's weak performance, I don't think he's got the chops for such a high-profile position. Nice guy, but no wonder he never registered in the debates.
BIDEN is now looking like a GOD.
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Must. Maintain. McCain. Image.
... In other words, the McMedia is on full press.
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[Deleted. Off topic. I'm pretty sure you know we've got a thread going on the general topic. But before you re-post the comment there, how do you know it's true? Do what you will. Thank you. Site Monitor]
I agree with comment #19...it most definitely should be tied to McMansions mortgage advice for people to 'skip their vacations'..yeah! this guy has the advice for all, but why didn't he also suggest they sell other properties, cut down on the 'ferragamo shoes', maybe up a plane or two,-also cut down on motorcades to Starbucks? I think he wasn't truly allowed to give all the examples that might have flitted by his mind while the mouth was in gear, and think about his 'phone accessibility' recently being reduced, his puppet masters definitely have their hands full, and cameras should definitely be allowed to view him from any angle during debates to prevent another 'mysterious triangle bulge' like that on Shrub's back during debates (tech stuff having advanced it will be harder to spot this time)..I am hopeful that electronically gifted people are assigned the task in of making sure that Mc'i was trying to hear-thru-thewall' is not in his own 'cone of silence' that feeds answers, talking points, and suggestions.
PorridgeGun @ 43:
Oh, I really don't want Biden as VeeP. I think Biden would make a decent Secretary of State, but I do not want him as my president . . . and thus, not as my Vice President.
I don't think Richardson's bad performance on Larry King one night is enough to disqualify him, but I don't think he's really in the running anyway.
I think it'd be kinda cool if Obama came out and gobsmacked everyone with a name people weren't predicting.
In any case, we'll probably know tomorrow night. At least, I hope so, so this speculation will finally stop.
[Hey, people, this is going astray. we've got a thread going for VP related discussions. Please take this conversation there. Thanks! Site Monitor]
JasonS @ 9:
Pericles @ 8:
For me and a lot more folks it is about the hypocrisy of calling Obama an elitist. McVerb,noun,POW is the definition of elitism. Not only does he have more money than he can count he does not even recognize who or what the middle class are.
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One name:
RALPH REED
nuff said!
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A man that doesn't even keep the budget of his own house wants to make the budget for the United States. That explains a lot about his tax and budget positions.
A man who can't keep track of his FAMILY houses wants to command the the largest armed forces in the world.
That's John McCain's Experience.
This is working out so well for Obama I bet he wishes that he could wait to announce his VP. I would bet dollars to doughnuts that Obama was redy to name the VP yesterday or maybe the day before but with this gold mine he just does not want it to end.
Did anybody catch Olbermann tonight? He took this thing and ran with it up one side and down the other. It was a very very good Olbermann tonight.
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"... even dating back to Lincoln Douglas..."
I didn't know that they had political commercials on T.V. back in the Lincoln - Douglas debates that featured little "cute" harp music.
Hummm...
The things one learns from FoxPravda and Friends.
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sorry off topic.
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Winston Smith @ 50:
But he always has Cindy to fall back on. Maybe she can explain to him the difference between the Shia and the Sunni.
fox and fiends - stay within the lines when you're colouring in.
Is Doocy not THE biggest snarkfest douchebag on TV, or what? He will do anything to cover for the Repub in question, no matter what.
OK, Joe Scarborough is pretty close.
Noun, verb, POW
I just cannot believe what the right wing are saying to try to cover for McPOW.
Steve Douchey, talking about how big he wishes his dick was.
Hey Steve, if Little Stevie were really THAT big, you'd pass out before he was ready.
PorridgeGun @ 45:
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This house comment is so good because it is a turd he will have to keep walking through every time he tries to use the elitist label on Obama. And all of their gymnastic justifications are just getting crap all over everything.
He doesn't know where his daughter lives now? That doesn't play well.
They could just buy a condo when his wife had a stroke? No wonder he doesn't care about health insurance.
The whole problem with McCain's campaign is that they can't even see the most obvious line of attack. McCain should have played this with the whole "I never could have attained 7 or 8 or 10 or 11 houses in any other country than America. I want to give all Americans the same opportunity that I have had. If you elect me, I'll try to let all of you get the same chances I have had." But, they are too stupid to spin this the right way. They have to attack BO as an elitist, egghead, out-of-touch with the average American. I know a hell of a lot more college professors and vegetarians than someone who owns more than 1 house. And I bet that the majority of voters are the same way.
cont.
I also feel like it is splattering shit on two of his assets. By trying to deflect the fallout from such an obviously out of touch gaffe of the uber-rich by saying "he had one address for 5 1/2 years... prison camp!" they dilute the value of his POW experience by making it apparent that they will play that card on any hand, and pretending that the response was an attack on Cindy, they make him look like he's hiding behind his wife's skirt. If a perception starts building of him being a kept man then she will start to become a liability.
Casus Belli @ 41:
Hey, thanks for your concern, troll.
PorridgeGun @ 31:
Thats far too big of a compliment for Lardhead Larsen.
"This one hit me like a brick in the face this morning..."
That might actually make it worthwhile watching the sycophantic ramblings of Fox & Friends, maybe.
Good times!
Obama hits the hardest he has yet with the most damaging "attack" on the most damaging of gaffs so far in the campaign ... on the same week/weekend when the news waits with baited breath for his VP pick *The most anticipated text message in history* Just before the Convention where he will speak in front of 70,000 people and give his speech of a lifetime.
All the while XOJ has to go into defense mode and do damage control.
Fantastic campaign! Wow this guy really is good.
Has XOJ been used yet? I thought that was rather clever myself ...
OMG, I feel stupid after watching that
No wonder there are so many morons in the United States with the low quality of tv you guys have. Fox and Friends is trash.
* Multi-Mansion McCain *
Bumperstickers anyone?
odanny @ 67:
Thats why I refuse to watch those assholes. I let everyone watch hehehe!
McCain got a bump in the polls by going nasty while Obama was on vacay, but now he is getting blowback. He forfeited the benefit of a doubt factor and opened up a reexamination of his own character issues. Obama is doing a nice job of responding, the media is begrudgingly paying some attention, and the smear machine is being put on the defensive.
If you are going to go to character smears, you'd better be able to deflect your own peccadillos. Bush could play the born again card to nullify his past; McCain has to live with the married again card getting played on him, and all the "kept man" plays that follow. And as the surrogates go increasingly shrill and racist (baby killer Antichrist!), the blowback will get even worse.
miss_kitty @ 58:
Steve Douchey has a dick? Now thats news!!
Jay Severin Has A Small Pen1s @ 36:
I sure hope the Democrats don't sleep on Multi-Mansion McCain and his Keating 5 membership!!!
Captain Bitter Whiner Hussein Kangaroo @ 48:
Of COURSE he knows who they are. Anybody who makes less than $5 million per year is middle class. Anybody who's just squeaking by on $1 million and below are the poor, and anybody who gets minimum wage, which probably adds up to a mere $200 000 or so...well they're all teenagers. You know...working at McDonalds for $100K or $200K per year, just to work their way through college and such.
Casus Belli @ 41:
Hahah! Yeah, here we go again, trying to shove the Overton window away from the obvious. "Oh come on now, McCain has eight mansions, Obama has one mansion. So they're obviously BOTH bad, and we should all vote for Ralph Nader."
They only call it class warfare when we fight back
McMansion apologist = Steve Douchebag
Someone posted on one of the blogs what I thought would be a great campaign ad. Since Cindy had McSame sign a prenuptial agreement it is obvious she doesn't trust him with her money....so why should we trust him with our country?
THey just did. The Repubs blew their wad on Rezco and Ayers just as Obama picks his Veep, guaranteeing any media coverage on the new Repub attack ads is buried.
threshingmachine @ 21:
Were those guys trying to help McCain?
Ouch!
I don't even own a home but I don't have 5 million just 1 million so I would be considered poor in McSame's head
What is failed to have gained traction is the $250,000 budget for servants in McCain's 7 houses. And the fact that three of the servants are illegals. This is why McCain won't address immigration issues. He doesn't want anyone brining to light his illegal hiring of illegal aliens.
Scroodge McDuck is living high with his jewel encrusted bedpans, lighting his cigars with $100 bills and wiping his ass with imported french toilet paper.
if Mayor McCheese wins this election we're all fucked!
Hell, I'm just an average working guy and I don't know exactly how many houses I own, either. It's either one or none, depending on whether Countrywide filed the foreclosure papers yet...
Couldn't get the sound to work, but the visual was creepy yet...informative. Just watching the pinched faces and beady nervous eyes of these sickf--ks told me all i needed to know. Its not hard to figure out which side of the force these Faust & Friends are on. Just put dark hooded cloaks on them and the look will be complete!
Wouldn't we all like to live on the amount the McBush's pay their servants! $273,000 a year. And he calls Obama "elite". John your "oldtimers" is showing again. It happens a lot to men and women that get to be 72 year old.
And to the person that mentioned that Cindy made ALL her money selling beer to alcoholics, the reich wing christians don't give a rat's ass as long as they say they are "saved". Which means they can do anything they want and Jesus will still save them, no matter what they do. War, lying, stealing, and cheating are all christian principles of the Republic party.
And anybody that watches Fox Entertainment gets just what they want, entertainment with no "news" factor. The people on Fox Entertainment will say or do anything to assure a republic party victory so fascism still rules Amerika.
As an infiltrating Libertarian/Conservative:
My take on this is McCain didn't answer the question because he didn't want to admit he had 7 or 8 houses. Ergo, he feels guilty for being rich, which is a characteristic of many Liberal/Leftists. He will lose support with his base for not defending his right to be rich.
I'm sure I'm not the first one to say this, but:
“You have to be an elitist to some extent to become president of our country,”
Oops
Maybe we should all vote for Obama.
Because you know how elitist he is. Him and those Applebee's Salad Bars. Geez.
I for one would not like to have a president who is apparently not well informed of what it is that he owns. I just can't help but wounder does he know how many sates he will be in charge of if he becomes president. Trick question Mc Cain: How many states does the U.S have???
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