As we've said before (more than once,
in fact), Stumper knows how painful political ads can be--even if
they're only
30 seconds long. Today, we make haiku of the latest releases from
Barack Obama and John McCain. First up is the newest--and most
effusive--spot in McCain's two-week-old "Barack Spears"
series, followed by the Democrat's belated response. Find out what the
candidates are actually trying to tell you--without
suffering through their cheesy commercials:
"Fan Club" by John McCain
Web Ad, Aug. 11, 2008
"Hot chicks dig" Barack--
Hot WHITE chicks. Not frightened yet?
He'll raise your taxes!*
P.S. Oh, and about that "tax increase on everyone earning more than $42,000 a year"? Not quite true. According to FactCheck.org, "Obama's plan promises cuts for middle-income taxpayers and would
increase rates only for persons with family incomes above $250,000 or
with individual incomes above $200,000."
"Celebrity" by Barack Obama
National Cable, Aug. 11 2008
"Same." "Old." "Washington."
Same as Dubya--but older
By "decades." Like Washington.
A few points of interest, while we have your attention: 1) Some
pundits say that Obama waited too long--two weeks--to bite back on the
"celebrity" front. But we think his timing was savvy. At this point,
the "McCain takes the low road" meme is firmly fixed in voters'
minds--which allows Obama to attack without damaging his "high road"
brand. 2) The Obama spot will run only on national cable, which means,
as the Atlantic's Marc Ambinder notes,
"that for the most part it's intended to make an imprint in the minds
of political elites." Another smart move: no need to go fully national,
because with Obama away on vacation, Chris Matthews and Co. will lavish
the ad with plenty of free coverage. Cable abhors a vacuum. And 3) according to the Politico's Ben Smith, "a cynic might see [Fan Club] as a bit of Putinesque skirmishing on the border
of race designed to provoke the other side into a broader war." Call us cynical.