He pimped his wife to voters as a potential contestant in a local “beauty contest” that involves skimpy swimwear, topless parades and simulated sex acts. (Video here of both McCain’s “quip” and a typical night’s entertainment in the contest) As I’m sure you’ll all be simply astonished to read, the MSM is bending over backwards to explain the gaffe away, as just one of those things that happens when you’re “having a little fun” at a “very short” campaign stop and don’t “entirely get” what happens in those colourful local events. Aww, campaigning is So Hard, give the creepy sexist a break!
As Jesse Taylor at Pandagon wrote:
If John McCain stabbed a Girl Scout in the face, at least the Washington Post would be able publish its long-awaited series, “How Little Girls Are Magnets For Knives”.
Melissa at Shakesville asks:
How does Cindy McCain, who frankly sounds like a woman I wouldn’t mind knowing, stay married to this guy?
Liss also has a transcript.
It makes one even fonder of Paris Hilton for organising this terrific viral video smackdown of McCain, whose campaign included unflattering footage of her (and Britney Spears) without permission or any consideration at all in an attack video against Obama which had all those subliminal racist undertones you might expect in a video featuring an uppity black man juxtaposed against some blonde white women. Yes, the video message is simplistic and she’s just consolidating her brand, but she’s employed some good writers and is delivering the message with humour and verve.
Which unfortunately raises the crucial question: why can a Hollywood starlet do this so effectively, to both defend her reputation and advance her career, yet the Obama team hasn’t managed to do so when he wants to persuade people to vote for him as President? It’s the ineffectual response narrative of Gore and Kerry all over again. Damn it Team Obama, do better, because otherwise the election gets handed to McCain on a silver platter.
