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Journalism of Courage
Flush with cash from record- breaking fund-raising, Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama rolled out a multi-million-dollar advertisement blitz to woo voters, an event dismissed as a “gauzy, feel-good commercial” by his Republican rival John McCain.
In the 30-minute advertisement in at least seven national TV networks – with the exception of CNN – costing several million dollars, 47-year-old Obama promised to keep the doors of government opened for the people and called for their participation in American democracy again.
“America, the time for change has come,” said Obama last night in the prime-time ad, which was mocked by McCain even before it was aired.
“And to all of you and all of those who’ve joined us from across the country, in six days, we can choose an economy that rewards work and creates jobs and fuels prosperity, starting with the middle class,” the Democrat said.
Listing his priorities if elected President in the November 4 polls, Obama said in the ad, where there was not even an indirect mention of Mccain, that he will “cut taxes for every working family making less than USD 200,000 a year; give businesses a tax credit for every new employee that they hire right here in the US over the next two years; and eliminate tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas…”
McCain, the 72-year-old Vietnam War veteran, dismissed the ad as a “gauzy, feel-good commercial” paid for with broken promises when he appeared on CNN’s ‘Larry King Live’.
Terming the Obama broadcast as a “TV special”, he said “as with other infomercials, he’s got something to sell you.” “He’s offering you government-run health care,” McCain said in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Earlier, McCain played the fear card questioning Obama’s security credentials and claiming that his Democrat rival was incapable of protecting Americans from terrorism.
“The question is whether this is a man who has what it takes to protect America from Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda and other grave threats in the world,” McCain said after a security round-table meeting in Florida. “And he has given you no reason to answer in the affirmative.” Obama got a major boost six day before the polls as former President Bill Clinton joined forces with him and exhorted Americans to vote for the Illinois Senator who represented “America’s future”.
Clinton, whose wife Hillary abandoned her bid for White House in June after losing in primaries to Obama, told a huge gathering of over 30,000 people at a joint appearance ith Obama in Florida last night that he was “honoured” to voice his support for the 47-year-old Senator from Illinois.
Both Obama and McCain campaigned yesterday in the critical state of Florida, where Republican Governor Charlie Christ said that McCain was ahead of Obama.
Political pundits, however, are still focussed on Ohio which has 20 electoral votes and is seen as a must-win for McCain to make difference in the November 4 showdown.
In spite of being aware of the odds in the Buckeye state where Obama is favourite, the McCain camp is still hopeful as a new poll showed a tight race between the two.
The poll conducted by Marist College Institute for Public Opinion gives Obama a slight edge over his Republican rival, with the Democrat receiving support of 46 per cent of registered voters in Ohio compared to 43 per cent for McCain.
In an interview to ABC, Obama promised to choose a bipartisan Cabinet if elected in the November 4 polls, saying he would want Republicans in the government but “not just as show pieces”. He declined to say whether Defence Secretary Roberts Gates, who has earned praise from both Democrats and Republicans, would be in his short list.
