A Moment in Lakeville, Minnesota

Sen. John McCain, tonight, changing his tone, chastising his angry allies, chastened, it seems, by the criticism.  Many Democrats will be skeptical and start to parse; many Republicans will wonder why McCain felt he needed to do this in the first place; the press will go bananas (in a good way for McCain); press critics will sigh and write about pendulum swinging and the cult of fairness; others from both parties will wonder whether there is an appeal to independents in all of this; whatever it is, to me, it seems pretty real.

AMC, channeling Richard Ben Cramer:

An audience member teed up a great big softball that could totally hit a dark side home run, asking, "We want you to fight at your next debate... we want to see s REAL fight at the debate, we want a STRONG leader for the next four years."  ....

But then something weird happens: He acknowledges the "energy" people have been showing at rallies, and how glad he is that people are excited. But, he says, "I respect Sen. Obama and his accomplishments." People booed at the mention of his name. McCain, visibly angry, stopped them: "I want EVERYONE to be respectful, and lets make sure we are."

The very next questioner tried to push back on this request, noting that he needed to "tell the American the TRUTH about Barack Obama" -- a not very subtle way, I think, to ask John McCain to NOT tell the truth about Barack Obama. McCain told her there's a "difference between record and rhetoric, and I plan to talk about his record, respectfully... I don't mean that has to reduce your ferocity, I just mean it has to be respectful."

And then later, again, someone dangled a great big piece of low-hanging fruit in front of McCain: "I'm scared to bring up my child in a world where Barack Obama is president."

McCain replies, "Well, I don't want him to be president, either. I wouldn't be running if I did. But," and he pauses for emphasis, "you don't have to be scared to have him be President of the United States." A round of boos.

And he snaps back: "Well, obviously I think I'd be better. "

Comments

I hope people aren't fooled by this contrived display.

There is one of either 2 things happening here.

One, McCain is trying to both get the smears into the echo chamber and get credit for cooling down the crowds he and his people whipped up themselves. It's like an arsonist wanting brownie points for calling the fire department.

Two, McCain backed off his strategy because of the criticism, not because he has any problem with it per se. It was a move of calculation, not principle.

Either way, McCain is being as erratic on smearing Obama as he was on the bailout.

Posted by RKA | October 10, 2008 8:19 PM

Even if it isn't contrived, which it probably is considering the pounding that McCain has justifiably been getting in the press for his lying tactics lately, it's a bit hard to get all the nasty back into Pandora's Box once his supporters have been feasting on it for weeks.

In my opinion, McCain knows he is going to lose and this is a last, desperate attempt to salvage something of his reputation after he gets what he so richly deserves.

Posted by Jim Crozier | October 10, 2008 8:28 PM

Even if the change in tone is genuine Marc, he hardly deserves much credit for quashing the flames that he's knowingly fanned over the past week. And why now? Why not respond this way when first the crowd began to resemble a klan rally? It wouldn't have anything to do with the backlash that he's faced for his disgusting tactics, would it?

Posted by doublavoo | October 10, 2008 8:29 PM

I dunno, it looks to me like McCain is actually somewhat shocked about what his campaign has sowed in his supporters. You could see it at first with his expression after someone shouted "terrorist" at the rally earlier this week.

Here, people were saying they were "scared" of Obama and one woman called him "an Arab". One on hand, it would be politically impossible for him to just ignonre those remarks or not challenge them - he'd look worse than his unhinged supporters. On the other, I think he finally gets the fire he's playing with and is trying to stop it, if he can.

Does McCain get any credit for this? Not. At. All. This was his campaign's doing for the disgusting "Who IS Obama, really", "He worked with a domestic TERRORIST" comments they've been making. You don't give an arsonist credit for trying to put out the fire he set, even if he realized the damage he was causing.

Posted by Justin | October 10, 2008 8:34 PM

Well, its a start.

I'm always on the side of sanity.

Posted by Joel | October 10, 2008 8:42 PM

I agree with Jim Crozier. I think McCain has realized on a conscious level that he's likely to lose this campaign and is trying to salvage what little is left of his reputation. But, I also believe that if the Ayers smear and the KKK-like atmosphere at his rallies had succeeded in turning the polls around, he'd be leaning full force into the hate and amping up the rhetoric. It's only the failure of this tactic that has made him step back from it.

Posted by mbtogut | October 10, 2008 8:49 PM

I think McCain was truly embarrassed by the direction of his campaign of late. I will vote Democratic fo the first time in my life this year, but McCain was one of the few GOP candidates I was willing o consider. He has been a very honorable man for many years.... He seemed to allow others to run his campaign, and the compaign being run was not John McCain. I was happy to see the old John McCain come back

Posted by Doug | October 10, 2008 8:57 PM

I'm an Obama supporter, but I think McCain was probably genuinely upset if/when he heard some of the things his supporters were saying.

McCain is not the right leader for the country. His views on foreign policy are wrong. His economic ideology, just by virtue of being so ideologically driven, is wrong. He is out of touch and out of ideas, and not the leader needed to move the country forward and fix the problems created over the past 8 years. He lacks respect for Obama. He doesn't understand his appeal. He has a real disdain for Obama as a politician, if not as a man, and has far too strong a sense of entitlement when it comes to the presidency. His temperment is not appropriate for the office.

But he's not a racist. He doesn't want to see somebody assassinated.

However, he is using "otherness" and raising questions about Obama's "associates" as a way to make voters wary of the candidate, and should have foreseen the impact of this type of messaging and electoral tactic on his weaker brethren.

Posted by TH | October 10, 2008 8:58 PM

This comes across to me as a realization on the part of Sen. McCain that the negative campaigning and mis-truths and non-facts HAVE gone too far. He's opened Pandora's Box, and after scrambling to reseal it I highly doubt there will be even hope left inside.

When his supporters are being interviewed in line to his rallies proclaiming Sen. Obama as a terrorist, overtly comparing him to Osama Bin Laden, spouting anti-black and anti-Muslim rhetoric with abandon, he's quite right to try to keep that in check. It's not going to do his campaign any good if it's known what vitriol and hatred his supporters (his "base," if you will) are spilling in the name of campaigning.

If Sen. Obama wins on November 4, the Secret Service going to have their hands full.

Posted by Nil Jones | October 10, 2008 8:59 PM

The man has been throwing matches at a tender box all week. There have been cries of terrorist, treason, off with his head, racial slurs and kill him. So now McCain finally says stop. How impressive. How mavericky.
He needs to pull the ads, apologize to the American public, and apologize to the Obama family.

Posted by msw | October 10, 2008 9:03 PM

Seriously, would any politician who wanted to be viable for nat'l office really let that kind of thing slide when he's caught on tv with it?

And he's getting credit as an upstanding guy for this?

Think before you laud.

Posted by Jeez Louise | October 10, 2008 9:18 PM

I'm prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt that this is sincere, but he has to follow through. Only an hour or two before this happened, his campaign was defending these wackos and going after Obama for looking down on "real Americans." That kinda crap needs to stop, too. Otherwise, tonight was just another cheap McCain stunt.

Posted by K | October 10, 2008 9:50 PM

I agree with those who think McCain may have been genuinely shocked at what he unleashed. It was supposed to give wavering voters a little subliminal push, not get crowds chanting for his death.

Whether this is prompted by the stirrings of his remaining shreds of decency or a clear message from the non-crazy part of the party that they will leave him to go down with his rabid 10% clinging to his throat, it's a welcome move. Now, let's see if Palin can follow suit.

"He's an Arab terrorist." Jeez. This he couldn't let go by, but all the stuff that passed this week was okay? Or all those teed up softballs, in the atmosphere of jaw-dropping "who will free me from this Senator" bullshit that has been the McCain-Palin campaign this week, would too clearly have been replayed endlessly on the nightly news? "Woman calls Obama an Arab terrorist, "Heh heh" says McCain"?

He won't win this election, but maybe he can emerge with some tiny part of his previous reputation intact.

Posted by Deborah | October 10, 2008 9:58 PM

John McCain did not want to take the heat if ANYTHING happened to Obama after he and Palin
whipped up his supporters into a frenzy that included someone yelling remarks that set off
the SECRET SERVICE investigating a Florida rally.

It only takes ONE NUT JOB. McCain would be remembered for NOTHING ELSE. What words would be enough to spin or apologize? Having 'the third rail of American politics' as the first line of McCain's legacy probably woke up someone in their campaign. Something like that would affect the GOP for a long time to come.

Posted by v brown | October 10, 2008 10:06 PM

I'll credit McCain with being sincere in telling his supporters that Obama is not a dangerous terrorist when his campaign stops running ads that claim that Obama is a dangerous man that works with terrorists.

Until then, color me unimpressed.

Posted by Gabriel | October 10, 2008 10:20 PM

I think this was a genuine reaction to the forces that his campaign has sewn with the public. I will say that Mccain is a decent, honorable man who has served his country well. However, his campaign has not been decent or honorable and he was definitely playing with fire. I will not give Sarah Palin or Rick Davis the benefit of the doubt, however. Palin is a demagogue and the worst thing to come out of the Republican party in many years.

As a black man, I genuinely fear for Obama's safety. This isn't the 60's, but worse things have happened.

Posted by Courtney H | October 10, 2008 10:23 PM

No Marc, it doesn't work the way you want it to work. I understand your job is to cover up for the McCain camp but I will not let you get away with spewing some nonsense.

McCain is EITHER his old self, or his new self (Karl Rove-ite, Schmidt...). He can't run dirty, nasty ads about Senator Obama, and let racists and bigots in his rallies call for Senator Obama's head one day, and then turn around the next day. Perhaps it is his erratic nature. He never seems to know what the appropriate response to any situation is. Once he gets DINGED, then he realizes what a fool he was. He wouldn't have done what he did today had it not been for all the negative press and the negative narrative that was building. You don't get to kill someone and then after the fact say you're sorry. Likewise, McCain can't run a nasty, disgraceful campaign (attacking Michelle Obama) all day, and then one day, magically change.

It will work with McCainiacs like you because that is your job, to cover for the McCain campaign. But it won't work for any ordinary person who doesn't have something vested in the election.

Posted by David | October 10, 2008 10:40 PM

Oh, I absolutely agree with all these fine folks that McCain needs to make sure that the fans aren't flamed and people don't resort to violence in order to achieve their political ends...

...you know, like Bill Ayers used to do...

Spare me all your concerns about right wing hysteria. To date, the only guy who has actually used violence for political ends is associated with the Democratic, not the Republican, candidate.

But don't let that get in the way of your narratives about dark souls and evil hearts on the right....

Posted by Horatius | October 10, 2008 10:41 PM

McCain has been floundering for traction---why not make the grand gesture and renounce his current campaign of smears and negativity? He could play out his campaign as a "maverick" who rejected the low road. At least he would save what's left of his reputation and he may just garner a few votes...

Posted by Gail | October 10, 2008 11:16 PM

One more thing Marc... Check out this video from Pennsylvania. You thought the video from Ohio was bad. These are the people who will pick a president? These guys are hardly different from the KKK.

http://www.americablog.com/2008/10/witness-hate-that-mccain-and-palin-are.html

Posted by David | October 10, 2008 11:27 PM

Horatius, if you think that the left wing has had a monopoly on the use of political violence in this country, you probably should take a closer look at those histories of the 1960's.

Posted by Gabriel | October 10, 2008 11:47 PM

Horatius-

A rhetorical question for you: who is worse, Barack Obama or Ronald Reagan?

Before you answer, here's a hint... ((funding the Contras and their death squads illegally vs. sitting on a board with a washed up slimeball )).

Posted by Ignoratius | October 11, 2008 12:04 AM

I believe McCain was upset at the rally tonight when the racists began to speak. I don't believe he is a racist he's just a fool. He set off this craziness that Obama is a terrorist. Although this sort of hysteria was started during the Hillary/Obama days, McCain & Palin fueled it even more. I understand what McCain was trying to do with his smear campaigns and I don't think it was to incite racism, it was to incite distrust in Obama's ability to run the country. But the crazies will take from it what they want to rationalize their own nutty behavior. I worry about Obama now that the hatred in this country is so blatant. I fear for his safety. I want him to be my president I hope and pray nothing stands in his way.

Posted by Michelle | October 11, 2008 12:19 AM

Gabriel,

Excuse me, kind sir, but where exactly is Bull Connor on McCain's list of advisors? I stand by what I said--for all the fears about the GOP being the new KKK being displayed on this site, the only guy who has actually used violence for political ends and is actually involved as a factor in this campaign is on the left, not the right. Period. Bringing up racists from 45 years ago will not change that fact.

But it will highlight the fact that if McCain or any other Republican had any contact with those kinds of cretins--the Connors, etc., it would not be fluffed off quite so easily as a "guy in the neighborhood".

Let's just be honest--I don't like your side and you don't like mine. But if we can't maintain that sometimes there must be certain standards of fair play that apply to *both* sides, then we truly will have a situation where some of these fears displayed on this site will come true. For those who detest the thought of studying "dead white males", let me recommend you nevetheless slum it for a few minutes and study Thucydides, Book 3, chapters 80-84.

You cannot decry signs of anger on one side and have these great concerns about violence, and then give a pass to a leader who has consorted with a radical and unrepetent criminal on the other. Choose one worldview and stick with it, preferably one based upon principles than elections.

Or in other words, so far the stuff on the right has been venting (and still far less vicious than the "chimpybushmchitler" routine), and the other has been actual real-world practical involving death and mayhem. What you choose to get worked up about says a lot...so which one are you going to make a stand on?

Posted by Horatius | October 11, 2008 12:26 AM

Horatius-

Two more questions, no hints this time.

(1) Where is Bill Ayers on Obama's list of advisors?
(2) and what is The U.S. Council for World Freedom?

Posted by Ignoratius | October 11, 2008 12:33 AM

Ignoratius,

After great thought and much pondering, I have concluded that the sum message of your exquisite retorts to my posts boils down to "I know you are, but what am I?".

Bravo, sir, bravo. I congratulate you on your self-assurance of correctness, and pray that you may one day be able to communicate to the rest of us what, if any, actual thought process goes on to justify such confidence of righteousness.

Or in other words, I will debate a debater, but not a baiter. Until then, your questions will have to remain unanswered.

Posted by Horatius | October 11, 2008 12:50 AM

More than anything else, this shows me the bubble the McCain campaign is in. For days now, Mrs. McCain, Gov. Palin, and surrogates have been busy fomenting this manic hostility. It has been getting out of control for days now, and it appears that no one was picking up on this. I think recent articles like the one in the Baltimore Sun may have finally gotten through. But the tone-deafness is positively Bushian.

Posted by Mason | October 11, 2008 12:51 AM

McCain and Palin have sown the wind with their hate speeches against Obama. They are generating an Aryan Nation, Skinhead response that is reminiscent of the Nazi rallies at Nuremburg and our own KKK lynch mobs. Shouts of Traitor, Kill Him! Off with his head! are frequently heard. McCain and his partner in crime are fully aware of the meaninglessness of their charges but it plays well to blood-thirsty rabid supporters who cannot accept McCain's impending defeat. McCain's campaign is a disgrace.

Posted by jefflz | October 11, 2008 1:42 AM

Horatius-

Your first post said, and I quote, "To date, the only guy who has actually used violence for political ends is associated with the Democratic, not the Republican, candidate"

With that in mind, two more questions:
(1) Number of civilian casualties caused by the Weather Underground when Barack Obama was 8 years old?
(2) Number of innocent civilian casualties in the war Iraq?

Hint: John McCain's quote from the deck of the USS PanderingToTheElectorate, "Next up, Baghdad!"

Extra Special Hint: Barack Obama opposed the war in Iraq.

So to rephrase your quote to better reflect reality

"To date, the only guy who has actually used violence for political ends is John McCain. But don't let that get in the way of your narratives about dark souls and evil hearts on the right...."

Posted by Ignoratius | October 11, 2008 2:38 AM

Hey "TH", I hate to tell you this, but in fact Senator McCain's views on Foreign Policy are dead on. I have plenty of experience with International Affairs, and his assessment of Iraq and other Worldly Events is much closer to reality than what Senator Obama has been portraying. Say what you will about your differing personal philosophies and political views, but the one issue that Senator McCain has completely correct are his Foreign Policies.

It frustrates me to hear Senator Obama declare his "ability" to repair our image in the World, yet all that he ever has in mind is Europe. Most Americans who seem to believe that our image is tarnished the World Over, are succumbing to the views of the Western World, not the rest of the Globe. In the Muslim, Arab, Asian, and Middle Eastern World for example, we have lost much respect since we pulled out of Afghanistan in 1992. The reason? We keep telling everyone we will fight beside them, and be there for them, but then we pull-up and leave in a hurry. We did it time and time again in Afghanistan leading up to 9/11, and we allowed our greatest ally in that Nation to be Assassinated because of it.

Strength, Honor, and Loyalty are respected in those parts of the world, not Socialist Views and Niceties such as those espoused by Europe. Watch, I guarantee you that if we pull out of Iraq in the manner which Senator Obama promotes, we will be leaving behind the same vacuum which allowed for Osama Bin-Laden, his Taliban, and their Al-Qaeda "soldiers" to take root in Afghanistan. Back in 1992 folks said "Oh, they're half-way around the world, they won't come all the way over here and bother us, let them fight themselves". Well, 9 Years, and 3,000 Dead Americans Later, are YOU willing to state the same?

Posted by TheKing | October 11, 2008 3:00 AM

Horatius - people making death threats and declaring Obama to be an "arab" that they are "scared" of isn't the worst thing you've seen this election?

Obama's associated with some shady people. One of whom was a terrorist 40 years ago, and has since become a respected part of Chicago society. He's also denounced them and will never associate with them again. If you want to judge him on those old associations, fine.

McCain within the LAST WEEK has incited some people to make death threats against the democratic candidate, declare him a traitor to the US and express fear that he's a sleeper agent acting for the middle east. Only after a week of calls for his head did he finally decide to do anything to try to stop those people from wanting the death of the democratic candidate. And yet somehow, McCain is still an innocent party in all this and Obama is an evil one.

I know we're on different sides of the aisle. But if I'm on the side of the aisle with the people who irrationally think their opponent is an arab terrorist and wish for his death, I'd probably hide out till after the election due to shame. McCain doesn't have to have associated with former terrorists, he's trying to get new ones started ASAP.

Posted by Justin | October 11, 2008 3:33 AM

Solid, smart exchange. You two should do a bloggingheads sometime. Too often video commentary is only from pundits and not real reporters like yourself.

Posted by Simon | October 11, 2008 4:16 AM

I have been an Obama supporter since early in the primaries, and I have to say that I am with Marc on this one. I think that if you watch the videos you can clearly see a McCain that is very uncomfortable with the things being yelled at his rallies even before tonight.

Is it really so hard to believe that McCain thought he was engaging in some hyperbole to try and establish a point and was surprised that there are people out there who took what he said literally? Sure, he started the forest fire and we should remember that. However, it seems fair to say that he may have thought he was just starting a campfire and things got out of control. If he is willing to fight the fire now instead of stoking the damned thing, then he deserves credit for that.

It must be hard to fight the crazies at your own rally just a few weeks before an election. And he didn't just tell them to tone it down. He also said Obama was a good man and that people shouldn't be scared of an Obama presidency. Those are both more than I would have expected.

Posted by socratic_me | October 11, 2008 4:27 AM

To be honest I don't care if McCain feels bad or not. No one at those hate rallies is going to listen to his advice. They're voting for the ticket in spite of him.

This is a very depressing flashback to W's first term. Remember when we were told by the media that W felt really, really bad about sending troops to Iraq? Remember when we were told by the media that W felt really, really bad about cheerleading for a federal amendment to ban legal benefits between gay couples?

Are our expectations so pathetically low for Republican candidates that we're supposed to applaud them for having an occasional flash of remorse?

I can already tell this is going to make the media writhe in pleasure and probably give McCain a big boost in support. Ugh. I don't know why I ever expect better.

Posted by Carl | October 11, 2008 5:24 AM

McCain is backed to a corner - if he continues with the HATE OBAMA meme, he loses Indys... if he puts the kabash on the HATE OBAMA meme, he loses the rabid righties who'll just stay home or vote for Barr.

Bummer... NOT.

I wonder how many Senators and/or Secret Service calls McCain's been getting this week?

Posted by Julie in VT | October 11, 2008 8:43 AM

Let the McCain campaign take down its Ayers ads ad its statements on Obama's purported mysteriousness and then we can conclude that McCain has decided that things have gone too far.

Posted by Democrat | October 11, 2008 10:42 AM

McCain can't be a good man and win as a republican. It won't work the two are incompatible. If McCain wanted to be president his best chance would have been to be Kerry's running mate and hoped that Kerry disgraced himself. The people republicans need to win in times like these are too bad to root for a good guy. Vinick was a fictional character.

Posted by Michael Foody | October 11, 2008 3:11 PM

Horatius
Perhaps I have been too subtle.

So, I shall be more direct. Please correct any gaps in my logic.

Your assertion (which I quote verbatim)
To date, the only guy who has actually used violence for political ends is associated with the Democratic, not the Republican, candidate.

To prove you wrong, I mentioned
1. Ronald Reagan
2. US Council for World Freedom
3. The Iraq War

Why did I mention these?
1. McCain says Reagan is his hero....Reagan's terrorist associations with the Contras. They killed people. Lots of them. Dead.
2. McCain was associated with the US Council for World Freedom who supported the Contras, who, as I mentioned above killed people dead.
3. McCain voted for and lustily supports the Iraq war. Did you know that there were a lot of people killed in Iraq? 1000's and 1000's

In Conclusion
Your assertion {see above} is wrong. The End.

Posted by Ignoratius | October 12, 2008 12:50 AM

This is a little like patting an arsonist on the back for trying to put out the fire that he started. If, in fact, the McCain campaign turns "respectful" overnight, it will be regarded by most people as just another "lurch."

Posted by Brooklyn Democrat | October 13, 2008 5:35 AM

I've asked this question on one of Coates's threads, but I haven't gotten an answer yet.

If Ayers is a terrorist, why is he not in jail for life? Granted, the whole Weatherman thing happened before I was born, so I don't have full information about it. But the fact that he's walking free today suggests to me that either he wasn't all that much of a terrorist, or that Nixon (who was President from 1969-74, when the Weathermen were most active) must have been soft on terrorism.

Posted by Tel | October 13, 2008 9:12 AM