mccain is suspending his campaign

[cacophony]

in order to "deal with the financial crisis" facing the nation. (http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/09/24/campaign.wrap/index.html)

now, i don't for an instant believe in his purported altruistic motives. so what's the strategy here? he's made this announcement and called on obama to do the same. so what is the risk to obama if he agrees? what if he doesn't? what is the risk to mccain for taking this action? can he benefit from such an unusual move?

i'm very curious to see how this plays out. this is such an unusual maneuver that i don't know where to begin analyzing the potential effect on the voting public.

[bas_I_am]

guess he was the one not ready from day 1, eh?

[cured]

I thought this would be obvious. McCain is slipping in the polls and most feel Obama is better prepared to handle the economy. By "putting country first" and going to Washington to solve the problem (notice his statement seem like he's the one calling the shots), he puts Obama in position to either agree and look like a follower or disagree and make Obama out to be a political opportunist who puts himself over his country's crisis. I just hope McCain doesn't then want to bump the remainder of the debates, including Palin's, because this one debate will have to move to Tuesday or so.

[Deckard]

Crikey.

Well.

Cured's take on it sounds pretty believable to me.

Yes people seem in agreement that the US is facing an historic crisis, but realistically... how much is McCain's suspension going to "help solve things"? I mean, come on! How necessary is that really?

If we're talking staff that genuinely need to be made available elsewhere to ACTUALLY help solve it, if we're talking McCain's personal expertise(..!!..) on economic matters required elsewhere, then fine, that's fair enough. But is that the case?

The Republican said it was time to "temporarily set politics aside" and focus on fixing the economy.

Question is, is he really setting politics aside?

Suddenly McCain's got himself plastered across the news, like some grand old leader, ordering - sorry, "calling on" - Obama to do the same. The Obama camp must be spitting blood at the moment.

They might see it as political opportunism, but they can't possibly say that or they'll be accused of playing politics themselves.

Will be interesting to hear Obama's response, and Bush's address later tonight.

[BeautifulBurnout]

Very sharp move indeed. He showed himself to be inept in his "the foundations of the economy are strong" statement last week. The first debates are coming up this Friday I believe - no way is Sarah Palin ready to take on Biden without coming a cropper. So yeah - political expediency 4tl.

This is the worst Presidential campaign I can remember for cheap below-the-belt shenanigans and it just ratcheted that up another notch or two.

[Sean]

Yeah, this is obviously a ploy to try to convince voters that:


1 - McCain puts America first despite choosing the most unqualified running mate imaginable just because she might be able to help him win

2 - McCain works across party lines as evidenced by his disingenuous reaching out to Obama to join him in this charade

3 - McCain has a handle on all this economy business even though he's done nothing to help avert our current crisis in his years of work in the government


And Obama's camp has responded very simply (http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/09/mccain-not-comm.html) by saying that "we can do both" in regards to helping solve the crisis and conducting debates, which I think is a perfect response. And the link also includes an interesting element to the timeline of events here:

An Obama campaign official told ABC News the Democratic presidential candidate called McCain this morning to suggest a joint statement of principles.

McCain called back this afternoon and suggested returning to Washington.

Sounds like McCain trying his hand at a bit of one-upsmanship to me.

And finally, it appears that the University of Mississippi has said the debate is still on (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26872907/).

[jOHN rODRIGUEZ]

Crikey.

Well.

Cured's take on it sounds pretty believable to me.

Yes people seem in agreement that the US is facing an historic crisis, but realistically... how much is McCain's suspension going to "help solve things"? I mean, come on! How necessary is that really?

If we're talking staff that genuinely need to be made available elsewhere to ACTUALLY help solve it, if we're talking McCain's personal expertise(..!!..) on economic matters required elsewhere, then fine, that's fair enough. But is that the case?



Question is, is he really setting politics aside?

Suddenly McCain's got himself plastered across the news, like some grand old leader, ordering - sorry, "calling on" - Obama to do the same. The Obama camp must be spitting blood at the moment.

They might see it as political opportunism, but they can't possibly say that or they'll be accused of playing politics themselves.

Will be interesting to hear Obama's response, and Bush's address later tonight.

I'm with you and cured on this. Then again cured, Biden brought this up before it was even reported: http://caffertyfile.blogs.cnn.com/2008/09/24/is-biden-an-asset-or-a-liability-for-obama/

I like how Biden doesn't sugarcoat the BS. Maybe if he delivered the BS wrapped in a big, bright, red bow it's be a bit snazzier, but hey, I think everyone's tired of the sugarcoating.

[nosajmunson]

Here's what kills me about this,

As read to me by my brother, over the phone, from yahoo news (so take that for what's it's worth.)

Obama called McCain early this morning and said something to the effect of "We need to put our campaigns aside and focus on this together, call me back".
6 hours go by, then McCain gets back in touch with Obama and says "Sure, sounds like a good idea. But let's also put off the debates."

Before Obama can get back to him with an answer, he makes this big statement to the press. And now, here we are.

Quite the little oportunist. Obama extended the olive branch and waited to hear back. Then McOldly takes advantage of it and goes public like its his idea.
I love Obama, but he needs to learn to fight. I'm not talking fighting dirty.
But this ain't no civilized boxing match in the ring. There are no gloves to take off.
This is a good old, knock down South Philly street fight.
(Think of that scene in OLDBOY where he fights them off in the hallway.)

Obama prides himself on being fair, which is why I dig the guy. But he needs to use some street smarts.
Don't give McCain anything because Johnny McOldballs is going to hit below the belt.

[cacophony]

I thought this would be obvious. McCain is slipping in the polls and most feel Obama is better prepared to handle the economy. By "putting country first" and going to Washington to solve the problem (notice his statement seem like he's the one calling the shots), he puts Obama in position to either agree and look like a follower or disagree and make Obama out to be a political opportunist who puts himself over his country's crisis. I just hope McCain doesn't then want to bump the remainder of the debates, including Palin's, because this one debate will have to move to Tuesday or so.

well this is obviously his strategy. my question is what we think the positive or negative results could be for each candidate.

so far the commentary i've read has been that people think the part about postponing the debate reveals an unwillingness to face obama face to face. but then, i don't know that i'm not just reading comments made by committed obama supporters who weren't likely to be shifted by this new tactic.

[gambit]

At first I was like, "What? McCain's calling it quits?" The term "suspending a campaign" is what I heard when people dropped out in the primaries.

Anyway, I agree with pretty much everyone here. Don't have much to add. I just remember yesterday when asked what he would do if his vote would stop the bailout proposal or not, McCain sidestepped the entire question. Quite the turn around here.

[nosajmunson]

well this is obviously his strategy. my question is what we think the positive or negative results could be for each candidate.

so far the commentary i've read has been that people think the part about postponing the debate reveals an unwillingness to face obama face to face. but then, i don't know that i'm not just reading comments made by committed obama supporters who weren't likely to be shifted by this new tactic.

Trying to be Objective here, so...

I think it is a good strategy for someone behind in the polls. It makes him look like a knight in shining armour to the people. It does give the impression that he may want to put off debating. But there are upsides/downsides for McCain.

It puts a lot of focus on the debates. If indeed they are postponed and a solution or decision is made in Washington about the Wall Street situation, McCain goes into the debates looking good. Whether he factored into the solution or not, he can then take claim to being the person who started whatever the fix is resulting in probably higher poll numbers going into the debates. But that means he has to do very, very well in the debates to keep riding this "assumed higher poll numbers". Debating has not been his strong suit in the past.

IF the debates are not postponed, it can be spun that he was willing to stop to address a serious issue on our economy and Obama was not. So again, McCain goes into the debates looking good, or at least better than end of last week. But again, if he does not do well in the debates, he could sink furhter in polls. Possibly the lowest point since he came up in the polls after the RNC.

Bottom Line:
It was a good political move, although it was not his idea. He used it to his advantage. Not quite dirty politics but close. Either way, he will have lots more spotlight on him then before. So this singles him out and puts him into a Put Up or Shut Up position that no one, not even Palin can help him with.

That's my take, long winded as it is.

[BeautifulBurnout]

Maybe this (http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/obama-surges-ahead-over-financial-crisis-941278.html) is what has brought on McCain's sudden enlightenment...:rolleyes:

[kagenaki koe]

another McCain flip flop. just a few hours/days ago he said he wouldn't vote on the crisis. and it also doesn't help that his campaign manager has been getting paid 15 grand a month by FreddieFannie even after they got bailed out. oh, and once again Johnny mac takes credit for something he had nothing to do with (ala the passing of the new GI Bill) for political gain

[cured]

Well Obama has given McCain some ammunition. Nobody who really knows anything about these two men would believe that their presence would get the Frank-Dodd bill get done any faster, or any of the other counter-proposals that will be offered. But Americans are stupid. They'll hear this nonsense about McCain putting his coutry first (I have no idea how he was going to inject himself into the discussion) and Obama only cares about his own TV vanity shots and speeches.

The thing is, this debate on Friday is about foreign policy when it would be more appropriate to discuss the economy.

[Sean]

Well Obama has given McCain some ammunition. Nobody who really knows anything about these two men would believe that their presence would get the Frank-Dodd bill get done any faster, or any of the other counter-proposals that will be offered. But Americans are stupid. They'll hear this nonsense about McCain putting his coutry first (I have no idea how he was going to inject himself into the discussion) and Obama only cares about his own TV vanity shots and speeches.

The thing is, this debate on Friday is about foreign policy when it would be more appropriate to discuss the economy.It depends on how the events are covered I think. Obama's response has been a strong one:

Obama also said he, McCain and other officials could address the crisis in a bipartisan fashion and still go on with the campaign, noting that multi-tasking comes with the office.

"It is going to be part of the president's job to deal with more than one thing at once," he noted.

If this response is given equal coverage, then it's kind of hard to (accurately) criticize his position.

[kagenaki koe]

Obama's move during this past week and a half is to actually not do a whole lot of moving. McCain on the other hand doesn't seem to have a plan other than throw shit to the wall and see what sticks.

[Deckard]

it can be spun that he was willing to stop to address a serious issue on our economy and Obama was not.
In answer to Cacophony's original question, the above is how I see this being received by the general public. Particularly if the financial situation worsens. Obama could easily be made to appear like the one who's playing politics in all this, who's "insensitive" and "disrespectful" to the severity of the current situation.

Certainly McCain is dominating the news sites at the moment, looking tough and leader-like.

Quick scan of the homepages main stories...

CNN: McCain puts campaign on hold to work on economy
(pic of McCain)

CBS: McCain Calls For Delaying Debate
(pic of McCain)

ABC: McCain Wants Debate Delayed for Econ. Crisis; Obama Responds, Says No
(pic of McCain and Obama)

Fox: McCain Halts Campaign Over Financial Crisis
(no pic)

MSNBC: Crisis engulfs debate politics
(pic of McCain)

BBC: US rivals at odds on debate delay
(pic of McCain)

If Obama and McCain get into a public feud over this, Obama is at a greater risk of losing the argument than McCain, because he can't possibly accuse McCain of using this situation to dodge the debate (if he did, he'd be bombarded by howls of sanctimonious 'How dare you', and that sort of response can carry a lot of weight).

[Deckard]

Good to see that already the BBC are making it known (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7634455.stm) how this is being handled.

The BBC's Kevin Connolly in Washington says Mr McCain billed his dramatic move as a gesture above party politics at a moment of national crisis.

But, our correspondent says, it was smart tactics too because it conveyed a sense that Mr McCain was taking the lead on an issue where so far voters appear to have been finding Barack Obama more convincing.

[kagenaki koe]

is being a general, showing leadership, being a man of action really all that great if one doesn't have a plan or clue on solving the issue at hand? it's like CHARGE! CHARGE! CHARGE! or DRILL BABY DRILL! all over again

[Deckard]

is being a general, showing leadership, being a man of action really all that great if one doesn't have a plan or clue on solving the issue at hand?

No.

And the more I'm reading, the less pessimistic I am about the way Obama will come out of this. Seems people are already speaking out.

From CNN
McCain announced the suspension of his campaign shortly after their conversation, Obama said, adding that both campaigns still were working on the joint statement.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-New York, said McCain's move was "just weird."

"We haven't heard hide nor hair of Sen. McCain in these negotiations," said Schumer, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee. "He has not been involved except for an occasional, unhelpful statement, sort of thrown from far away, and the last thing we need in these delicate negotiations is an injection of presidential politics."

And a good initial analysis from the Guardian's Michael Tomasky:

McCain's debate ploy (http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/michaeltomasky/2008/sep/24/johnmccain.uselections20083)

He sums up just how bad it was looking for McCain earlier today....

[Troy McClure]

McCain was scheduled to be on David Letterman tonight, but not anymore according to Letterman's site. This surprised me since McCain is such a starfucker.

Basically McCain's campaign the last few weeks could be compared to a chicken running around with its head cut off. I'm not sure that McCain's presence in DC matters to the debate over the bailout because up until last week he was always against regulation.

I believe Obama is right to say that the Friday debate should still be held. A President must be able to handle multiple big issues. The debate is supposed to be about foreign policy, but the economy will probably be a big chunk of the debate. What better way for McCain to explain his ideas to a large TV audience?

Jason

[Troy McClure]

Just found a few links on Huffington Post and Drudge Report about David Letterman's taping for tonight's show.

Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/24/john-mccain-cancels-lette_n_128998.html

Drudge: http://www.drudgereport.com/flash3cbm.htm


Letterman:
"In the middle of the taping Dave got word that McCain was, in fact just down the street being interviewed by Katie Couric. Dave even cut over to the live video of the interview, and said, "Hey Senator, can I give you a ride home?"
Earlier in the show, Dave kept saying, "You don't suspend your campaign. This doesn't smell right. This isn't the way a tested hero behaves." And he joked: "I think someone's putting something in his metamucil."

"He can't run the campaign because the economy is cratering? Fine, put in your second string quarterback, Sarah Palin. Where is she?"

"What are you going to do if you're elected and things get tough? Suspend being president? We've got a guy like that now!"


Jason

[kagenaki koe]

this is the visual i had in mind of McCain's stunt (44 seconds in):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7M8q4ABq98

"I'm a soldier man, i've been trained for combat...."

[Sean]

If Obama and McCain get into a public feud over this, Obama is at a greater risk of losing the argument than McCain, because he can't possibly accuse McCain of using this situation to dodge the debate (if he did, he'd be bombarded by howls of sanctimonious 'How dare you', and that sort of response can carry a lot of weight).Which is exactly why Obama will probably stick to his "being President will require multi-tasking, so we should be able to tackle the issue and still have a debate at the same time" argument. Don't accuse McCain of political posturing, just point out that he shouldn't have to suspend his campaign to deal with this if he's truly qualified for the job.

I've been unpleasantly shocked by how people react before, but I just feel like this is going to blow up in McCain's face a bit. It stinks of desperation. Although, case in point, so did his selection of Sarah Palin, and she brought him some additional support there for a while, so who knows?

And Troy McClure - you beat me to it. I was coming here to post the Letterman stuff. I can't wait to watch the show tonight....


EDIT - Hmmmm...and how convenient that this campaign suspension would also mean pushing the VP debates (http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/09/24/mccain-camp-to-propose-postponing-vp-debate/#comments) later. Does someone need a bit more time to study perhaps? :rolleyes:

[cured]

A grouping of Letterman clips from tonight can be seen ehre:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjkCrfylq-E

[jOHN rODRIGUEZ]

I wish they've discuss what to be done with me.

Just kidding. lol

[kagenaki koe]

Obama should just show him up by going to washington AND going to the debates.

[gambit]

Obama should just show him up by going to washington AND going to the debates.Yep, he's going to do that. He accepted Bush's invitation to come back to Washington tomorrow.

[cacophony]

my gut tells me that obama's response was perfect. the line about being able to multitask is not only correct, but it's a fantastic soundbite. and the rest of the democratic party have gotten very in-sync with their messaging, using the phrase "injecting presidential politics" whenever discussing mccain's maneuver.

it's so strange to see the democrats so well coordinated. staying on message is usually the party's weakness.

also, here's a transcript (http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/09/mccain-letterma.html) of david letterman's response to mccain's cancellation. but it's not the transcript i thought was interesting. what i found interesting were the comments at the end of the article. usually what you'd have is extremely defensive and polarized trolling, sort of the "my guy rulez, ur guy sux" variety. instead there are clearly republicans responding negatively to letterman's rant, but showing some doubts about mccain's actions at the same time. more than one, "i don't agree with what mccain did, but letterman should shut up" kind of statement.

makes me wonder what he's just done to his base's confidence.

[Deckard]

One of the great tragedies of this presidential campaign has been to watch in amazement as John McCain turns into a great big laughing stock before the world's eyes. It's like he's gone off the rails.

It will be an even greater tragedy if he somehow manages to pull of an election after all this bullshit.

[//\/\/]

ironic that the man who seems to have the weakest grasp of economics is using economic collapse as an excuse to get him out of a bigger mess (ie a foreign policy debate) - using a frying pan to get out of another frying pan.

and it must be pretty bad if he's setting himself up as the cavalry in all this!

[Sean]

Good thing McCain rushed off to the rescue. Looks like they've reached a consensus without him (http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D93DT26G0&show_article=1). Big surprise...:rolleyes:

[Deckard]

Ah great.

Now... about that debate.

McCain just needs to first shoot down that asteroid that's hurtling to earth.....

[testudo]

looks as if the delay tactic isn't going to work... Obama could wipe him out tomorrow!

[kagenaki koe]

chalk up another lie: McCain announced he was suspending his campaign, doesn't mean that his campaign actually stopped campaigning (his spokespeeps are still out there badmouthing Obama in the news and his tv ads are still playing)

[Sean]

Sorry, but this headline with this picture is just too funny (http://thepage.time.com/2008/09/25/mccain-on-the-hill-huddling-with-boehner/) to not share....

[BeautifulBurnout]

Sorry, but this headline with this picture is just too funny (http://thepage.time.com/2008/09/25/mccain-on-the-hill-huddling-with-boehner/) to not share....

Took me a while to get it.... but yeah! :D

What is he doing with his hand?

[Sean]

Took me a while to get it.... but yeah! :DIt's all in the name. "Boehner" indeed.:D

What is he doing with his hand?Yeah, that's a tight squeeze....

[Deckard]

Good thing McCain rushed off to the rescue. Looks like they've reached a consensus without him (http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D93DT26G0&show_article=1).
or maybe not

Economic bailout talks appear in disarray (http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/09/25/campaign.wrap/index.html)

Just hours after key U.S. lawmakers said they had reached agreement on a set of principles regarding the proposed $700 billion economic bailout, a high-level meeting at the White House apparently illustrated otherwise.

I'm sure everything will be ok by Saturday....

[Deckard]

It's all in the name. "Boehner" indeed.:D
And the link text below it:
'The Arizona Senator meets with the minority leader'

*snigger*

[jOHN rODRIGUEZ]

Did everyone think this was going to be settled overnight(metaphor)?

Takes just as long to clean up a mess as it took to make it. In the least as well. Time yourself after making dinner. Or something.

[Deckard]

Did everyone think this was going to be settled overnight(metaphor)?

Takes just as long to clean up a mess as it took to make it.
In that case, we're well and truly fucked!

I hear you though. Even when it's settled, it probably won't be "settled". All they're aiming for now is the quickest and least unacceptable way to restore confidence. (Which is not doing much for my confidence)

[kagenaki koe]

this is the only news i found interesting in McCain's Delta Force Rescue The Economy Mission 08:

Multiple sources said McCain didn't say much. Two Democratic leadership aides said he didn't speak until 43 minutes into the meeting

a more specific article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/25/at-white-house-mccain-pla_n_129438.html

The Republican candidate, according to sources with direct knowledge, sat quiet through most of the meeting, never offered specifics, and spoke only at the end to raise doubts about the rough compromise that the White House and congressional leaders were nearing.

McCain's reluctance to jump on board the bailout agreement could throw the entire week-long negotiation into a tailspin. Sen. Chris Dodd, after leaving the White House, suggested on CNN that the tenuous process could be derailed by what he viewed as McCain's political motives.

"What happened here, basically, if you want an honest appraisal of the thing, we have been spending a lot of time and I am tired. I have spent almost seven straight days at this in trying to come out with a workout plan for our economy a rescue plan," said Dodd. "What this looked like to me was a rescue plan for John McCain for two hours and took us away from the work we are trying to do today. Serious people trying to do serious work to come up with an answer."

According to the source with knowledge of the White House gathering -- which featured both presidential candidates, congressional leaders and the President -- virtually ever key figure in the room, save McCain and GOP Sen. Richard Shelby, were in agreement over a revised version of Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson's plan.

Towards the end, McCain finally spoke up, mentioning a counter-proposal that had been offered by some conservative House Republicans, which would suspend the capital gains tax for two years and provide tax incentives to encourage firms that buy up bad debt. McCain did not discuss specifics of the plan, though, and was non-committal about supporting it.

[gambit]

Well, thank jebus McCain showed up. Who knows what might've happened if he didn't ride in on his white horse.

[kagenaki koe]

saw this comment on huff, which describes the stunt perfectly:

To me, this looks like a situation where all the grown-ups are having a talk, and the archetypical obnoxious only child comes in, and tries to take control of the conversation...you know, using words that he doesn't understand, looking puffed up and important, and really, everyone is just rolling their eyes because the kid invited himself in...

[gambit]

McCain's going to the debate and the bailout didn't happen because of McCain. So....that's a net positive for him????

[kagenaki koe]

So....that's a net positive for him????

people who don't like Obama will point out that McCain is a man of action, while Obama is all talk no action, an empty suit (while clearly not seeing that McCain is all talk of action and no actual results to show for it)

edit: he's such a proactive man of action that he's already won the debate:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/26/ex-adviser-mccain-blinked_n_129611.html