Thank you, Michael, the first reasonable blog on this subject at tnr

Everyone else is acting like a house is a naked redhead, under 18.

Just wondering, has there been a single post on the controversy over the Annenberg Project historical papers that the University of Illinois is refusing to allow public inspection (the GOP wants to find evidence Obama mischaracterized his relationship with Bill Ayers)?  It really reeks of Chicago politics: the University (the Chicago campus) policy seems to require agreement to open access for all donors of such papers, they initially agreed to allow inspection then suddenly pulled it.  Some report hearing shredders from outside the library walls (ok, I made that last part up, but if you live in Chicago, you know if there's something in there, that's what's happening!)

Nice thing about the current home attack is it reinforces the "doddering old man" meme pretty strongly.

More likely to remind voters that this "pampered rich guy" was given the option of avoiding captivity and torture due to his privileged birth, and yet refused. This is a dumb attack. The overkill smacks of desperation.

In and of itself, the house thing isn't that big a deal. Combined with Graham's comment about Americans being complainers, McCain's admission that he doesn't know anything about economics, his complete dedication to Bush's economic policies, and his assertion that the economy is in fundamentally good shape, it's probably a pretty stupid thing to say.

And yes, Lymon, I'm sure there's a magic bullet in those stakes of paper. Maybe, just maybe, HRC can still get the nomination. Cross those fingers.

I just saw two people in my office doing the upper class twit jig, this thread is zipping around quickly.

So is this meme, does this save us from Hillary?

I agree with Michael's assessment, with one exception, which I have posted on another thread and which Lymo1 discusses above.  I think the University of Illinois issue is something that is ready to pop.  You joke about the shredders, but that is not too far off the mark.  Last week I was in on the tail end of an meeting of various historical societies and archives, and there are legal precedents for redacting archival material to protect privacy.  The old time archivists were horrified by this proposal, conjuring visions of CIA and FBI agents coming in to force them to redact names and dates to protect the "innocent."    This story has legs.

Oh, come on, tep- if Obama said that he didn't know how many houses he had you'd be going off about his naivity and lack of readiness for the big time.  What this reaction is is part of the general attack- remember when Obama wasn't able to attack, and not tough enough?- that McCain is long on phrases, but underneath them is an empty suit living off reputation and with no real plans or policies.  Out of touch, slippery, unable to formulate an answer.  And constantly going back to POW isn't going to cut it.  

ca, dude, no it doesn't. The nature of Obama and Ayer's relationship is a figment of the right-wing imagination. There's nothing to suggest Obama had any sort of "relationship" with Ayers and even less to suggest that evidence is stashed away in the university archives.

There is a good story on Politico about this.  Cindy has been busy the last couple of years buying and selling properties.  Some for the kids, some for business, one for her elderly aunt, etc.  I'm sure she knows what she owns, but McCain could care less about that kind of stuff.  Just not his style and not his money.

Does Team Obama really think they're going to win a slimefest with the GOP? Really?

When in the last half century has a left-lib presidential candidate done so?

I'm for anything that can be related to a Monty Python sketch, and even better with an accompanying video.

MPT:  You mean there -was- a magic bullet in those papers.  Hey, the Chicago Machine put the old Kennedy in the White House, no reason it can't do the same again!   Seriously, I've discussed Ayers before and why I don't buy Obama's story -- every law professor in Chicago knew about him from the local controversy surrounding his wife, Bernadine Dohrn, who people tried to get kicked out of Northwestern Law School for the same series of interviews.  I also know that Hyde Park/U of Chicago community and there's simply no way he was ignorant of that power couple's history when he went to those parties.  

Anyway, so what?  Fight fire with fire -- run a bunch of ads tying McCain to John Haggee.  McCain deserves it.  And there's an irony that the GOP would protest this given what they did to the national archivist who fought GWB's secrecy.  But no, I'm not ignoring the ugliness that seems to have transpired with that collection for the sake of electing Obama above all else.  

tep, please enough with the POW bit. If McCain took early release he would have come home in disgrace. I want you to name one POW who took early release (and many were offered.) Name one. should every POW who refused early release be President then? Admiral Stockdale made McCain's stay look easy by comparison, yet when he ran for VP he was thrashed by the Republicans mercilessly as an (you guessed it) out of touch old fart. Jeez, people act like McCain volunteered to be a POW. My wifes cousin was pressured to renounce her Falun Gong belief in China, didn't and was sentenced to 3 years hard labor. That took more courage than being shot down and then not betraying the uniform.

Time to mention that McCain, who has too many houses to count, fought tooth and nail to deny basic benefits to veterans coming home from his and Bush's war.  

Sorry, Blackie, this one's going to have be won on the merits. Obama needs to up his game, and fast.

Even George Lakoff's lamenting BHO's ineptitude and taken to praising McCain. As has Feingold, who said on CNN today, "I think McCain would make a good President."

www.youtube.com/watch

George Lakoff is a total joke and Feingold is simply wrong.  

Just relax Tep, you may get your fervent wish yet and have Obama lose, but at least come up with some credible people to back you up.  I mean, George Lakoff?  Wow, better get out the prozac, I'm suicidal.

The Republican message is that if the economy is working good for people who have seven houses, the benefits will eventually flow down to people trying to buy their first one (or pay the rent on a crappy apartment while struggling to buy food and get medical care). If the benefits are not flowing downhill fast enough - stop whining, the other boats will be lifted in due time. And don't worry, if things do start getting rough for people with seven houses and there's not as much wealth flowing downstream, the government will leap into the breach to assure that the rich get the tax relief they need to assure that they don't suffer too much and that their ability to pass along wealth to the rest of us is unimpaired.

Makes those days of endless squabbles over health-care mandates seem quaint.

This will stick not because its one gaffe but because its a pattern that shows someone who is painting another person as an elitist is ACTUALLY the elitist. Forgetting how many homes you own is like forgetting the number of children you have if have more than 3. Most people have one home. How many homes do you own? one none NEVER I"M NOT SURE. He is either senile or not detail oriented in which case its worse.

Carol

Terrific MP sketch. Thanks!

I think you're dead wrong on this subject.

McKrusty and his followers opened him up to charges of elitism by attacking Obama for his supposed "elitism" and I think this theme of the old rich, forgetful guy can be mined for the rest of the campaign to show the stark difference between the pampered life John lives, and the desperation hundreds of thousand of Americans are feeling now. Especially with the state of the housing market and the price of gas.

It would be a theme the Republicans would be pushing hard on if the shoe were on the other foot.

But then of course you write for TNR, so you have to be "fair and balanced" don't you?