Obama's stance on troops attacked
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In its stepped-up assault on Barack Obama's character, John McCain's campaign is trying to use a remark Obama made about Afghanistan to paint the Democrat as not supporting US troops.
In a new national TV ad unveiled yesterday, the announcer says, "Who is Barack Obama?"
Then the ad shows Obama saying that US troops in Afghanistan are "just air-raiding villages and killing civilians."
"How dishonorable," the announcer says. "Congressional liberals voted repeatedly to cut off funding to our active troops. Increasing the risk on their lives. How dangerous. Obama and congressional liberals. Too risky for America."
The ad quotes only part of what Obama said as he talked to voters in August 2007 about his plans to send more troops to Afghanistan, which he calls a more important front in the war on terror than Iraq. He was criticizing US policy rather than the troops. "We've got to get the job done there, and that requires us to have enough troops so that we're not just air-raiding villages and killing civilians, which is causing enormous pressure over there," Obama said.
At the time, US and coalition forces were causing more civilian casualties than the insurgents.
The ad also doesn't tell the complete story about Obama's votes on troop funding. While he voted against a 2007 spending bill because it did not include a timetable for withdrawing from Iraq, he subsequently voted for a version that did include a timetable. He has voted for at least 10 other war funding bills.
Obama's campaign responded with a statement from retired admiral John B. Natham: "Senator Obama has consistently voted to fund our troops in Afghanistan and Iraq and, just as importantly, a proven record of support when they return home. That's why independent veterans organizations give Senator Obama higher marks than Senator McCain."
FOON RHEE
The Republican vice presidential nominee told voters in Clearwater, Fla., yesterday that she had some not-so-stellar moments during a series of interviews with "the mainstream media." Her flubs with Katie Couric of CBS were ridiculed in a SNL sketch, and Palin's debate performance was pilloried this past Saturday.
"I was just trying to give Tina Fey more material," Palin joked. "Job security for SNL characters."
FOON RHEE
Obama leads McCain 53 percent to 45 percent among likely voters, compared to 51 percent to 47 percent two weeks ago, a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll found.
It also found that 54 percent of likely voters believe that McCain would mostly carry out President Bush's policies when they want change.
An NBC/Wall Street Journal poll showed similar movement toward Obama, who leads 49 percent to 43 percent and who received higher marks from voters for his response to the financial crisis. That 6-percentage-point edge matches Obama's biggest lead in this poll.
FOON RHEE
