MyDD :: Is John McCain Even Trying?

Is John McCain Even Trying?

by Todd Beeton, Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 02:39:44 PM EST

Speaking of townhalls...over at dailyKos, DaveFromQueens has a good rundown of John McCain's townhall meeting on Thursday in New Jersey. No wonder McCain prefers to stack his audiences with supporters; when challenged to answer a real question, this guy can't deal.

But the father took the mike, told how his wife and child flew out of Newark on 9/11 and that could have been them. He then asked a very simple question, "Why haven't we gotten Bin Laden?"

A bunch of Obama people and others cheered. (I refrained, I was to be the next question.) McCain got pissed, started rambling about the Diamondbacks and Yankees and Rudy Giuliani on a screen, said as President, Bin Laden would be caught (Guess this means Bin Laden is still safe for another few months) and people were laughing that McCain wasn't answering the question.

You could see the veins in McCain starting to burst, he got very uncomfortable that his scripted rally just got derailed by this gentleman...

Not surprisingly, local media's take was a bit different. Check out this headline from the Burlington County Times:

McCain: `I will get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice'

Oooh, McCain is such a tough guy, isn't he? Well, dig a little deeper into the article and, as is so often the case with John McCain, things get a little strange.

Sure, McCain promises to get bin Laden:

"I will look you in the eye and promise you that I will get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice," McCain said in response to a direct question from one of the 2,000 people in attendance at the college's Pemberton campus gym.

But take a look at what McCain says is crucial to his capture:

McCain said the key to ending the long search for bin Laden was to increase the number of human spies abroad.

"We need better human intelligence. We need people who can swim in the water," McCain said.

Huh?

Over at The Carpetbagger Report, Steve Benen takes McCain down.

I see. First, I'm pretty sure that plenty of Americans, both in the military and in intelligence gathering, have learned to "swim in the water."

Second, if reports are accurate, bin Laden is in the mountains between Pakistan and Afghanistan. As far as I can tell, there are very few bodies of water, so swimming spies may have limited value.

My personal favorite part of McCain's quote is that he even feels the need to use the words "in the water" at all to modify "swim." Ohhhh, you mean swimming in the water, OK, thanks for the clarification.

I've got to agree with Benen:

I'm not sure if I've ever seen a presidential candidate who tries this hard not to be taken seriously.

This is one statement of McCain's I hope he's asked to explain. Not that that's terribly likely, mind you, since it's just sort of wacky rather than offensive, but really, what could he possibly have meant?

Tags: 2008 presidential election, john mccain, townhall, osama bin laden (all tags)

Permalink :: 31 Comments :: Post a Comment

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

" swim in the water "

- I bet you are not supposed to take that literally lol.

Basically what he said in the quote

- more human intelligence and spies.

Although he hasn't being impressive in the past days , that I agree with.

Educated in a small town Taught to fear Jesus in a small town Used to daydream in that small town Another born romantic that's me.

by lori on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 02:44:34 PM EST

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (2.00 / 1)

" swim in the water "

- I bet you are not supposed to take that literally lol.

No, you're generally not supposed to take a metaphor literally.

There is a dictum of Mao Zedong's which is, oh, I don't know, merely the single most famous aphorism in the entire field of counterinsurgency, to wit, "guerrillas must move among the people as fish swim in the sea." Which is hardly obscure: the comment appeared over and over again in the U.S. popular media during the Vietnam years.

The lack of even the most elementary historical literacy among Americans, and their tin-eared inability to recognize simple references, continues to astound me even though I know that it should not.

by marquer on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 06:02:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

I agree with the sentiment of your post, but it is unreasonable to expect someone to have such specific knowledge. I've studied history for years and never heard Zedong's words until I read your post. The memorization of quotes alone does not at all demonstrate a fundamental understanding of history. I would argue that most quotes, while "cool" and containing interesting points of wisdom, are unnecessary when it comes to acquiring a strong understanding of world history. They are the historical mind's treats, but not its vitamins.

Perhaps you should focus more on criticizing Americans' sub-par reading skills, especially since the saying "swimming in the water" may not have anything to do with Zedong at all.

by Covin on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 08:01:21 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Where's Obama's Bounce? (none / 0)

Today from Gallup:

General Election: McCain vs. Obama Gallup Tracking Obama 45, McCain 42 Obama +3.0

Obama should be up over 10pts after securing the nomination. Either McCain is strong or Obama is weak; Could both be true?

by mikeofminnesota on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 09:19:09 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

We also need people who can walk on the land

But most importantly we need someone who can talk
like a President

I could have fun with this all day, thank you.

ENOUGH!

by JDF on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 02:47:06 PM EST

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (2.00 / 1)

That would be Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Too bad we won't be seeing that happen.

Educated in a small town Taught to fear Jesus in a small town Used to daydream in that small town Another born romantic that's me.

by lori on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 02:49:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

Perhaps you'd like some cheese with that whine?

Also, I think this is a case of him trying to use a metaphor. I really don't think we should take it literally.

by alexhoopes on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 02:51:53 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

stopped eating cheese in my teenage years.

Red wine is great though.

By the way I agree its a metaphor.

But you can have fun with it , but I don't think anyone would be asking him for clarification on that one.

Educated in a small town Taught to fear Jesus in a small town Used to daydream in that small town Another born romantic that's me.

by lori on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 02:55:02 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

Thanks for pissing on my parade. Expect it from me every time you try to have fun on this site.

Oh, and since you decided to go there. I never thought she was very presidential anyway.

Wanna start this fight again?

ENOUGH!

by JDF on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 07:04:11 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

you don't eat cheese? no wonder so many of your posts seem angry, even, dare i say? bitter? have slice of cheese, it's one of the 2 things that cures emo. the other is cake. mmm, cake sounds good, i'll be back in sec with some cake.

Mccain/Palin '08: Grandpa's losin' it.

by Doug Tuttle on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 09:46:05 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

A fine example of why we must expose media lies and BS. They protected Bush from his own words for years. Never forget the MSM will be on McCain's side.

"And I scream at the top of my lungs, what's going on?"

by Hollede on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 02:54:23 PM EST

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (2.00 / 3)

This is a silly post.

Swimming in the water is obviously metaphorical. He is saying we need more spies in the field.

Deliberately misinterpreting a clear statement and ridiculing him for your misinterpretation is just dumb.

There are plenty of things to attack McCain for, but this is not one.

by MediaFreeze on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:02:57 PM EST

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

Maybe you could point me to another instance of a government official referring to the action of putting spies in the field as "swimming in the water?"

I mean, if it's such an obvious metaphor, surely someone else would have used it before now.

by Angry White Democrat on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:08:57 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Swim in the water (none / 0)

It is the sort of metaphor you find in spy novels, and it basically means blending in with the people you are spying on. It was probably more popular in spy novels back in the 1970s. He is a total jerk but this is just an example of how he is a generation behind the times.

by herodotus on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:17:36 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Seems like he isn't; that's why polls are so scary (2.00 / 2)

Latest Gallup Poll (6/13):Obama 49%, McCain 46%

And yes, I'm pissed. We should be winning in a cake walk this year, and yet we've got a candidate with more baggage than an airport carousel. Gas at $4/gallon, economy is in a mess, and the GOP nominee seems more feeble by the day--folks,this presidential election SHOULD NOT EVEN BE CLOSE!!

With a Joe Biden or John Edwards, we'd already be planning the innauguration. But our great Democratic party--which can snatch defeat from victory bettern that anyone--is in a statistical dead heat with some tired and clueless old man.

Among the policy questions in the poll, respondents see McCain as better equipped to handle the Iraq conflict by more than 10 points.

When I've expressed these frustrations to fellow Democrats, they just gleefully talk about the legions of footsoldiers they're about to dispatch across the country. Wow...I'll sleep easier now.

They're not as sanguine when I explain to them what 527's are, and what happens once they go to work. Maybe John Kerry would be willing to tell them.

by BJJ Fighter on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:03:10 PM EST

We know 527s (none / 0)

We know what 527s are here. Obama's strategy is still better. Last I checked, those 527s weren't as flush with cash as they would like to be.

If you're being chased by an angry bull and then you notice you're also being chased by a swarm of bees, it doesn't really change things. Just keep on running.

by vcalzone on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 04:25:24 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Seems like he isn't; that's why polls are so s (none / 0)

Wow, you're a little wound-up. We have five months left, and Obama just won the nomination. Your rants about baggage don't make any sense, either, since Hillary polled exactly the same as Obama before she conceded.

by Covin on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 07:45:00 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Seems like he isn't; that's why polls are so s (none / 0)

As an aside, I can't believe folks on this blog are still bitter enough to give mojo to dribble like this. There's absolutely no evidence to suggest that Edwards or Biden would be polling better than Obama is right now.

I guess some of us are scared of running a real candidate for a change. Edwards didn't help the ticket in 2004, and Biden is yet another Kerry/Gore-esque machine politician. If anything, they are weaker candidates than Obama.

by Covin on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 07:48:43 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Should be +15 pts. after winning the nomination (none / 0)

So with the polls at 49-46%, maybe I am a little wound up. It indicates that when the public should be flocking to our nominee, they're just as likely to vote for a very flawed GOP candidate.

And why do you mention Hillary Clinton and "baggage"? At this point, it's about our nominee, Senator Obama. Not Senator Clinton.

by BJJ Fighter on Sun Jun 15, 2008 at 03:04:24 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Should be +15 pts. after winning the nominatio (none / 0)

Because there's no evidence that Obama's so-called "baggage" has had any effect on the race. Comparisons with another Democratic candidate, such as Hillary, prove that.

by Covin on Sun Jun 15, 2008 at 01:03:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

"We need better human intelligence. We need people who can swim in the water," McCain said.

Why is this quote so unreasonable?

McCain is RIGHT. We need more human intelligence.
And it's perfectly obvious that "swimming in the water" means that to get that intelligence, we need people who can blend in with the local surroundings.

by He Who Must Not Be Named on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:08:29 PM EST

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (2.00 / 1)

slow news day.

its a saturday , nothing much is happening.

Educated in a small town Taught to fear Jesus in a small town Used to daydream in that small town Another born romantic that's me.

by lori on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:12:50 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Swimming (none / 0)

Here's an example of how you could (if you wanted to for some reason) take a statement and twist it into a slur, and paint the speaker as a bad person.

McCain says, "We need people who can swim in the water."

PLAINLY RACIST!

See?

by xdem on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:35:15 PM EST
[ Parent ]

First (none / 0)

Quit cherry-picking polls. The poll of pols has obama up by about 5. Rasmussen had him up 6 today.

Second, why do you think Edwards or Biden (!) would be up more in the polls? Given recent history in presidential elections, 5 points is quite a bit. Moreover, McCain is quite a bit more popular than the Republican party as a whole so don't go pointing to the generic dem and republican numbers. McCain was doing better than five points against Hillary and would presumably be doing something similar against others.

Third, calm down and wait a bit. Obama is still consolidating the party. When he is pulling in 90% of dems, he will be polling significantly higher.

Fourth, that poll was not within the margin of error. It is not a statistical dead heat(even if you insist on only considering one poll for some reason).

Finally, if you are looking at the lay of the land and giving McCain anywhere close to fifty-fifty odds at this point, then you just want to be pissed about something. Can we lose? Sure. Is it likely. Nah.

by responsible on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:15:07 PM EST

Re: First (none / 0)

People are only looking at now. They see the Democratic candidate getting attacked by Republicans, but don't take into consideration that Obama might be attacking back or might be developing a strategy to combat it. For Christ's sake, it was a week ago today that Hillary threw in the towel! It's way too early to start claiming that he's unprepared.

If you're being chased by an angry bull and then you notice you're also being chased by a swarm of bees, it doesn't really change things. Just keep on running.

by vcalzone on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 04:27:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]

this was in reply to BJJ Fighter above n/t (none / 0)

by responsible on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:15:48 PM EST

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

This is a total public relations stunt from McSame.

The one sentence that speaks for the McSame message getting out: "2,000 people in attendance at the college's Pemberton campus gym."

The guy can't draw flies on his own. He NEEDS these townhalls to get his face out there with REAL crowds: Obama Crowds!

Obama was More than fair in his counter proposal with the 2 extra topic debates. As usual lately, McSame has overplayed his weak hand, and Obama has called, and raised when needed.

Go DEMOCRATS!

by ocdemocrat on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:22:15 PM EST

Re: Is John McCain Even Trying? (none / 0)

I'm but I have got to laugh. We look like fools actually taking "swimming in the water" literally. It was an OBVIOUS metaphor...I mean come on...

by need some wood on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:34:30 PM EST

What is scarry? (none / 0)

In the one poll 78% of the respondents said that they would vote for an African American. But 58% didn't think their friends or relative will.Two problems as I see them: one, we have talked our selves into Obama's over rated prowress. Two we are underestimating McCain. It is going to be a very close race and we should stop listening to our own sonar and reachout beyond our sewing circle.

by joliepoint on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 03:53:22 PM EST

swim in the water (none / 0)

Maybe it means to be able to speak the language and blend into culture of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

But I think McCain has water on the brain.

McCain housing policy shaped by lobbyist.

by obsessed on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 04:31:28 PM EST

Swim in the Water (none / 0)

Please stop making stupid arguments like this. The analogy is clear; we need spies who fit into the local surroundings.

You are only giving fodder to the freepers.

by Mark Matson on Sat Jun 14, 2008 at 05:23:21 PM EST

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