Obama Camp Launches Massive Effort To Portray McCain As Out Of Touch
(CHESTER, Va.) The Obama campaign perked up yesterday when it learned that John McCain admitted in an interview with Politico that he was unsure of the number of homes he owns. "I think - I'll have my staff get to you," McCain said.
Those nine little words sprung the Obama campaign into frenzy. Less than 24 hours later, it released a national TV ad on cable, mobilized surrogates, and launched events in battleground states with titles such as "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: McCain Edition.:"
Potential Obama running mate, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, was the first to poke fun at the comments in a morning show interview. "He couldn't count high enough apparently to even know how many houses he owns," Kaine said of McCain on CNN.
At his first campaign stop of the day, Obama brought up the McCain gaffe just nine minutes into his speech. "If you don't' know how many houses you have, then it's not surprising that you might think the economy is fundamentally strong!" he said.
As he continued to mock and tease McCain, the Obama campaign sent press release after press release outlining its plan to seize the opportunity it feels the Republican has offered it.
Some highlights:
In Tampa: "Campaign for Change in Florida launched a statewide search to find Floridians who, like John McCain, have so many homes that they just can't keep track of the number."
In Michigan: "Campaign for Change offices across Michigan are launching a 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: McCain Edition' contest where volunteers will be able to win a free 'Exxon-McCain' bumper-sticker if they correctly guess the number of houses John McCain owns."
In Billings, Montana: "A local family will hold an availability in front of a house slated for foreclosure."
There's even an event in Anchorage, Alaska, a state where Obama has not been to, where local residents will hold a press avail to talk about McCain and his homes.
Could all of this be overkill?