McCain booed by his own crowds, Thomas Ash

Thomas Ash — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 11:08:46 +0000

To his credit, John McCain has started taking on some of the wilder anti-Obama sentiments in his crowds. He took back the microphone from a supporter at a town hall meeting in Minnesota who called Obama an Arab and said: "No, ma'am. He's a decent family man [and] citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues and that's what this campaign's all about. He's not." The implication that Arabs can't be decent family men is regrettable, but let's not be churlish. Even more creditable is the way McCain replied to a man who merely said he was "scared" of an Obama presidency and the Supreme Court judges it might bring. McCain said: "I have to tell you. Senator Obama is a decent person and a person you don’t have to be scared of as president of the United States." This earned him boos from a crowd that clearly did not share that attitude.

Update: Ken Vogel reports that Obama himself drew boos by acknowledging his rival's comments at a rally in Philadelphia. So this phenomenon is not the exclusive province of Republicans.

Update 2: Michael Schaffer disputes Vogel's report, and describes the Obama crowd's mood as far more sunny.

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McCain booed by his own crowds, Thomas Ash