Sunday, August 24, 2008

Dueling Ads

So McCain is running this ad in response to the VP nomination.  They had this ready pretty fast so you can bet they expected HRC would not be the pick a while ago.  In any case, this is a pretty transparent attempt to split the Democratic party.  It's one thing for a party to squabble among themselves but I wonder what the reaction will be to this kind of unsolicited meddling from the GOP.  I expect this ad will be responded to in the convention speeches.  There will be lots of references to "unity."  I imagine that will be the theme of Hillary Clinton's speech.  

Of course the Obama campaign is coming out of the summer vacation swinging too.  They're running this ad called "seven" and this ad called "out of touch."  I like the second one better.  I especially like the shots of McCain and the elder Bush driving around the preferred conveyance of confused, rich old men,  a golf cart.  The slack jawed, drooling look on Bush's face is great!  It also does a better job of contrasting the way McCain lives and views the economy with the way most Americans live and view the economy today. 

This ad is a cute bit of targeted attack.  They call it "backyard" but they really should have called "exploiting NIMBY."  It depicts McCain opposing nuclear waste transits through his state but supporting them in Nevada (a state that is looking increasing purple).  
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4 comments:

  1. The Law Talking Guy5:43 PM

    Two thoughts. I LOVE the Yucca/Nevada ad. It shows McCain to be petty. That's a weakness Democrats will do well to exploit. McCain is a very small person in many ways.

    I think the Clinton ad doesn't hit home. Clinton supporters didn't think that she was somehow telling the truth and bucking the powerful Obama machine. They thought she was much more experienced and the senior politician; they thought Obama was a flash in the pan, a fad. The attempt at victimhood is a good idea, because Clintonites believe that she was a victim, but of the press and party insiders, not of a Mean and Powerful Obama. The ad is offkey.

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  2. Dr. Strangelove6:38 PM

    Regardless of the tepidity or dissatisfaction with which they may greet Obama, anyone who really supported Hillary knows McCain and the Republican machine is the real enemy. His ad sounded cheap and fell flat. If that's the best McCain can come up with, Obama has this one in the bag.

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  3. Anonymous4:30 PM

    As the excellent Nate Silver points out, McCain's ad sets up a HUGE softball for Clinton. Some version of "Shame on you, John McCain" in her convention speech on Tuesday would knock a lot of the Hillary supporters firmly into Obama's camp. Let's see how she does with it.

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  4. Raised By Republicans4:59 PM

    I agree with anonymous. This sets up Hillary to really knock one out of the park for the Democratic party.

    I have to say I have not been impressed with McCain's ads at all. They seem to often send mixed messages. For example the "celebrity" ad starts with a long shot of a cheering crowd chanting Obama's name. The "maverick" ad starts with the words "Washington is broken" with ominous, scary music in the background (but McCain is the status quo candidate by default).

    Then the McCain campaign seems to be hitting hard on the message "Obama isn't prepared to be President." This sets Obama up to under cut McCain's entire strategy simply by exceeding the low bar McCain has set.

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