One of presumptive GOP nominee Senator John McCain’s most sensitive — but important — operations has just gotten a lot more delicate. How can he distance himself from President George Bush to show he isn’t a political extension of Bush (which he needs to do) yet still take advantage of Bush’s support among Republican rank-and-file and fundraising abilities (which he needs to do)?
Today is a day when the delicacy — and potential perils — of this are being seen with all of its agony (political bumps) and ecstasy (McCain could get an infusion of campaign funds):
ABC News’ Sunlen Miller Reports: Senator Obama capitalized on Senator McCain’s closed door meeting with President Bush today to paint the presumptive Republican nominee as a continuation of the Bush administration’s failed policies.
“Today, John McCain is having a different kind of meeting. He’s holding a fundraiser with George Bush behind closed doors in Arizona. No cameras. No reporters,” Obama said in remarks, “And we all know why. Senator McCain doesn’t want to be seen, hat-in-hand, with the President whose failed policies he promises to continue for another four years. But the question for the American people is: do we want to continue George Bush’s policies?”
McCain needs Bush’s help on fundraising, so he’s going to be with him to raise funds. Fair enough. But there could be a political price for this, particularly if Obama jumps on the issue as he has already.
Yet, limiting the press to just use one or two perfunctory photos of the two GOPers and keeping the press from entering the event itself could prove a big long-run mistake: McCain now trying to distance himself will become a major and legitimate political story for the news media. By keeping the press out, editors are going to want to make sure this aspect of the ongoing Campaign 2008 story is covered.
So expect to see not just stories about this fundraiser but more stories about McCain trying to keep a distance from Bush while being close enough to take advantage of Bush political mavens such as Karl Rove and Bush’s still considerable fundraising abilities. Also expect the Democrats to hammer on this issue — since by limiting the press McCain is indicating it’s an issue his campaign feels could be harmful.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.