McCain Scrambles to Control Backers
Local radio talk show host Bill Cunningham introduces John McCain at a campaign event Tuesday in Cincinnati. McCain afterward repudiated comments made by Cunningham seen as disparaging toward Barack Obama. (AP Photo)
Though John McCain vowed that attacks on Barack Obama at his campaign events “will never happen again,” the Republican presidential candidate says he’s concerned he may be unable to control all of his supporters - especially third party groups.
At a rally in Cincinnati Tuesday, McCain denounced the remarks of local radio talk show host Bill Cunningham, who introduced the candidate with several attacks on Obama, including suggesting he is a “hack” who would sit down for tea with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hezbollah terror leaders.
Cunningham also called Obama by his full name, Barack Hussein Obama, during the on-stage introduction. McCain immediately denounced the remarks and promised a civil debate should Obama become the Democratic presidential nominee.
But speaking to reporters aboard his campaign tour bus late Tuesday, McCain acknowledged that conservative independent groups pursuing a similar line to Cunningham’s could be impossible to control.
“I think you have to worry about that, particularly the 527s,” McCain said, referring to the independent advocacy groups that are not subject to contributor limits.
“We’re aware of many of the things that 527s have done … where unlimited amounts of money can pour into negative campaigns such as we saw against John Kerry and his combat record, as we saw against (former Georgia Sen.) Max Cleland … they’re really very not accountable to anyone. At least I have to say ‘I’m John McCain and I approve this message.’”
Some critics blame his signature campaign finance reform legislation, co-sponsored with Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold, for the explosion of uncontrolled 527 groups. But, McCain said the law is not the problem and argued that 527 groups were able to sprout up as a result of loophole in a 1974 campaign finance law.
McCain said he would do his best to prevent dirty politicking by his campaign and surrogates.
“The moral of the story is we just have to have stronger control of our campaign. … There is no excuse for what happened today,” he said, adding that his campaign has plans to expand its bare bones staff.
Cunningham says he was told by party officials to give the audience red meat to warm up the crowd that came to see McCain. He says he did and the crowd loved it, but McCain then threw him under the bus. Cunningham says McCain has now lost his support.
“I’m gonna follow the lead of Ann Coulter. I’ve had it with John McCain,” Cunningham told FOX News’ “Hannity & Colmes.”
“I’m going to endorse Hillary Rodham Clinton for president because she would do a better job in the Oval Office, I think, than the liberal John McCain. I’m done with him.”
Cunningham said McCain “embarrassed himself,” and then made up a name of his own for the Arizona senator, “John Juan Pablo McCain,” an apparent reference to McCain’s sponsorship of immigration reform legislation. He added that McCain should be “repudiating Democrats and leaving conservatives alone.”
Meanwhile, as McCain preaches civility, his own campaign put out a call to Obama’s camp to call off Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, who has been attacking McCain for choosing to forgo public campaign financing.
“Howard Dean and the Democratic National Committee leadership have launched a personal and negative assault on Senator McCain’s character. Howard Dean himself questioned Senator McCain’s integrity, and a DNC official called McCain a liar,” said Communications Director Jill Hazelbaker.
“We agree with the Obama campaign’s statement today that this debate should be respectful and focused on issues, and it would be encouraging to see Senator Obama denounce the character attacks coming from the leadership of his party.”
FOX News’ Mosheh Oinounou contributed to this report.
I am amazed by the number of idiots who state that Obama is Muslim
I am amazed by the number of idiots who state that Cunningham is a Christain conservative
The GOP is doing what they are good at, POLITICS OF FEAR
– for now, using the Hussein, to plant fear in all Americans.
The Grand Old Phonies (GOP) should stop posing as Christians because they are not.
They wear religion on their sleeves, just like the Pharisees in the bible.
They claim to be against abortion, but when Giuliani (who is pro-Choice) was leading the polls, their Christian leaders like Pat Robertson and the others endorsed him, and said, abortion is not a major issue, but the treat America is facing is islamic terrorism.
They claim they are against Amnesty. But now since McCain wrote the amnesty bill, immigration is no longer important, it is who will make sure America’s occupation of Iraq continues as long as possible.
I am a Christian conservative, and I will NEVER vote for the GOP.
It is a shame that many Christians have been DECEIVED to believe the GOP runs on Christian values that they never compromise.
Obama is a little liberal than my ideal candidate.
But I will rather support someone who tells the truth, and speaks of unity and HOPE,
than McCain, who is only good at preaching FEAR, and telling Americans-their security only comes from a big military-fighting al Qaeda (with borrowed money from China)
OBAMA’08
…YES WE CAN, stop the politics of fear.
I am not a Republican but I thought it wasn’t smart for McCain to apologize. If he plans on being nice, the Republicans are not going to win. The world knows nothing about Osama so if he is going to be the nominee, McCain and the Republicans need to attack him on every corner.
McCain said in that apology that those comments won’t happen again—-well if he does decide to go negative, the media is going to continue to replay that apology speech. That was a HUGE mistake.
I think the Republicans need to hurry up and come up with a sperdelegate system and vote in the person who they think will be a strong republican candidate because it is clear that John McCain will not be.
Sorry John –and to think I was goingto vote for you if Obama got the nomination well not anymore, I am voting for Nader! You are a disappointment to the Republican Party.
I bet all of you conservative biggots and so called Christians (real Christians act Christ like , not like mean spirited hate mongers i.e. Rush Limbaugh ) are hoping that Rush Limbaugh was in the race. The Bush administration used you all like a bunch of suckers so that he, his Daddy and all their Saudi buddies can cash in the WAR rewards at the expense of young middle class American lives. Wake up you close minded fools. You are all slaves to Isreal which is the most racist nation on the planet. Suckers. They have you all bashing Muslims yet one of our closest allies as well as business partners are the Saudis, an entirely Muslim country. Oh but wait , we don’t have any problem with them do we? Especially since they paid for Bush’s victory with oil money. Wake up you SHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP! Bahhhhhhhh!
P.S. Here’s a clue sheep … the Federal reserve which determines the interest rates on our homes and cars and the value of our money is NOT even a federal entity, it’s a PRIVATE bank owned by PRIVATE shareholders. LOOK IT UP ! SUCKERS!!!!!!! Bring back the GOLD STANDARD and stop being brainwashed my the Zionist MEdia!
I for one will continue my support for Huckabee, he is the only good candidate left. Even though it doesn’t look like he has much of a chance people still have time to support him and bring him back out into the spotlight.
http://www.mikehuckabee.com
Publicly McCain distances himself but in reality he needs every support he can get. If groups and individuals mock your possible opponent you can savely distance yourself from it, the result is media run the story again. So in the end the calculation is that it might even help, extra air-time of ridicule and declare can’t help it, free speech etc. Its not a very good position to be in, not an overwhelming enthousiasme of voters (40% to 60%) in primaries, not a charismatic personality, age and health questions. So one of the ways to put some zess in the campaign is to invite popular people to give a stump speech. The mistakes he makes especially the last weeks are astonishing for his stature. Watch it with amazement, how he tries hard and fail time after time, with some remark or statement. The whole maverick image suited him well, now he starts to become what he is not, Some kind of characture in the spin machine; behind the mask you can almost see his uncomfortability, but is stuck, so it won’t surprise me anymore how he expresses himself. It must be a nightmare for his staff.
Good for John Mcain standing up for whats right because all cunningham was trying to do was fear monger just like the leaked obama picture grow up people im sick of the right wing trying to keep this country submissive by fear tactics. Not every muslim is a terrorist and second of all obama isnt muslim any way. But whatever keep being submissive and living in fear that is what they want you to do. You better hide theres a terrorist waiting around every corner. Vote to bring this country togetther vote for change. YES WE CAN! Vote Obama!
P.S. for your information that wasn’t the first plane McCains crashed. That’s just the one that he didn’t get a statment of charge for.
I am a democrat and was thinking about voting for McCain!
What the hell is wrong with him?
Bill called him with his real name Husseyin!
Hillary could not use anything against thi sinfidel because she belongs to the same theatre but John McCain should bash Obama to death!
First …. forget about Huckabee. I don’t know what he thinks he is doing but he is not going to be the nominee and McCain is not going to offer him the VP spot. If he wants to stay in politics he needs to go back to Arkansas and run against Pryor for Pryor’s senate seat.
McCain was not my first or even second choice but at the end of the day I am going to support him because the Clinton’s and Obama (aka Little Jimmy Carter) would be a disaster for the country. If nothhing else think of Supreme Court justices that Hillary and Barack would nominate if elected and the impact they would likely have on the country for the next 20 years. There is no fainting or crying in baseball or politics. McCain may be half a loaf but he is better than no loaf at all.
Al Qaeda is in Iraq and was there before the second war began. More entered the country after the war started because they got kick out of Afghanistan. If you don’t know this you probably need to consider removing your head out of that dark smelly place where it currently resides.
And as far as John McCain goes real heroes don’t go around running a campaign based on how many years you spent in a prison camp in Vietnam. Unfortunately the real hero’s will never get that opportunity because most never made it back. Quiet a few of them didn’t even get the luxury of going to the Naval academy and picking such a couchen job for a living, some actually got drafted to real MOS were your job is to actually look at your target as you engage them or watch your brothers in arm become a casualty right in front of you. But besides the fact that the media had created this farce legacy about the man and the republicans tend to run with it (even though they voted for Bush over McCain twice) it still doesn’t make him Guru on all foreign policy discussions. I believe the only reason the Vietnamese let him live is because he was wearing brass, if he would’ve been some dirt pounder in the army they would’ve had him for breakfast. So thank you Annapolis for making him all that he can be!