'Race card' dealt by Barack Obama, a John McCain aide charges

Perhaps it's the summer heat. Whatever, the churlish aura increasingly enveloping the presidential campaign showed no sign of abating today.

The cause celebre of the moment involves a comment Barack Obama made Wednesday as he campaigned in Missouri. As John McCain's campaign unveiled its fourth straight attack ad -- the "Celebs" spot that lumps Obama with lightweight (and scandal-plagued) favorites of the paparazzi Paris Hilton and Britney Spears -- the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee had this to say (as related in a Times campaign story):

"The only way they figure they're going to win this election is if they make you scared of me. 'He's new. He doesn't look like the other presidents on the dollar bills. He's got a funny name. . . .' The argument is that I'm too risky."

Obama has invoked the "doesn't look like other presidents" line in the past, but usually in a positive context -- as in, how his ability to attract support across various demographic groups signifies, among many voters, a "post-racial" approach to politics.

The context of the remark in Missouri, of course, was much different -- implying that the GOP was seeking to call attention to his biracial heritage.

The McCain forces today made clear they would have none of that. Campaign manager Rick Davis fired off a terse, two-sentence statement:

“Barack Obama has played the race card, and he played it from the bottom of the deck. It’s divisive, negative, shameful and wrong.”

Asked about his comment just moments ago on MSNBC, Davis stressed that he took great umbrage at Obama's inference that any aspect of the campaign's recent offensive against Obama had racial overtones.

Davis also was pressed by the cable network's Andrea Mitchell to defend the Obama-Hilton-Spears linkage. He insisted it was fair because all three have great name recognition and lots of fans. He added that "the really important thing" -- what the ad was attempting to drive home -- was that just because Obama is "a great celebrity doesn't mean he's ready to lead the country."

-- Don Frederick

[UPDATE: Here's the lengthy exchange on MSNBC between Davis and Mitchell, who as the interview proceeds struggles to get a word in edgewise against the fired-up campaign aide].

Comments

[Peter]

What Happened to my straight shooter, Comon McCain camp get your act together. Everyday its nothing but negative news coming from you or about you. wow, McCain isnt the same candidate as he was in 2000
I think everyone thought they were getting 2000 McCain,
Instead we got a much more confused and cranky McCain. Did you seem him knock the stuff off the shelf in the grocery store., Or him blowing up on the reporter. His Campaign has become a punch line. You can see both mentioned train wrecks at http://www.mccanes.com I am torn, do I vote for Obama, who I dont think is really the change that he claims, and the change he is going to bring might be for the worse. He is sooo arrogent too. Bush was very arrogent. I think weve learned our
lesson for voting for someone who wont admit when they are wrong. Stay the course is a scary Motto. I dont want that any more. Obama is a bit scary. OH, did you see the video of Obama losing his temper., I had never saw that before. They
have that video of http://www.TheObamaPlan.com

[Fernando Rehagel]

I am a political interested person and I follow with high interest the election campaign (as I have never done before) and unfortunately you can't learn more from the McCain campaign than the three points: (1) Let the super rich keep more of their money by reducing their taxes (2) drill for more oil using public lands, and (3) make sure that automatic handguns are available to every person in the US without restriction or registration. The recent adds from the McCain campaign show, that there is only an old self called experienced man without a real concept, who tries to canalize his frustration about the Obama media attention into childish TV-Ads. When does the real McCain campaign with well-founded topics and concepts start? And when begins FOX-News with objective coverage?

[Gaily]

I sincerely hope Sen. Obama will soon go mano a mano with McCain in public debates and townhall meetings. He's great at giving speeches (even if his knowledge of the Cold War is clearly faulty), but I want to see him answer some hard questions. To my eyes, the post-primary Obama is morphing into a slightly creepy figure, and giving a lot of us a glimpse of a man with a messiah-complex. Whatever this election is, it is NOT the second coming. And for heaven's sake and the good of the country, let's all hope he does not treat all public criticism as racially motivated. We really have moved beyond that.

[Marks]

Why isn't Rick Davis mug posted with this story?

If the campaign aide can make national headlines with his Obama blasts, he's the face with a big mouth.

[McCain is a hypocrite]

His campaign may not directly imply Obama is risky because he is black, but leaves an impression that because he's black he is the riskier choice. Inexperience my ass!!!! McCain can try to turn the tables on Obama but his right wing nbuts, like Hannity, Limbaugh has no problem hammering the point that Obama is different. McCain would never condonne this in public but I'm pretty sure behind closed doors he is snickering in that sinnester way that he does.
Bottom line Obama is laying out the facts - he is black, has a funny sounding name. New Yorker Magazine pointed out these facts recently on their cover and Obama is acknowledging that he understands completely what is going on here. The 800 pound gorrila is out, let's deal with this before November.

[andy]

Isn't "playing the race card" what racists say when somebody mentions racism?

[s. magee]

Let's just call obama "gray" since he's black and white.

[isaac]

Obama is right. The republican party has started the fear campaign since he was running against Hillary. Saying he is Muslim (which he isnt), saying he doesnt repsect the Pledge of Allegiance by not putting his hand over his heart (which was incorrect).

The repulican party have ruined our country for the past 8 years. They have nothing to run on except on fear.

We need change people.

[frank]

White people better get used to the race card because we are going to hear it constantly up to and after the election.If you say something negative about Hussein Obama, you are racist, if you vote against him, you are racist, if he loses the election it is because people are racist, if he wins and screws this country up big time(which he will) and you criticize him, it is because you are racist. If he dies they will say God took him because God is racist. The race card won't end. But the truth is that Hussein Obama and many other blacks(Jackson, Sharpton, etc.) are racist.

[Steve]

Folks behind McCain's campaign like Rick Davis have made it pretty clear that deception and attack are the only things they know in life.

[jr]

Are the american people seeing the big difference between Obama and McCain. One is taking care of business and act like he's the pres. already. While McCain is playing around with attack ads and acting like a sore loser.

[joseph marcucilli]

Obama was referring to talk radio and outlets like Fox News that recently ,while showing an image of Bin Laden had Obama's name under it.They have done this more than once.I believe McCain treats Obama with utter disdain and when they debate on the economy we will see who is the empty suit. the guy who was Law Review Editor at Harvard or the guy who is proud of graduating last at Annapolis.

[Elizabeth]

This is possibly the lamest news article I will read all day... McCain says Obama is "playing the race card" for alluding to the fact that he might be... I don't know, not white?

If he were running against Clinton, would he say she was "playing the woman card" if she ever mentioned her gender?

I really hope Americans prove themselves to be smart enough not to get obsessed with this.

[david in WHFD]

This is a repeat of the primary. The McCain campaign made the comment. Obama responded. The McCain campaign played the race card. No amount of additional lying can change that fact any more than the mccain campaign can change the fact that Obama cancelled a visit with the troops that's all he did. McCain pimped out the troops and lied, all in an effort to draw attention to himself.

[Jason]

How pitiful... if you actually READ what Obama said, nowhere in there is he playing a "race card". Just because he called himself black doesn't automatically mean he's leveraging his black'ness to win points. God, I wish every American would take some basic logic and media awareness classes... it'd do you all some good. Quit taking things out of context, and to the media, quit being such drama-queens and report stuff that actually matters (ie. policies).

[Mike S]

Interesting take, Mr Frederick. I just read a more balanced one on Washington Post. You know, one with a comment from the -other- side?

Here, I'll help you do your job:

"Barack Obama is going out every day talking about the struggles of Americans, the struggles of Americans losing their homes and their jobs, and all John McCain can talk about is Barack Obama, because he doesn't have anything to say about the people of this country struggling in this economy," said campaign spokesman Linda Douglass, adding her candidate was not playing the race card when he made his remarks yesterday.

[Anna]

Barack Obama is using the race card to work on peoples emotions in hope of getting votes. He used it against Bill & Hillary Clinton in the primarys. The republicans have not used race in this election. I have noticed that everyone who disagrees with Obama's views are called racist, or twisting his words. Obama thinks he and Michelle are above criticism, and the public should take their word for any lie they tell. Read the post by his supporters on these blogs, and listen to him and his campaigners, you will see, they are the only ones bringing race hate into this election. Do we want 4 years of this kind complaining ( you said this about Obama cause he's black )? If you think Ludacris sounds crazy, elect Barack Obama president, and all the rats, crazies and radicals will come out of the wood works. Wake up white people. I'm awake and I'm black.

[Windfall]

Obama, “'He doesn't look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills."'

Robert Gibbs, an Obama spokesman, "He was referring to the fact that he didn't come into the race with the history of others. It is not about race."

If your BS meter doesn’t peg on this one, you’ve definitely drank the Obama Kool-Aid.

Of course Obama was referring to his race. What else about his appearance would be different from other presidents?

It’s exactly as Rick Davis has said, “Barack Obama has played the race card, and he played it from the bottom of the deck. It’s divisive, negative, shameful and wrong.”

If Obama can’t even campaign without implicitly calling his opponent a racist, what would his administration bring, a politically correct version of the Alien and Sedition Acts? Are we about to lose our First Amendment guarantee of freedom of speech under the reign of an arrogant and pompous president who considers anyone who criticizes him to be a racist?

[Whippy]

The McCain campaign plays the "playing the race card" card? Imagine my surprise.

[MadMax]

It has been very disillusioning for some of us registered Democrats who have noticed from the very beginning that BHO & his advisors have run a race baiting/racist campaign. Maybe, as the saying goes, "all the world is yellow to the jaundiced eye".

[Chris]

We need change? Change you can believe in????? Yeah like Obama changes his views on topics every 5 minutes. We need off shore drilling, we need to control immagration, and have a REALISTIC plan for health care and the economy, not just some silly pipe dream your speach writers thought up.

[Matt]

This is the stupidest article ever. It tells me nothing about real news! -It clearly shows the McCain team using the subject of race in a cleverly worded ruse! I will vote for Obama simply because Im tired of being manipulated and lied to by the republican party!! Shame on you McCain.

[Lee]

Rick Davis is just lying. Anyone with half a brain knows that Paris and Britney are not really popular celebrities with lots of fans. If they wanted to talk about popular celebrities, we'd see people like Oprah and Brad Pitt. We have Paris and Britney because McCain wants to trash Obama with their train-wreck image. And secondly, we have two white women and a black man because the very idea incites millions of Americans into angry fits. To honestly argue otherwise is only possible if one is ignorant of history.

That they would even try such a foul ad says volumes about the desperation of the McCain capmpaign. That they are reduced to this sort of thing when public polling shows them really close makes you wonder -- what do McCain's internal polls say? Can't be close, or he'd be doing his straight-talk stuff.

[Donnie]

Whoever wrote this article is truly a stupid human and American.

[Dr. Jesse Kally-Williams]

Cindy McCain pointed out not so long ago: "We are going to see a great debate, which the American public deserves. None of that negative stuff you see is going to come from our side at all. We rather not win ... that is not winning". McCain defined his campaign principle two months thus: "Our campaign is going to be civil, focusing on real issues ".
Something has gone askew. Or pure desperation.