McCain tussles with Palin over whipping up a mob mentality

The Sunday Times ^ | October 12, 2008 | Sarah Baxter

[Bratch]

With his electoral prospects fading by the day, Senator John McCain has fallen out with his vice-presidential running mate about the direction of his White House campaign.

McCain has become alarmed about the fury unleashed by Sarah Palin, the moose-hunting “pitbull in lipstick”, against Senator Barack Obama. Cries of “terrorist” and “kill him” have accompanied the tirades by the governor of Alaska against the Democratic nominee at Republican rallies.

Mark Salter, McCain’s long-serving chief of staff, is understood to have told campaign insiders that he would prefer his boss, a former Vietnam prisoner of war, to suffer an “honourable defeat” rather than conduct a campaign that would be out of character – and likely to lose him the election.

[HawaiianGecko]

  "WTF? Is the MSM shallow enough to actually eat this nonsense up?"   Exactly what are they eating up?
http://news.google.com/news?q=palin%20secret%20service%20kill%20him&rls=com.microsoft:*:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7DKUS&um=1&sa=N&tab=wn  

Washington Post

Rage Grows at McCain/Palin Rallies as Obama Strides Toward Victory OpEdNews, PA - 10 hours ago ... Palin's line of attack on Obama at an Oct. 6 rally in Clearwater, Florida, prompted one man to shout, "Kill him!" (a secret service investigation is ... Sarah Palin's running mate holds his tongue Los Angeles Times Heating up ScienceBlogs McCain-Palin Put 'Country Last' Consortium News Progressive.org all 1,355 news articles »

AFP

US Secret Service probes death threats against Obama AFP - Oct 9, 2008 "We did make some inquiries after the Washington Post reported on Tuesday that a someone had yelled 'kill him,'" he added. Donovan said it wasn't clear ... CBS Barack Obama called 'terrorist' at Republican rallies as US ... Telegraph.co.uk McCain Forced To Defend Obama's Character DigitalJournal.com College News - ABC News all 5,199 news articles »

Secret Service probes death threats on Obama
Arab Times, Kuwait - 22 hours ago
“We did make some inquiries after the Washington Post reported on Tuesday that a someone had yelled ‘kill him,’” he added. Donovan said it wasn’t clear ...

Malaysia Star

Agents probe rally death call The Australian, Australia - Oct 10, 2008 THE US Secret Service has investigated an alleged death threat against Democrat Barack Obama made on Monday at a rally for presidential rival John McCain as ... Hate campaign scares Obama's camp Melbourne Herald Sun After the Showdown in Nashville New York Times all 1,662 news articles »

Boston Globe

Supporters jeer as McCain calls Obama 'a decent person' Boston Globe, United States - 23 hours ago The incidents became the subject of extensive media attention, and apparent interest from the Secret Service. Earlier yesterday, Obama responded directly to ... Obama thanks McCain for toning down rhetoric AFP McCain Backing off from Hate Rallies - is it too late? OpEdNews McCain urges supporters to be respectful in their comments Austin American-Statesman Macon County News all 687 news articles »

'Kill Him' Reports Being Probed
Tampa Tribune, FL - Oct 9, 2008
By WILLIAM MARCH wmarch@tampatrib.com TAMPA - The US Secret Service is looking into reports that a crowd member yelled,"Kill him!" while Gov. Sarah Palin ...

[bayliving]

and the race will come down to turnout.

Doesn't it always?

In the end all that matters is how energized and motivated your side is!

ALL of my conservative friends can't wait to vote or have already voted absentee!

I live in the True Blue state of Maryland and I only see McCain/Palin yard signs everywhere and some of them are HUGE!!! (Not scientific I know but if there were that much excitement out there for That One then don't you think that there would be more willingness to show it?)

Only about HALF of the democRATs I know are just half excited about That One and "might" vote for him. The other half? They said they will not be voting this year.

Only anecdotal I know, but it is just my observation.

And yes it is true that it may all come down to Sarah Palin's popularity for us to win. I for one am just fine with that.

[kesg]

Mark Salter, McCain’s long-serving chief of staff, is understood to have told campaign insiders that he would prefer his boss, a former Vietnam prisoner of war, to suffer an “honourable defeat”

I, for one, am not interested in suffering an "honorable" defeat. A defeat means the victory of a socialist with a background of radical left wing politics (insert Joe Biden's comment "past is prologue" here), a very unhealthy fetish for censorship of his political opponents, and who sees America as our enemies see it. Let Obama suffer a defeat, honorable or otherwise. For Pete's sake.

[mmz]

Palin is the only reason I feel any passion about this race. I respect McCain’s service to our country but if he has no passion for this campaign, how can we? Palin is doing all the work and is the only one trying to keep it alive. Maybe it’s better to let it die, take a break, let the socialists (oops, I mean democrats) take the heat and the hate for a change, let them run things to the ground and let Palin re-emerge on her own in 4 years.

[TomGuy]

Only an idiot or a Briton would believe that Palin is out there, a loose cannon, doing her own thing, and that McCain is arguing with her to tone it down,,etc.

One of the major complains was that Team McCain were not allowing Palin to do interviews after the Convention and until the VP debate. That was not Palin's doing; that was the handlers' doing.

Palin's problem is that she is upstaging the GOP presidental candidate. You can bet that grates on his ego.

[Rembrandt]

Ahh, Sunday morning. I’d like my eggs over easy; put the bullshit on the side.

[incredulous joe]

I also think this may be designed to put Palin in the least flattering possible light in London. We know who she is and what she is about here, but I bet you average Joe on the street in London thinks that she is a nutter!

[FlyVet]

Cries of “terrorist” and “kill him” have accompanied the tirades by the governor of Alaska against the Democratic nominee at Republican rallies.

Uh huh. "I'm Sarah Palin and I approve this message."

Barack Alinsky Obama.

[Ol' Sparky]

Did you read the article and what chief of staff supposedly said? I doubt a UK newspaper has the much stake in making that up.

[dixiechick2000]

"McCain needs to wake up to the fact that this young, inexperienced, short-term junior senator defeated Mrs. Inevitable and the Clinton Machine for the Democratic nomination."

No...McCain needs to wake up to the fact that this "young, inexperienced, short-term junior senator" is a product of the Chicago Machine, which is where the DNC has relocated.

Obama is a thug, and nothing less.

He will out himself, or those around him will, soon.

[Jazz1968]

I don’t know why so many folks here buy into this media bile either. Hell just two days ago the theme around here was that the media was turning on BO.
Between these kinds of stories and the polls, everyday is like a damn roller coaster here.

It’s the voters that decide this election not McCain, BO or the media.
You have a vote and voice.
Use both and let the chips fall!!!

[Frantzie]

We don’t even know if he said “honourable defeat” in any context. Stop repeating propaganda. The entire story is TOTAL disinformation filled with lies to depress Repub turnout and cause division in our ranks. Geez.

[Soul Seeker]

What a...we’re expected to buy this? Give me a break.

Try a new fairytale Libs.

[San Jacinto]

"A member of the crowd" yells Kill Him. Big effin deal. Crowds at McCain rallies are not frothing at the bit and demanding Obama's bllod, but that's what the media wants to get out there.

No, the media is not falling for this nonsense, they are promoting it.

[Tublecane]

You can tell the MSM was waiting on pins and needles for some way to hang racism on the McCain campaign. There couldn’t have been a weaker case than the one occasioned by the call of “Kill him!” given that it isn’t at all clear whether the audience memeber was referring to Obama or Ayers (both had been brought up by Palin shortly before the yell).

I wouldn’t be surprised if the op-eds had alrerady been written a few months ago, with blanks like mad libs, waiting for the particulars to be filled in.

[line drive to right]

Whatever legitimate “hate” that there might be at McCain-Palin rallies is likely caused by plants from the Obama camp. It’s straight out of the playbook of the 60’s and 70’s radicals (such as Ayers/Dohrn), to pose as the other side while creating some sort of violence, confusion and controversy. While doing that, they divide their enemy. And, we are their enemy.....I suggest we raise the possibility that it is Obama supporters infiltrating McCain-Palin rallies, and causing the mayhem, making us look bad.

[incredulous joe]

LOL.

On that note,...

Night, night, kiddies.

Don't let the UK propagandists get yer knickers in a twitch. Last time I checked they have the same electoral votes as Nova Scotia and Venezuela.

[dixiechick2000]

She was truly awesome, wasn’t she?

She’s made her statement for life, and damned him for his stand on abortion.

What an amazing lady.

McCain should turn her loose on Obama.

(I had to think about the word “loose”. I wanted to write it as “lose”. Such is the wordcheck on FR. lol)

[Engineer_Soldier]

I don’t if this has been posted yet, I’m sure it has since y’all are quick on the draw, but here’s the video in question of McCain selling out and then getting boo’d.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llef8ZRTWQo&NR=1

[counterpunch]

Why do you not want 0bama’s Democratic Socialists of America membership to be exposed?
And don’t you think that if McCain is going to make issue of Ayers as he has, he should have a point to it?
All of 0bama’s distasteful associates we’ve learned about have one thing in common: fringe left-wing politics. You don’t think that is the correct conclusion for McCain to draw?