Jul 24 2008
Gaffe machines in full force on both sides, but McCain getting all the flak
The network newscasts were all abuzz this morning, repeatedly asking the question ‘what does it mean that John McCain said Iraq and Afghanistan share a border?’ They were trying to poke around the age question. Obviously, it was a verbal mistake, just like when McCain made a mistake labeling the Shia and the Sunni in Iraq, just like when he said Somalia when he intended to say Sudan. Mistakes happen when you’re talking 15 hours a day.
But looking at the media’s reaction, you wouldn’t think these were just mistakes. The headlines have been brutal:
“McCain gaffes pile up” - CBS
“McCain masters Bush-speak” - World Net Daily
“McCain’s verbal gaffes putting age at forefront” - San Diego Union-Tribune
The last headline makes it clear why McCain, and not Obama, is getting so much scrutiny on gaffes. The media likes to remind people how “old and confused” McCain must be.
They fail to point out the numerous gaffes made by Senator Obama, like when he claimed he had been to all 57 states, or claimed he was on the Senate Banking Committee (when he isn’t) or claimed “Israel is a strong friend of Israel’s,” or claimed that more Arab translators were needed in Afghanistan (even though they don’t speak Arabic in Afghanistan).
The fact of the matter is, these gaffes happen on both sides. While they are great to poke fun at, that’s all they should be. Now, if Senator McCain walked into an interview wearing diapers, or forgot his name in an interview, or forgot where he was at, then I could see the need for the age question to arise. But each candidate is going to make mistakes. After all of Senator Obama’s gaffes, when will the media start to use the ’code words’ they are using on Senator McCain and call him ‘confused’ or accuse him of ‘losing his bearings?’
Furthermore, McCain is more likely to make the gaffes, because he very rarely speaks from a teleprompter. He is always doing town hall Q&A sessions. Obama, on the other hand, almost always speaks from a teleprompter, thus limiting gaffes. That’s why the Presidential debates this fall are going to be so interesting to watch.
What do you think? Do you care about the gaffes each candidate makes?
(2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
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Not as much as I care about what they say repeatedly, which then becomes part of their policy. You can do a search for Obama’s gaffes online and come up with plenty of articles and videos. McCain is not getting blasted more than Obama on this, but it may seem that way to someone who prefers McCain over Obama. Obama supporters would probably say the opposite.
Since McCain has made so many gaffes, maybe he *should* use a teleprompter more often. If there is a huge discrepancy between McCain and Obama in being able to answer questions without a teleprompter, it will become evident very quickly during the debates. Both seemed to do fine in previously, including the YouTube debates, so I doubt it will be a problem. Obama does stammer a lot, though, which can be annoying. Some people are calling him Uh-bama because he says “uh” so often.
McCain does need to watch his temper, though. He’s getting a lot of criticism for saying Obama would lose a war to win an election, and he deserves it. Several of his colleagues have already said he would not be a good president because of his temper, and yet he says we need to be more diplomatic and inclusive. He’s not off to a good start.
Lynn, come on. McCain is getting blasted more. When Obama does it, its just considered a mistake, or a verbal slip. When McCain does it, its because he’s old and “confused.” Have you seen any story on the nightly news about Obama’s slips? I haven’t. But I have seen McCain stories, and they are always tied to his age.
And Lynn, about his apparent “temper” - have you been hanging out with him recently? Did he yell at you? Lets be clear about his “apparent” temper… there are people ALLEGING that. And McCain has every right to say Obama would lose a war to win an election. That’s what McCain believes because of Obama’s votes and statements. Why is that all of a sudden an insight to his “temper?” When Obama says McCain would follow “four more years of George W. Bush’s disasterous policies” is it because of Obama’s temper?
According to a report just out today, McCain is the one getting a pass from the press. I’m sure you’ve seen it by now.
McCain is old, but not confused. I don’t agree with his politics, but there’s nothing wrong with his mind. People should not use his age against him; it’s wrong and meaningless.
What kind of question is that: “Did he yell at you?” ?!?!! So, if he doesn’t “yell at” every American citizen, he doesn’t have an uncontrollable temper?
About his temper: it speaks to his character. He said he was going to run a “civil” campaign, but he isn’t. His temper is well-known, and here are some examples (an awful lot of “alleging”, wouldn’t you say?):
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Former senator Bob Smith, a New Hampshire Republican, expresses worries about McCain: “His temper would place this country at risk in international affairs, and the world perhaps in danger. In my mind, it should disqualify him.”
John McCain’s top ten temper explosions
1) Defending His Amnesty Bill, Sen. McCain Lost His Temper And “Screamed, ‘F*ck You!’ At Texas Sen. John Cornyn” (R-TX). “Presidential hopeful John McCain - who has been dogged for years by questions about his volcanic temper - erupted in an angry, profanity-laced tirade at a fellow Republican senator, sources told The Post yesterday. In a heated dispute over immigration-law overhaul, McCain screamed, ‘F— you!’ at Texas Sen. John Cornyn, who had been raising concerns about the legislation. ‘This is chickens—stuff,’ McCain snapped at Cornyn, according to several people in the room off the Senate floor Thursday. ‘You’ve always been against this bill, and you’re just trying to derail it.’” (Charles Hurt, “Raising McCain,” New York Post, 5/19/07)
2) In 2000, Sen. McCain Ran An Attack Ad Comparing Then-Gov. George W. Bush To Bill Clinton. SEN. MCCAIN: “I guess it was bound to happen. Governor Bush’s campaign is getting desperate, with a negative ad about me. The fact is, I’ll use the surplus money to fix Social Security, cut your taxes and pay down the debt. Governor Bush uses all of the surplus for tax cuts, with not one new penny for Social Security or the debt. His ad twists the truth like Clinton. We’re all pretty tired of that. As president, I’ll be conservative and always tell you the truth. No matter what.” (McCain 2000, Campaign Ad, 2/9/00; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHoXkCprdL4)
3) Sen. McCain Repeatedly Called Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) An “A**hole”, Causing A Fellow GOP Senator To Say, “I Didn’t Want This Guy Anywhere Near A Trigger.” “Why can’t McCain win the votes of his own colleagues? To explain, a Republican senator tells this story: at a GOP meeting last fall, McCain erupted out of the blue at the respected Budget Committee chairman, Pete Domenici, saying, ‘Only an a–hole would put together a budget like this.’ Offended, Domenici stood up and gave a dignified, restrained speech about how in all his years in the Senate, through many heated debates, no one had ever called him that. Another senator might have taken the moment to check his temper. But McCain went on: ‘I wouldn’t call you an a–hole unless you really were an a–hole.’ The Republican senator witnessing the scene had considered supporting McCain for president, but changed his mind. ‘I decided,’ the senator told Newsweek, ‘I didn’t want this guy anywhere near a trigger.’” (Evan Thomas, et al., “Senator Hothead,” Newsweek, 2/21/00)
4) Sen. McCain Had A Heated Exchange With Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) And Called Him A “F*cking Jerk.” “Senators are not used to having their intelligence or integrity challenged by another senator. ‘Are you calling me stupid?’ Sen. Chuck Grassley once inquired during a debate with McCain over the fate of the Vietnam MIAs, according to a source who was present. ‘No,’ replied McCain, ‘I’m calling you a f—ing jerk!’ (Grassley and McCain had no comment.)” (Evan Thomas, et al., “Senator Hothead,” Newsweek, 2/21/00)
5) In 1995, Sen. McCain Had A “Scuffle” With 92-Year-Old Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-SC) On The Senate Floor. “In January 1995, McCain was midway through an opening statement at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing when chairman Strom Thurmond asked, ‘Is the senator about through?’ McCain glared at Thurmond, thanked him for his ‘courtesy’ (translation: buzz off), and continued on. McCain later confronted Thurmond on the Senate floor. A scuffle ensued, and the two didn’t part friends.” (Harry Jaffe, “Senator Hothead,” The Washingtonian, 2/97)
6) Sen. McCain Accused Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Of The “Most Egregious Incident” Of Corruption He Had Seen In The Senate. “It escalated when McCain reiterated the charges Oct. 10 in a cross-examination, calling McConnell’s actions the ‘most egregious incident’ demonstrating the appearance of corruption he has ever seen in his Senate career.” (Amy Keller, “Attacks Escalate In Depositions,” Roll Call, 10/21/02)
7) Sen. McCain Attacked Christian Leaders And Republicans In A Blistering Speech During The 2000 Campaign. MCCAIN: “Unfortunately, Governor Bush is a Pat Robertson Republican who will lose to Al Gore. … The political tactics of division and slander are not our values… They are corrupting influences on religion and politics, and those who practice them in the name of religion or in the name of the Republican Party or in the name of America shame our faith, our party and our country. Neither party should be defined by pandering to the outer reaches of American politics and the agents of intolerance, whether they be Louis Farrakhan or Al Sharpton on the left, or Pat Robertson or Jerry Falwell on the right.” (Sen. John McCain, Remarks, Virginia Beach, VA, 2/28/00)
9) Celebrating His First Senate Election In 1986, Sen. McCain Screamed At And Harassed A Young Republican Volunteer. “It was election night 1986, and John McCain had just been elected to the U.S. Senate for the first time. Even so, he was not in a good mood. McCain was yelling at the top of his lungs and poking the chest of a young Republican volunteer who had set up a lectern that was too tall for the 5-foot-9 politician to be seen to advantage, according to a witness to the outburst. ‘Here this poor guy is thinking he has done a good job, and he gets a new butt ripped because McCain didn’t look good on television,’ Jon Hinz told a reporter Thursday. At the time, Hinz was executive director of the Arizona Republican Party. … Hinz said McCain’s treatment of the young campaign worker in 1986 troubled him for years. ‘There were an awful lot of people in the room,’ Hinz recalled. ‘You’d have to stick cotton in your ears not to hear it. He (McCain) was screaming at him, and he was red in the face. It wasn’t right, and I was very upset at him.’” (Kris Mayes and Charles Kelly, “Stories Surface On Senator’s Demeanor,” The Arizona Republic, 11/5/99)
10) Sen. McCain “Publicly Abused” Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL). “[McCain] noted his propensity for passion but insisted that he doesn’t ‘insult anybody or fly off the handle or anything like that.’ This is, quite simply, hogwash. McCain often insults people and flies off the handle…. There have been the many times McCain has called reporters ‘liars’ and ‘idiots’ when they have had the audacity to ask him unpleasant, but pertinent, questions. McCain once… publicly abused Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama.” (Editorial, “There’s Something About McCain,” The Austin American-Statesman, 1/24/07)
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I have more if these aren’t enough.
Diplomacy is going to be very important in the coming years, to keep and gain allies. I don’t want a president who is going to lose his temper in public, or come out with recordings in private of him disparaging people he pretends to like, as we’ve heard by Nixon.
Obama also needs to watch his demeanor because some reporters are saying he also has a temper, which come off more as disdain than explosive. There are reports of him yelling at people, too, and my friend sent me some links that I can look for and post here, if you want to see them. But I’m sure you can find them on your own.
I understand passion and temper–I’m Irish and Italian, so I have it on both sides.
When I was young, I would let fly, and people ran for cover. I’ve matured with age and mellowed a bit, and I know how to express myself without major damage to property and others’ feelings. McCain is much older than I am, but he has not learned that lesson yet. For a leader who can’t–as McCain has shown–reign it in during important meetings and during business, he needs to do something about it.
McCain is like Bush, and you know it. That is why Obama said McCain will continue Bush’s policies. He has moved closer and closer to his policies. Anyone can see that.
Lynn, the fact that some on your list came from a book called ‘Senator Hothead’, I don’t have much confidence they are really an unbias source.
And once again Lynn, come on. McCain is not like Bush. Do they agree on some issues? Sure. I’m positive you probably agree with the President on some issues. Does that mean you are like him? Because Obama is stubborn on the troop surge in Iraq, does that mean he’s like the “stubborn, evil” Bush?
A McCain presidency would be much different than a Bush presidency, and I think you know it.
And what about the other sources? As I said, I have more but you know how to search information, so I’ll leave that to you if you want to pursue it. As for the rest of it, I think #s 1, 3, 4, 9, and 10 are good examples of his temper. And #s 2, 5, 6 , 7, and 8 (which translated to sunglasses on a smiley on the KXLY site, for some reason) are a big “so what?” and actually show restraint. So, he is capable of reigning his temper in, which is a good sign. The comment by Smith is troubling, though. McCain voted with Bush 95% of the time. You can verify that at http://www.factcheck.org if you don’t believe me. Me, agree with Bush?!?!??! Maybe a *small* percentage of the time. I agreed with him about going into Afghanistan, abstinence only sex ed, and signing off on the execution of the former Army soldier who is a mass murderer and rapist. That’s all I can think of right now. Wow, Chris, I agree Bush is stubborn, but should you really be calling the president of the United States “evil”? Maybe you should reconsider that comment. McCain would perpetuate a lot of Bush’s policies and that’s too close to Bush for me. That he wants to expand NCLB is enough reason for me not to vote for him. Yeah, let’s take something that’s not working and do even more of it. He’s so clueless about education–and his wife is a SpEd teacher! Well, she has the degree, I don’t know if she ever actually taught. And a lot of McCain’s campaign seems to be nothing but reaction to Obama’s campaign. In fact, I was just today having a conversation with a friend (who agreed with me) that a big part of Obama’s appeal is that he says he will be unlike Bush, so Obama actually owes a lot of his popularity to Bush, and that McCain supports many of Bush’s policies.