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McCain: Life isn't fair
Posted by Foon Rhee, deputy national political editor October 2, 2008 09:59 AM
Republican John McCain -- making the rounds of the morning news shows as polls show him falling behind Democratic rival Barack Obama and his running mate losing the confidence of voters -- sounded either bitter or fatalistic.
Asked why Obama has been rising as the Wall Street crisis has dominated attention, McCain said on Fox News Channel: "Because life isn?t fair.?
?He certainly did nothing for the first few days," McCain added. "I suspended my campaign, took our ads down, came back to Washington, met with the House folks and got on the phone, and also had face-to-face meetings.?
McCain also batted away speculation that he's upset that his campaign apparatus has managed running mate Sarah Palin too much leading up to tonight's one and only vice presidential debate -- and expressed confidence that she'll show up in the "Show Me" state.
"She's smart, she's tough, she's been in debates before," McCain said on "Fox & Friends." "The American people ... the more they see of her, the more they love her, and I'm confident of that at the end."
Asked about criticism and attacks on Palin, McCain said on CNN: "I think the American people decide what is fair. I know that there have been attacks on Sarah Palin, that have been remarkable to me in many ways. But I have total confidence in her. She's very comfortable in her own skin. She's had more experience in leadership than Senator Obama and Senator Biden put together. She's been a mayor, she's been a governor, she knows energy issues. She negotiated a $400 billion pipeline of natural gas to the lower 48. I'm very confident about her credentials and her vision and her strength for America. So, I'm very proud of her."
He also seemed more criticial of debate moderator Gwen Ifill, who has come under criticism because she is writing a book featuring Obama. Asked on Fox News Channel whether it would work to Palin's advantage because Ifill will be under scrutiny for any bias, McCain answered, ?Frankly, I wish they had picked a moderator that isn?t writing a book favorable to Barack Obama. Let?s face it. But I have to have to have confidence that Gwen Ifill will handle this as the professional journalist that she is.?
?Life isn?t fair, as I mentioned earlier in the program,? said McCain, who is scheduled to hold a rally later today in Denver.
One of Obama's chief surrogates, meanwhile, suggested that the expectations for Palin are so low that it isn't quite fair to Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden.
Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri talked up Palin's debate experience during her 2006 race for Alaska governor. "I think Joe obviously has a challenge tonight," McCaskill said on CBS. "The expectations are so low for Sarah Palin and it's difficult for him, I think. No matter what he does he's going to be criticized. Sarah Palin will be tough tonight. She's a good debater, she's an effective communicator, and she knows how to throw a punch with a velvet glove and a smile on her face."
While his running mate readies for the debate, Obama is holding two events in Michigan. His wife, Michelle, is also in the state, urging people to register to vote by Monday's deadline.
Obama told voters in Grand Rapids this morning that the financial crisis shows, "The stakes in this election could not be higher."
But the unremitting bad news is not new news, he said, in Michigan, where the unemployment rate is double the national average.
After a burst of bipartisanship, Obama is directly attacking McCain again, saying it's time for a president who understands the struggles of average Americans and who doesn't say that the "fundamentals" of the economy are strong.
"There's nothing more fundamental than a job," he said.
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Am I the only one who is starting to feel really bad for McCain? He's starting to sound manic depressive like Lieberman.
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