McCain Reaches Out To Clinton Supporters, Promises to Appoint More Women in Government

From CBS News’ John Bentley:

WASHINGTON -- Attempting to reach out to Democratic voters, independents, and especially Hillary Clinton supporters, John McCain held a town hall meeting via conference call today where he praised Clinton’s work and her campaign. “Every place I go, I’m told Sen. Clinton inspired millions of young women in this country, and not necessarily young women, inspired a whole generation of young Americans,” McCain said. “I do especially admire the fact that when Sen. Clinton came to the United States Senate, her first efforts were on working together, Republican and Democrat, particularly on the Armed Services Committee, on issues that would first of all help the men and women who are serving this country.”

The actual town hall had an unusual set up. No members of the media were allowed into the room where the town hall was held, but instead had to dial in on a conference call. Members of the audience were comprised of members of “Citizens for McCain,” which is a grassroots group made up of Democrats and independents, according to the campaign. Supporters were also invited to call in and ask questions.

The majority – 10 out of 12 – of the questions were from women. “Lynette” called in and complained that women were “underrepresented in every branch of government,” to which McCain vowed to appoint more if he is elected president. “I want to assure you with confidence, at the end of my first term, you will see a dramatic increase in the amount of women in every part of government in my administration,” he said.

But there’s a lot more outreach the campaign needs to do, according to the latest poll numbers. Barack Obama is leading McCain by 13 percentage points among women, which is up from the five point lead he had just before Clinton dropped out, according to Gallup polls released this past week.