By Sarah Scully
Much like the middle Brady Bunch daughter, John McCain can't seem to get any attention. Everyone is too busy noticing the many accomplishments of Barack Obama, who has taken on the role of Marsha Brady, the cheerleading, straight A, class president who sucks all the oxygen out of the room without even trying, leaving poor sister Jan ( a role previously played by Hillary Clinton) to lament: "Marsha, Marsha, Marsha!" Perhaps the McCain campaign hoped that they would get a shot at center stage with Marsha out of town but the media is as fixated as ever on the senator from Chicago, who has been virtually inaugurated with a trip that is being covered like an official presidential tour. McCain's got a plan for Iraq, new thoughts on the economy, he even makes a funny joke once in a while but all anyone can talk about is Barack, Barack, Barack!
The issue reached its nadir today when the New York Times rejected an op-ed McCain wrote in response to one the paper published by Obama last week (Reuters). The Times refuted the story, stating that they merely sent back the article for a rewrite but McCain's camp is crying foul.
He may feel like chopped liver now but there are a couple of reasons for John McCain to buck up: Being an underdog suits him. McCain was never as appealingly scrappy as when he made a running leap from the back of the polls to win the New Hampshire primary and blow past all the other, better funded candidates in the contests that followed. Obama may be the star of the show but that means very little time to rest and prepare for the fall. McCain has time to nap, as he told Conan O'Brien. Another bright spot to focus on is the recent news that McCain is more popular than Obama in Israel (Politico). Something also worth considering: Constant attention eventually leads to more scrutiny so presumably, Obama will get caught in another gaffe (though he seems to have sailed through previous ones remarkably unscathed) or, more likely, start seeing a backlash from the media, who may start to chafe at the lack of reciprocated attention. Even Marsha Brady has her bad days.

By Sarah Scully | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (2)

Tags: Barack Obama, coverage, Jan Brady, John McCain, Marsha Brady, media, New York Times, op-ed, underdog

By Sarah Scully

With Obama embarking on a global field trip and John McCain scrapping for some/any media attention, the weekend homework is sizable...
READ
-The actual article inside the controversial New Yorker about the starting point of Obama's political career, which is long enough to be a short book and as insightful about the power structure in Chicago as it is about the candidate.
-Pointing to a potentially nasty surprise for the Obama campaign as they venture into worlds where their candidate may not have the "rock star" popularity he enjoys elsewhere, Politico has a great piece explaining why McCain is favored in Israel.
-Peruse the foreign press reaction to Obama's trip abroad for a different approach than you are used to reading. Der Spiegel has an interesting interview with Nouri al-Maliki about his thoughts on withdrawal plans.

OBSERVE
-Pay close attention to the blossoming McCain Romney friendship as it might be an indicator in the VP selection. While it could be a red herring, the former rivals do seem to be spending more time together.
-Watch as McCain ramps up attacks on Obama with new negative ad.

PONDER
-Send us your thoughts on Al Gore's non-partisan Green Challenge.

By Sarah Scully | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (4)

Tags: Al Gore, attack ad, foreign press, Germany, Green Challenge, McCain, Obama, Romney

By Jim Shearer, Sarah Scully and Will Rabbe

The criteria for being a successful politician is pretty much the opposite of that for a musician: keeping your hair and dress neat, your nose clean, not saying controversial things, having no rhythm and perhaps most importantly, no visible groupies. As a result, the rare occasions when these two worlds intersect make for some highly entertaining moments...

1. Tricky Dick and The King (1970)
Elvis Presley meets with Richard Nixon in the White House. Elvis suggested that he be made a "Federal Agent-at-Large" in the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs and gave Nixon a Colt 45 pistol as a token of his admiration.

2. Folk You I Won't Do What You Tell Me (1960's)
Folk Music becomes a popular venue for political protest for Civil Rights and against the Vietnam War, most notably John Lennon's "Give Peace a Chance"

3. Willy Gets A View of D.C. From High Up (1980)
Willy Nelson smoked marijuana on roof of White House during a visit with Jimmy Carter.

By Sarah Scully in Lists | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (4)

Tags: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Betty Ford, Bruce Springsteen, Captain & Tenille, Dee Snyder, Dixie Chicks, Elvis, folk music, Hilary Clinton, Jimmy Carter, John Kerry, John Lennon, Kinky Freidman, marijuana, Muskrat Love, Nixon, P. Diddy, Ralph Nader, Ronald Reagan, Tammy Wynette, Texas, Willy Nelson

By Sarah Scully

In a commentary on how off-base some of the attacks on Barack Obama have been, the New Yorker put out a cover illustrating nearly every slanderous charge that has been leveled against the candidate. As a result, they have offended the candidate and invited censure from his supporters.
On the one hand, New Yorker readers are largely assumed to be highly educated, fairly liberal and appreciative of the Colbert-style sarcasm that the magazine was going for but on the other hand, it is a nationally circulated periodical that is displayed on grocery store racks in full view of the 12 percent who think Obama is Muslim (only 57% believe he is Christian).

Didn't David Remnick foresee this backlash? Did he hope that the Democrats would use this as an opportunity to emphasize how laughable the attacks on the Obama family's patriotism and background have been? Wouldn't that have been a better way to go for the Obama camp instead of contriving moral outrage and feigning incomprehension of irony or would it be too great of a political risk?

By Sarah Scully | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (6)

Tags: Democrats, Muslim, New Yorker, Obama, Remnick, sarcasm, satire

By Sarah Scully and William Rabbe

Every candidate makes mistakes every election cycle -- but in 2008, with the popularization of online video, they're more noticeable. The following is a list of the top 12 worst gaffes of 2008 (so far).

12. Lightning Strikes Rudy Giuliani

While Former Candidate Rudy Giuliani was explaining his pro-choice position on abortion, lightning strikes, disrupting the audio from his microphone. The lesson? Candidates should remember that God is always watching.

11. Barack Obama's Botches Tornado Death Toll Numbers

Barack Obama vastly over-stated the number of deaths resulting from tornados in Kansas, saying 10,000 people died. The reality: 12.

By William Rabbe in Lists | Link | 1 Comments | Recommended (5)

Tags: 12, 2008, Biden, bitter, candidates, Clinton, gaffe, Huckabee, McCain, Obama, remarks, top, worst

After having discussed Obama and Madonna last week, I now realize that maybe McCain and Madonna are closer than we think:

Sorry, this clip was too funny not to post.

By William Rabbe | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (5)

Tags: Dance, Madonna, McCain

Politics is, by nature, a game of smoke and mirrors. An entire industry has been created to manage image and control message yet the following documentaries offer up behind the scenes observations of the very machinery of elections, free of spin and full of fascinating insights.

1. PRIMARY (1960)

Robert Drew and a crew that included doc film legends Richard Leacock, Albert Maysles and D. A. Pennebaker set the precedent for political documentaries with this vérité look at the 1960 Democratic nomination battle between John F. Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey. Drew focuses on the critically important Wisconsin primary. Leacock's camera follows close behind each candidate as they traverse the state shaking hands, kissing babies and connecting to voters with dramatically contrasting styles (and theme songs). "Primary" is an intimate account from inside the innermost sanctum of not one, but two presidential campaigns and a rare archive of the origins of the Kennedy mystique. After screening the film for Kennedy, Drew was invited to continue to document the presidency by placing cameras in the oval office.

2. THE WAR ROOM (1993)

D. A. Penebaker and Chris Hegedus take us inside Bill Clinton's first presidential campaign, turning the tactical game of political strategy into a spectator sport. The filmmakers cleverly resolve the problem of having limited access to the candidate by focusing on the dynamic duo of chief strategist James Carville and media director George Stephanopoulos. The hyperactive Carville and erudite Stephanopoulos are compelling and surprisingly candid as they eagerly toil at anticipating and responding to George Bush's every move. Carville provides the greatest amusement, bounding around in jeans and LSU baseball hat, shouting now-classic catchphrases like: "It's the economy, stupid," all the while pursuing a relationship with the enemy, GOP operative Mary Matalin (now his wife).

By Sarah Scully | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (7)

But seriously, the last 2 days appear to have won the prize for "Most Quotable and/or Uncomfortable Moments Captured on Video in 2008" award.

By William Rabbe | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (6)

Tags: cut, internet, Jackson, Jesse, John, McCain, nuts, Obama, Uncomfortable, video, Youtube

By William Rabbe

Karl Rove's column today in the Wall Street journal might be his most insightful on strategy to date. He credits the Obama campaign for running a top-notch campaign (one that he says is modeled after the Bush-Cheney playbook -- maybe true) and points out something very important: that Obama reveals his cards too much.

For instance, the Obama team (as per my post on the "50 State Strategy") has stated that it wants to campaign in traditionally red states to force Candidate McCain to play defense. The idea is that McCain will have to waste money just to hold onto the electoral votes that were solidly for Bush in 00 and 04... how clever. And yes, reminiscent of Bush in 04 running strong in New Jersey.

But Master strategist Rove says, "Mr. Obama's people admit they want to sucker Mr. McCain into spending money. To be successful, a bluff must be credible."

So has Obama undermined the effectiveness of their tactic by advertising his strategy in advance? What would prevent McCain from saying in turn: "Senator Obama has said that the only reason he's campaigning in ____[insert red state here]____ is to, quote, 'make me waste money.' Now, if that's not disingeneous, I don't know what is!"?

Maybe the Obama team will hope (hope really really hard) that the McCain camp won't think to do this.

Or maybe it is a backwards reverse double bluff play, in which case the Obama team actually wants McCain's people to think that they really think that, and actually have something else up their sleeve. Stay tuned.

By William Rabbe | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (9)

Tags: 50 State Strategy, McCain, Obama, Rove, Strategy

By Sarah Scully and William Rabbe

Nixon learned of the power of television the hard way in 1960 -- unshaven and sweaty in the debate against John Kennedy, he appeared flustered and less fit for the Presidency than the handsome and charming Kennedy. Since the 1950's television has been the medium of choice for political advertising -- and as history shows, a good TV spot can be the decisive factor in any election. The following are our top 10 Presidential campaign ads of all time, based on creativity and effectiveness:

10. George H. W. Bush's "Tank" Ad, 1988

An instant classic, this George H. W. Bush's spot portrayed opponent Michael Dukakis as as hopelessly out touch on national defense. It mocked him by juxtaposing a goofy video of him riding a tank smiling with a serious narration about national security. Did I mention Dukakis is wearing a helmet?

9. Richard Nixon's "Honorable End in Vietnam" Ad, 1968

Richard Nixon had a "secret plan" to get America out of Vietnam in 1968 -- "peace with honor" would go on to become his buzz-phase for his '68 campaign. This ad effectively tied his Democratic opponent to the unsuccessful war in Vietnam and marked his political comeback.

By William Rabbe | Link | 0 Comments | Recommended (14)

Tags: 10, Ads, Campaign, Presidential, Spots, Television, Top, TV