McCain suspends campaign temporarily and asks for postponement of debate

[cinyc]

Why would Mccain want to ditch the debate on foreign policy? That makes no sense. In any case the debate will be postponed and not canceled right?

Simple: McCain needs to go big or he risks going home - losing the election.

This is a bold move at a time when (McCain spin) Washington needs a bipartisan reformer like John McCain to bring both sides together on the bail out package.  Obama's just another partisan Democrat who is putting his campaign first.  

Obama spin: McCain can't multitask.   We can do both.

Obama camp:  "The debate is on."

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/09/mccain-not-comm.html

Obama's going to have fun debating an empty podium while Senator McCain is in Washington trying to get things done.

[cinyc]

Agree to the suspension, but suggest the debate go ahead with the economy as the main issue.

That's what the Obama camp should do.

Talk versus action, my friends.  Talk versus action.

[cinyc]

Haha- Barney Frank:

"Despite McCain's denunciation that the current proposal has "no consensus" and cannot pass, Frank said he would keep working with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson."

"I'm not particularly focused on Senator McCain. I really don't care," he said. "I guess if I wanted expertise there [from the GOP ticket], I'd ask Sarah Palin."

Oh yes.  Barney Frank - who blocked any Fannie Mae reform, in part to benefit his former "spouse" Herb May, Fannie Mae's former director of housing initiatives.  He's one to talk.  

[cinyc]

Agree to the suspension, but suggest the debate go ahead with the economy as the main issue.

That's what the Obama camp should do.

Talk versus action, my friends.  Talk versus action.

The American people deserve to hear a debate about the economy and this bailout. Both senators can spare a couple of hours for that. Move it to DC if need be.

This is an interesting situation. Obama can't agree to the delay because (a) it benefits McCain and (b) it'd be portrayed as a McCain victory, even though McCain campaign would never claim it.

But Obama can't show up to an empty podium in Mississippi, he'd look silly. Similarly McCain can't just not show up to a scheduled debate, he'd look silly.

A suspension and a change of debate topic would be the best compromise.

1) The debate is supposed to be on foreign policy, not the economy.
2) McCain can afford to just not show up to a scheduled debate if he's successfully doing the people's business in Washington.  Acta non verba, as Modu said.

[cinyc]

Drudge says that McCain is taking all his TV ads off the air

lol. Good. That'll certainly help him.

Free publicity is better than paid publicity.  Save the money for ads to run another day.

[cinyc]

Obama says that he's still debating.

If the Obama campaign had any sense, they'd suspend the campaign and get Obama back to Washington ASAP.

[cinyc]

Obama says that he's still debating.

If the Obama campaign had any sense, they'd suspend the campaign and get Obama back to Washington ASAP.

Dear god no.

Look at the optics.  Assume Obama doesn't go to Washington and continues to talk, talk, talk:
1) McCain goes to Washington and bailout deal is agreed to - McCain is the white knight who saved the economy is a bipartisan manner.

2) McCain goes to Washington and the bailout deal falls apart - the market plummets.  McCain tried to get Democrats and Republicans to work together, but they're too dysfunctional.  If only Obama had put country first and come to Washington, things would be better.

Game.  Set.  Advantage - Senator McCain.

Your move, Senator Obama.

[cinyc]

America thinks the republicans on this board are wrong

http://www.surveyusa.com/client/PollReportEmail.aspx?g=54d651a7-a62b-4420-bb32-9dd6b2df8c02

A poll of Adults?  Please.  Give it time - the poll numbers will change.  Remember - the President is going on prime time TV tonight to talk about the bailout package.

This will all work to McCain's advantage.   No matter what Obama does, he looks like a follower now, not a leader.

[cinyc]

The conductors of the debate would be insane to not talk about the economy. The subjects were decided long before this issue came up and can be easily shifted to do just that. We don't need a postponement of the debate at all. This is precisely the time for explaining one's ideas to the public, instead of hiding out in Washington and pretending to know what you're doing.

You're assuming that McCain is going to be hiding out in Washington pretending to know what he's doing.  Don't assume anything.  There are TV cameras in Washington.  Chuck Schumer manages to find them all the time.  And McCain knows exactly what he's doing here.

[cinyc]

http://drudgereport.com/flash3cbm.htm

EXCLUSIVE: LETTERMAN MOCKS MCCAIN CANCELLATION
Wed Sep 24 2008 17:41:58 ET

David Letterman tells audience that McCain called him today to tell him he had to rush back to DC to deal with the economy.

Then in the middle of the taping Dave got word that McCain was, in fact just down the street being interviewed by Katie Couric. Dave even cut over to the live video of the interview, and said, "Hey Senator, can I give you a ride home?"

Earlier in the show, Dave kept saying, "You don't suspend your campaign. This doesn't smell right. This isn't the way a tested hero behaves." And he joked: "I think someone's putting something in his metamucil."

"He can't run the campaign because the economy is cratering? Fine, put in your second string quarterback, Sarah Palin. Where is she?"

"What are you going to do if you're elected and things get tough? Suspend being president? We've got a guy like that now!"

Developing...

Letterman is a Democrat shill.  Always has been.

[cinyc]

http://drudgereport.com/flash3cbm.htm

EXCLUSIVE: LETTERMAN MOCKS MCCAIN CANCELLATION
Wed Sep 24 2008 17:41:58 ET

David Letterman tells audience that McCain called him today to tell him he had to rush back to DC to deal with the economy.

Then in the middle of the taping Dave got word that McCain was, in fact just down the street being interviewed by Katie Couric. Dave even cut over to the live video of the interview, and said, "Hey Senator, can I give you a ride home?"

Earlier in the show, Dave kept saying, "You don't suspend your campaign. This doesn't smell right. This isn't the way a tested hero behaves." And he joked: "I think someone's putting something in his metamucil."

"He can't run the campaign because the economy is cratering? Fine, put in your second string quarterback, Sarah Palin. Where is she?"

"What are you going to do if you're elected and things get tough? Suspend being president? We've got a guy like that now!"

Developing...

The Obama campaign would flip if McCain takes Letterman up at his offer - and sends Sarah Palin to the debate.

[cinyc]

There is an interview with a Sen. Schumer on CNN that McCain is just pulling off a political stunt, in order to take advantage of the situation, by unilaterally doing some things without even talking to Obama about it.
I completely agree. If he wants to get something done, you don't go out to say: "I suspend a campaign" publically, but you talk to the other presidential nominee first and try to get to an agreement before that.

McCain needs Obama's permission prior to making decisions about conducting his campaign?  That's interesting.

Chuck Schumer knows a thing or two about pulling off political stunts.

[cinyc]

Obama blinks:

Bush Invites Obama to DC to Work on Bailout Bill; Obama Accepts

[cinyc]

Obama blinks:

Bush Invites Obama to DC to Work on Bailout Bill; Obama Accepts

Obama is capable of working this week, and showing up to Friday's debate.

Keep spinning.  The liberal netroots are going to go nuts when they see a picture of Barack Obama with President Bush.

[cinyc]

Most of you don't get it.  This is McCain's "I shall go to Korea."  He's running against an Adlai Stevenson type; he's a military hero.  We're in 1952.

Huge difference.  First of all, in 1952, the mess was created by a President of the opposite party.  Second of all, Ike had the creds on foreign policy that Mac doesn't have on the economy.  Finally, Obama is no Adlai Stevenson, and McCain is no Eisenhower.

I don't know whether we're in 1952 or 1976, but the 1952 race featured a liberal one-term "egghead" governor from Illinois best known for giving speeches versus a war hero from points west.  There's more similarity between the Stevenson-Eisenhower matchup and Obama-McCain than first may meet the eye.

[cinyc]

J.J., I'm hoping your just trolling.  This is making McCain look either very panicky or very calculating.  It is not making him look presidential at all.   If McCain wanted to look like a doer as you put it, he'd be laying out a clear idea of what he thinks the bailout should look like.  Instead, what ideas he does have on the subject are being hopelessly blurred in the public perception by this stunt.

McCain has a bailout plan, and has released it to the public.

[cinyc]

J.J., I'm hoping your just trolling.  This is making McCain look either very panicky or very calculating.  It is not making him look presidential at all.   If McCain wanted to look like a doer as you put it, he'd be laying out a clear idea of what he thinks the bailout should look like.  Instead, what ideas he does have on the subject are being hopelessly blurred in the public perception by this stunt.

McCain has a bailout plan, and has released it to the public.

And how much press has his plan gotten?  A press release on the campaign web site five days ago is hardly pushing his ideas.

He's spoken about it (in Michigan, IIRC) and a snippet or two got on the evening news.  Now, he gets to bring that plan to Washington.

But my main point is that your initial point was incorrect - McCain HAS laid out a clear idea of what he thinks the bailout should look like.   I don't think Obama has (IIRC, he claims to have a plan but hasn't released it).

[cinyc]

Apparently they didn't need John

The Hill reports

You must be logged in to read this quote.

So what will he do in Washington now? How will he give the impression he solved the crisis when it appears they can do it without either Obama or McCain

Will McCain not debate now? will he say that he cant debate until the bill is signed, even if it looks like it will sail through?

There are Republicans in the Senate, you know.  Just because Senate Democrats think they have a deal doesn't mean what they have will pass the Senate - or match what comes out of the House.

And Harry Reid was for McCain going to Washington before he turned against it.

[cinyc]

Is everyone here so literally blinded that they cannot see this is complete theatre? Anyone who thinks this was an honest and noble move by McCain with the purest of intentions is delusional, seriously.

Well, if it is theater, Harry Reid started it yesterday by saying “We need the Republican nominee for president to let us know where he stands and what we should do.”

The Republican nominee for president is coming to Washington to tell you should do.   Why are you complaining now, Senator Reid?