John McCain Campaigns At Biker Rally

Republican Candidate Motors Into Sturgis, S.D., To Woo Blue Collar Voters

(AP)  Thousands of motorcyclists greeted Republican presidential candidate John McCain with an approving roar Monday as he sought blue-collar and heartland support by visiting a giant motorcycle rally.

"As you may know, not long ago a couple hundred thousand Berliners made a lot of noise for my opponent. I'll take the roar of 50,000 Harleys any day," McCain said, referring to Democrat Barack Obama's recent visit to the German capital.

Billed as the largest event of its kind in the world, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally has become something of an annual bikers' Woodstock during the past 70 years. It features nine nights of entertainment, with bands including Def Leppard, Lynyrd Skynyrd and REO Speedwagon.

McCain played to a crowd that paused for a veterans salute. He criticized Obama for supporting a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq while opposing efforts to reduce record-high energy prices.

"My opponent wants to set a date to come home. I want us to come home with victory and honor so we will never go back again," the Arizona senator said.

McCain also criticized Congress for adjourning for a five-week recess without approving a new energy plan.

"Tell em' to come back and get to work," McCain said, yelling into the microphone. "When I'm president of the United States, I'm not going to let them go on vacation. They're gonna become energy independent."

McCain was accompanied by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., who has been mentioned as a potential running mate. He had warned the McCain campaign that a politician might receive an unfriendly welcome, but McCain relished the warm embrace.

His wife, Cindy, also paid tribute to the crowd, saying: "I'd like to thank all of you for your support of our troops, and here's why: I'm many things in my life, and one thing I'd like to be is your first lady. But more importantly, I'm Jack McCain's mother and Jimmy McCain's mother, one in the U.S. Navy and another one in the Marine Corps, an Iraqi vet."

Taking back the microphone, McCain joked that he wanted her to enter the beauty contest held at the site, the Buffalo Chip campground on the edge of town.

"I told her with a little luck, she could be the only woman ever to serve as both the first lady and Miss Buffalo Chip," McCain quipped.

Before landing in South Dakota, McCain visited the National Label Co. in Lafayette Hill, Pa. The 97-year-old, family owned business makes labels for products from medicines such as Tylenol to shampoos in the Suave family.

There, McCain focused on energy policy, telling reporters he has outlined an "all-of-the-above" strategy and mocking Obama's suggestion last week for improving automobile mileage, saying: "We're not going to achieve energy independence by inflating our tires."

On Tuesday, McCain aims to underscore his call for expanded nuclear power in the U.S. by touring a nuclear power plant in the battleground state of Michigan. That trip comes a day after Obama laid out his energy vision in a speech, also in Michigan.

[actornaught]

Was that Cindy competing at the wet tee shirt contest? No, just somebody''s granny with a silicone leak...

[mitch5511]

McCain is really grasping at straws now! LOL Sturgis is party time where the booze is flowing strong. Do you honestly think bikers give a rip when it''s their time to party to even care about McCain''s rhetoric. Please...I know...I was there. LOLOLOLOL

[actornaught]

Posted by meanbiker at 10:08 AM : Aug 06, 2008

Gee, an elitist biker. I''m sure the people of Sturgis are doing fine without you.

I''ve slept in so many strange places on cross-country rides, golf courses, restrooms, girl''s dorms. It''s just me, i wouldn''t recommend it to anybody.

[actornaught]

...Obama WANTS us to continue to suffer at the pump
Posted by Minuteman-5 at 10:36 AM : Aug 06, 2008

Another lying fan of Lying John, who has nothing that will affect pump prices for about 10 years, and then it''s only by a few cents. Unless you want to cross your fingers and get all gramm-mental.

BO''s list of areas to address are all, except for limited drilling, much faster acting than ANY drilling.

You Drill Wonks are just full of CR@P.

[minuteman-5]

Posted by meanbiker at 10:08 AM

I hear you about the changes in the biking culture, but I for one am happy to see McCain talking in the front of bikers, while Obama gives speaches for European socialist non-voters......I still love his quote....

"a couple hundred thousand Berliners made a lot of noise for my opponent. I''ll take the roar of 50,000 Harleys any day,"

[minuteman-5]

Posted by starleo14672 at 10:15 AM

Big problem though, Paris made it very clear that Obama was against energy independence, against drilling.....that will hurt him big time, Obama WANTS us to continue to suffer at the pump

[starleo146]

Mccain is such a moron. He looked totally pathetic. Like always Mccain stumbled on delivering his speech and mispronounced words. He sounded like a complete amature. Again Drilling and Iraq.

Posted by madkeyra2 at 02:12 AM : Aug 06, 2008
+ r

It was the same look and smirk he had while walking down the street of Baghdad saying see it is safe I am shopping just like the Iraq''s and a he had a batallion of our troops on the ground and in the air protecting him. Now I ask you can you believe a man that would do this, all we heard from him in this campaign was Iraq, 100yrs, to achieve victory, if that is what it takes, and Barack goes there, and convinced Maliki 16 months is all he is going to get, now Mc Same says we can leave, and Bush says it too . A vote for Mc Same is a vote for the Bush policies

[starleo146]

I just wish these anti Barack books coming out to make a buck off Barack (republican authors by the way) I wish Barack would sue them, and stop this stuff I hate this part of politics whereby you have to destroy a persons character to win a campaign. Let Rove and all his henchmen go to prison for not appearing in a judiciary hearing, and he better worry about himself instead of trying to destroy an American that wants to change politics as it is today.

[starleo146]

Anyone see Paris Hilton''''s rebuttal to mccain''''s ad about Obama being a celebrity. It is awesome.

Posted by armydog2 at 08:10 AM : Aug 06, 2008


Yes she showed she isn''t the ditsey blonde he hoped it would play into Barack''s campaign, good for her to come up with an add that shoves it back in the white haired crinkly mans face.

[meanbiker]

Barack Hussein Obama can''t go to Sturgis.. Someone would mistake him for a primary belt..


Sad thing is that Sturgis use to be a good place to go.. but now days it is packed with want to be bikes.. people who trailer their bikes because they don''t know what a motorcycle was made for.. RIDING.. The journey is the best part of the trip.. I''ve had more fun meeting people while I''m broke down then I did after I got there.. (old days back when Harley rattled apart, Thankfully that has changed) Another down side about Sturgis it has become all about $$$$ so I can see where the campaign trail might lead to Sturgis..

[taotxzen]

The Scum Also Rises

Britney-boating Republican scum festival is more embarrassing than devastating, but that doesn''t make it any less intolerable.

Posted by Joe Klein, TIME

Eugene Robinson nails it today on the quadrennial Republican scum festival that begins in August of every presidential election year. It seems to me that Britney-boating isn''t going to be as lethal to Obama as swift-boating was to Kerry--indeed, it is more embarrassing than devastating--but that doesn''t make it any less intolerable. I mean, we''ve got two wars, an energy crisis, an economy teetering on the edge of real serious trouble--and this is the campaign John McCain wants to run?

I know, I know, it''s all part of politics. And Obama is probably going to have to get down in the gutter with McCain. But it''''s pretty depressing, all the same.

[taotxzen]

Newt Gingrich has the Rove playbook down on Obama

By: John Amato @ 10:00 AM - PDT

Here%u2019s Hannity and Newt trying to frame Obama into the neat little narrative Rove has created for him.

Gingrich: Narcissistic, stunningly arrogant%u2014need, daring, stunning, full of himself, out of touch, he%u2019s floating 25 feet above the ground, take a week off and get back in touch with reality, sounding goofy%u2026

And so it goes. Newt has the playbook down. Hannity can certainly take everything Obama says out of context like the best of them.

(cont)

[taotxzen]

(cont)

The intent of all these false accusations is to raise doubt about the candidate. See the Karl Rove playbook - when you have no record to run on start making baseless accusations of your opponent - see also character assassination. If a person is uninformed these statements create doubts about the candidate and they are more likely to support the familiar, "more of the same" candidate; that is why they say negative ads work.

But are they working this time?

Defying expectations, low-wage workers prefer Obama
By: Steve Benen @ 11:00 AM - PDT

For quite a while, there were certain trends that political observers were simply supposed to accept as fact: Barack Obama would struggle to win support from Latino voters. And Jewish voters. And working-class, low-income voters. These were obvious %u201Ctruths%u201D that %u201Ceveryone%u201D knew.

(cont)

[taotxzen]

(cont)

Except none of these observations are holding up well. Obama is doing very well with Latino voters, Jewish voters, and according to a new Washington Post report, working-class, low-income voters.

Democratic Sen. Barack Obama holds a 2 to 1 edge over Republican Sen. John McCain among the nation%u2019s low-wage workers.

Obama%u2019s advantage is attributable largely to overwhelming support from two traditional Democratic constituencies: African Americans and Hispanics. But even among white workers %u2014 a group of voters that has been targeted by both parties as a key to victory in November %u2014 Obama leads McCain by 10 percentage points, 47 percent to 37 percent, and has the advantage as the more empathetic candidate.

Let%u2019s not brush past this point too quickly %u2014 among low-income whites, Obama leads McCain by 10. To be sure, about one in six of the white workers remains uncommitted, but at least for now, Obama seems to have a sizable lead with a constituency that was rumored to be a lost cause up until fairly recently.

Hence the stepped up *Obama is an elitist* smear from Rove and friends.

[armydog2]

Anyone see Paris Hilton''s rebuttal to mccain''s ad about Obama being a celebrity. It is awesome.

[armydog2]

Did Cindy compete in the topless beaty contest like john wanted her to. Good ole christian values right John.

[ptsdveteran]

www.vietnamveteransagainstjohnmccain.com

[ptsdveteran]

vietnamveteransagainstjohnmccain.com

[lordmi]

McBush, You are funny: when Obama creates crouds, waiting FOR HI*M, You are running after the croud to show up there, even nobody cares about who You are.
Wanyed to sell Your top-less wife,Old Idiot?

[nextgenman]

Posted by johnbush2 at 02:44 AM : Aug 06, 2008
------

Yawn. You posted this everywhere. Get new material.

The McLiverspot Campaign HQ is really getting desperate.