McCain campaign exploits Black Hawk Down hero, continues dishonest smear
In May 2007, John McCain took to the floor of the Senate to deliver remarks about the politicization of the military that, at the time, sounded eminently sensible. “How can we possibly find honor in using the fate of our servicemen to score political advantage in Washington?” McCain asked. “There is no pride to be had in such efforts. We are at war, a hard and challenging war, and we do no service for the best of us — those who fight and risk all on our behalf — by playing politics with their service. How can we possibly find honor in using the fate of our servicemen to score political advantage in Washington?”
It’s hard to know if McCain meant a word of it at the time, or if he was just grandstanding, hoping to give his presidential campaign a little boost. Either way, his comments look especially hollow now.
The latest salvo: A statement from Michael J. Durant, the retired Army helicopter pilot who was shot down over Somalia in the incident that would later be made famous in the book and move, “Black Hawk Down.”
“Over the last week, Barack Obama made time in his busy schedule to hold a rally with 200,000 Germans in Berlin, hold a press conference with French President Nicholas Sarkozy in Paris, and hold a solo press conference in front of 10 Downing Street in London. The Obama campaign had also scheduled a visit with wounded U.S. troops at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, but this stop was canceled after it became clear that campaign staff, and the traveling press corps, would not be allowed to accompany Senator Obama.
“I’ve spent time at Ramstein recovering from wounds received in the service of my country, and I’m sure that Senator Obama could have made no better use of his time than to meet with our men and women in uniform there. That Barack Obama believes otherwise casts serious doubt on his judgment and calls into question his priorities.”
I’m not in a position to know how the McCain campaign deceived Durant into believing this nonsense, or why Durant would allow himself to be exploited by a dishonorable political campaign, desperate to disseminate demonstrable lies.
But like the disgusting new McCain campaign TV ad, today’s efforts to ratchet things up have three angles: the veracity (or lack thereof) of the message, what this tells us about McCain, and what this tells us about the state of the presidential race.
On the first, the message being distributed by the campaign is patently false, a reality the McCain gang is no doubt aware of.
The notion that the Pentagon’s nixing of press attendance had anything to do with the cancellation is a complete falsehood, for the reasons noted here and here.
Second, that McCain would want to take the campaign in this direction is just more evidence of the weakness of his character. Leaders with integrity simply wouldn’t conduct themselves in this fashion.
The Politico’s Jonathan Martin, a conservative, said “liberal elites” will “hate McCain for using” an attack like this, because they would prefer to see “the maverick McCain they once loved lose than win ugly against the new object of their affection.” Martin added, “Karl Rove and George W. Bush wouldn’t (and didn’t) care what these people thought about their tactics.”
Martin, I’m afraid, is badly missing the point. Anyone who takes the political process and intellectual honesty seriously should find dishonest campaign tactics offensive. This isn’t about “liberal elites” — a tired cliche — it’s about the McCain campaign trying to deliberately fool the public, and reporters lacking the courage to tell voters when McCain abandons his sense of decency. Rove and Bush didn’t care if their “tactics” undermined political norms or deceived a nation, but a) their effects on American politics were deeply malicious; and b) McCain isn’t supposed to be following in their twisted footsteps.
For Martin to argue that “liberal elites” don’t want McCain to “win ugly” is disappointing. “Win ugly” seems to be a euphemism for “deceiving a nation and getting away with it.” No one should want that, regardless of ideology.
And third, we’re reminded once again that McCain’s internal polling must show the campaign in bad shape. Exploiting a Black Hawk Down hero reeks of desperation.
The right wing smear machine is going into high gear. I just checked out “Snopes”.
27 e-mails concerning Obama, 3 for McCain. The majority of the Obamas were negative. I counter every malicious e-mail I receive but I don’t think it makes any difference with most of them.
I believe it is going to get very ugly. Thats all the McCain supporters have left.
Well I was going to vote for the pro-choice, anti-war, pro-economy candidate but hollow sentiments like meeting troops are so much more important.
McCain won me over. Screw making insurance companies cover my prescriptions. Meeting the wounded affects my life so much more.
if Hagel wants to show what he is made of, now would be a great time to endorse Obama in a big speech where he recounts his own military background, expresses disappointment in the tactics of his old friend John McCain, explains what he personally witnessed re Obama’s overseas trip, including the “injured soldiers” issue, and make a plug for Obama’s concern for the troops and his good judgment as a leader.
Not to take away from his service or to stand in the way of American capitalism; but exactly how much was Durant paid for this? Did he call up McCain and do this “public service” announcement gratis because of Obama’s insufferable behavior and his belief in the McCain message? Or does the McCain campaign have a corral of vets they will roll out periodically and pay to express their outrage?
FactCheck.org has (finally) done a takedown on the McCain ad, debunking not only the claim he wouldn’t visit sick soldiers, but also the shaky ground McCain is on when he says Obama only held one Afganistan hearing. Check it out, and forward any nay-sayers to the site.
Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC just denounced this ad as a complete lie when talking with McCain surropgate Sen. Burr of NC. She made no bones about it, said it was flatly untrue. I was stunned to see the media actually call an obvious lie as such, and even more stunned to see Mitchell, of all people, be the one to do it.
The “Obama wants to lose the war to win the election” assholery shook Joe Klein out of his slumber, too, so maybe there’s hope for the media yet.
Is John McCain running for President of the United States or President of the Military?
I think most people are more concerned over high gas and energy prices (wait until this winter), the mortgage crisis, out of control healthcare. The public wants out of Iraq. They’re not interested in John McCain playing army man. He needs to address the issues that are painfully affecting the american people. His current tactics are probably only scoring points with the Republican base.
…meanwhile, Barack Obama continues to be presidential.
The Obama campaign insists that it was clear in its communications with the Pentagon that the media was never going to go with Obama to Rammstein.
If that’s true, and it’s spelled out, then why not just release the correspondence? Are they worried this would make this lie into a bigger issue? Or get charged with politicizing the troops again?
Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC just denounced this ad as a complete lie when talking with McCain surropgate Sen. Burr of NC. She made no bones about it, said it was flatly untrue.
Wow.
Let’s hope that it’s not just a case of the stopped watch being right for once.
John Kerry, on what happened in 2004 and how this time will be different:
“So hard and so fast”, Mr. Kerry? Well I’m fucking waiting.
You know, something strange is happening in the media these days. McCain gets actually challenged by Stephanopoulos, Joe Klein smacks him, now Andrea Mitchell… next thing you know, AP is going to stop bringing him donuts! I say it’s because the weatherwanes out there know which way the wind is blowing after Obama is, as Frank Rich said, “becoming Acting President.” It’s kind of sad, really, especially since they’re such a rusty, creaking weatherwane: most of us knew which way the wind was blowing, oh, months ago.
psst hey TR … c’mere for a fucking second will ya?! Hope for the media for getting something right, you say?! Remember the typing monkeys of the string theory fame about probabilities …. Being right to them is nothing, being wrong is nothing either long as there is ink on the pages they could not care less what the letters say in the long run … long as they get paid and they sell papers …. only you can know your truth, so fuck them all ….
It looks like McCain will do anything to win. Except exhibit a sensible policy on anything besides smearing his opponent.
There was an interesting diary up on DailyKos earlier today that dealt with some background on the ‘won’t visit the troops’ bs.
Turns out the point man was one Robert Wilkie, a former aide to Sens Helms and Lott, served in the Bush WH, and was once political director for the SC repubs.
You have to wonder if he was trying to trip up Obama on his own or if it was in concert with the McSame campaign.
Let’s hope that it’s not just a case of the stopped watch being right for once.
Mitchell seems to be digging in her heels on this. She reported it a couple days back, and is now ramping up the indignation (rightfully so) as the McCain camp presses the case. She was on the trip with Obama, knows it’s a lie and can’t be spun off it, and is pissed off that they’re pushing it.
Personally, I think we might be seeing a jilted-lover reaction from the press. As they see him simultaneously whining about their coverage and acting like a Rovian asshole, maybe they’re realizing how they’d been duped all these years by his Maverick schtick.
But, yeah, if Mitchell, Klein and Steph. are all discovering their spines, something big is happening with the conventional wisdom.
Jonathan Martin wouldn’t care if the elections were stolen by McCain…ugly tactics be damned…who cares as long as they win. Lie, steal, cheat…who cares what liberal elites think. Liberal elites must equate to the majority of Americans who have decided that character and integrity are all important in a presidential candidate. The Politico is a cesspool of ugliness and conservative water carriers and McCain falls right into that category using fear and hate and lies to degrade liberals.
Every election is the same with these cons. Liberals are always portrayed as those who hate America, are weak and “elitists”. The hypocrisy is stunning. Coming from a candidate with 8 mansions who is still milking the government tit for $58k/yr as totally disabled.
They attack because that is all they have …no policies…just hate. Most of us are so tired of their vileness we could puke. McCain deserves no respect, demonstrates his total lack of character and integrity on a daily basis and isn’t even a viable presidential candidate based solely on his inability to understand the major issues of the day or keep them straight. He’s totally against the politics of common ground and sees the presidency as dictatorial. He knows best on Iraq/Iran…best on economics…best on energy but has no plan or policy basing everything on conditions on the ground (in other words…whatever I think at the time). Anyone who disagrees with McCain is wrong and he can never be though he “pretends” to be wrong a lot of the time.
McCain…not only wrong on everything…but has a vile character totally lacking integrity.
CB:
Rove and Bush didn’t care if their “tactics” undermined political norms or deceived a nation, but a) their effects on American politics were deeply malicious…
Absolutely.
Tearing the nation in half was Rove’s method of operation: Divide and conquer. Create a America that hates its other half.
This is just more of the same. It is an absolute disaster for the country. A divided nation will not stand.
The only reason anyone has ever heard of Durant is because two Army snipers earned Medals of Honor trying to save him. LINK Both men died trying to save Durant. It is disgusting that he would use that celebrity to lie about Obama. You have no class Mr. Durant.
“Personally, I think we might be seeing a jilted-lover reaction from the press.”
I think what were seeing is something even Karl Rove can’t manipulate: sharks smelling blood in the water. Let’s face it, McCains campaign is a disaster from top to bottom. He’s zigged and zagged all over the place switch positions seemily at random, he’s come accross as confused and ill informed. His negative tactics are personal on a very creepy level. The press loves nothing so much as a disaster. They may have kissed his wrinkled old ass up till now, but something tells me, in the end, they’re not going to let this circus get away.
Here’s to spinedome! Obviously Senator McCain is a liar, he would rather lose a war to lose an election? How does that go again? Hmm.. Anyhoo, it sounds as though I may have been too harsh a critic with AM. Time will tell.
Durant owes his life to the heroic effort of two snipers who paid their last full measure of sacrifice so that Durant would live. Durant was accorded hero status because he survived a horrific ordeal in Somalia while serving his country. I was heartbroken by Durant’s statements regarding Obama’s cancelled visit to our wounded veterans. I urge Durant to salvage his hard earned valor and integrity by recanting his statement.
We should have been expecting it to get ugly all along; I know I was.
It is time to turn Bill and Hillary loose on them.
I want to see the McCain response to this bit of news:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_world/2008/07/27/2008-07-27_injured_vets_tell_pull_dick_cheney_invit.html
Cheney’s draconian security demands to appear in front of wounded soldiers…in the U.S.A.!
-” Vice President Cheney’s invitation to address wounded combat veterans next month has been yanked because the group felt his security demands were Draconian and unreasonable.” From the Daily News Washington Bureau.
I am committed to Oneness through Justice and Transformation
peace,
st john
“Win ugly” seems to be a euphemism for “deceiving a nation and getting away with it.”
Apparently, this is an attribute Jonathan Martin wants to see in a president. How’s that working out with Rove, Bush, Cheney and DeLay?
Is John McCain running for President of the United States or President of the Military? — SaintZak @ 7
There’s no difference anymore among conservatives.
Please read the article about McCain from the ex chief of the medical treatment of wounded veterans at Ramstein, it is on Daily Kos, it really debunks everything McCain has said about Obama.