According to Hotline, AFSCME and MoveOn.org Political Action are spending $543,000 to run this ad in Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin and on CNN and MSNBC for a week, beginning on Wednesday:
What do you think?
McCain’s campaign will claim that he’s been taken out of context, and that he doesn’t want us to be at war in Iraq for 100 years. The bottom line, though, is that most Americans don’t want our troops bogged down in Iraq forever, staffing permanent bases, even if casualty rates declined considerably.
UPDATE: An e-mail I received from Moveon.Org says this ad is “the most effective TV ad we’ve ever created.” It says Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research surveyed viewers of this ad and found that a “61 percent majority describe the ad as convincing.”
The full text of the Moveon.Org e-mail is after the jump.
Dear MoveOn member,
I’ve got great news for you: Our new Iraq ad is the most effective TV ad we’ve ever created.
Polling shows that after seeing our ad, voters seriously question McCain’s Iraq policy. What’s especially exciting is that voters found this ad more persuasive than any other ad we’ve tested.
And it couldn’t come at a better time: John McCain is up on the air in a bunch of key states and Obama isn’t. There’s a big vacuum to fill, and if we can get our ad up, we’ll not only counter McCain-we’ll convince key voters not to vote for him this fall.
But here’s the catch: We’ve done the math, and to really move the needle in critical swing states, we need to raise at least $250,000 to make sure the ad is run often enough for most voters to see it. Can you chip in $250? Click below to watch the ad and contribute:
https://pol.moveon.org/donate/…
There’s even more good news: Our friends at the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), a major union whose members endorsed and fought hard for Hillary Clinton, are joining in on the ad. They’ve pledged to match your $250,000, giving us the resources to really go big with the ad.
This is going to be big news-the ad and the exciting new partnership with AFSCME will show progressive strength and unity, shake Republican confidence, and hopefully encourage Democrats to go to the mat on Iraq this election, too.
Here’s more about the impact we can have with this ad:
* Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research-a premier research and strategic consulting firm that represents clients ranging from the AARP to the Chicago Cubs-found that a “61 percent majority describe the ad as convincing.” They also found that 58 percent agree with the ad’s message.
* Greenberg went on to say, “These are some of the highest numbers we have seen for a political advertisement since we started using these questions in 2004.”
* The polling showed that after folks saw the ad they were more likely to feel that McCain is a “part of the mess in Washington” and “too eager to go to war.”
* Even when we showed our ad along with a positive ad from the McCain campaign, voters were still 15 percentage points more likely to describe McCain as “too eager to go to war” and 13 percentage points more likely to describe McCain as “part of the mess in DC.”Strong ads on the issues that voters care about most, combined with smart campaigning on the ground, will help give progressives an edge this fall. We’re ready to go big with this ad and run it in key battleground states, but we need your help. Can you chip in?
https://pol.moveon.org/donate/…
Thanks for all you do.
-Nita, Ilyse, Eli, Andrea and the MoveOn.org Political Action Team
Tuesday, June 17th, 2008
5 Comments
Not a fan...
I’m REALLY struggling with the ethics of the “McCain wants to be in Iraq for 100 years” theme. Let’s be honest, the way it’s been used so far is a “got ya” and it’s out of context. The “100 Year War” meme implies that McCain wants to see an active Iraq War as exists now for 100 years. What he said and meant was a strategic, non-combat presence on the order of our bases in Japan and Germany (which we’ve held for more than 50 years!).
To get back to this ad specifically, if we go with McCain’s actual position–he wouldn’t need baby Alex, unless grown-up Alex wanted to join the volunteer army. This ad gives the impression that he’s going to start a draft going well into the next two decades, which wouldn’t be necessary to man the bases he was speaking about when he made that statement.
It just doesn’t seem right to me to make a cornerstone of this campaign on this out-of-context gotcha. It just doesn’t seem compatible with the clean, high-minded campaign we say we want to have.
american007 Wed 18 Jun 10:30 AM
ad
The Obama campaign likely doesn’t have anything to do with it. The ad was made by MoveOn.org — with help from AFSCME according to their website: http://www.moveon.org/.
This is a PAC. Obama is no longer taking money from PACs–if he did then would have some say about how the money is spent. But as it is there is nothing he can do about independent PACs making whatever kind of ads they want.
lorih Wed 18 Jun 12:51 PM
I generally disagree
While the “100 year war” thing was taken out of context, it’s probably the easiest way to make the point that McCain is in fact a hawk and has made comments like “there will be other wars.” Painting him as a supporter of an indefinite Iraq War is hardly unfair.
Also, although our bases in Japan and Germany are “strategic, non-combat” presences, this has a great deal to do with the environment of those countries. Even if this is what he wants in Iraq, it implies that McCain is willing to keep fighting there until we can establish a “strategic, non-combat presence.” If this is what he wants, it means that he does not recognize the reality of the situation and does not acknowledge the fact that the costs could outweigh the benefits long before we can establish a peaceful presence, but he’ll keep us there anyway. This is not acceptable.
As far as baby Alex goes, whether or not there is a draft, McCain will send thousands to their deaths if he pursues the agenda we expect. A nation continuously at war requires a large military with many recruits. Our “no draft” system still unfairly targets the poor, minorities, and those who are young and uninformed. It puts pressure on some groups more than others, and bares a close resemblance to a draft for many, while stop-loss policies are essentially a draft for prior volunteers.
If mothers like the one in the video say “You’re not sending my child to be killed in a pointless war,” we can avoid getting involved in such wars and take a stand against politicians like John McCain.
abkad Wed 18 Jun 6:17 PM
I don't want permanent U.S. bases in Iraq
under any circumstances.
John McCain disagrees. He would like to see us stay in Iraq for as long as I am alive, and possibly as long as my children are alive.
I don’t believe our casualty rate in Iraq can be in effect reduced to zero as it was in Germany and Japan.
Even if it could be, I disagree with a long-term troop presence in Iraq. We kept bases in Europe and Asia because of Cold-War security concerns that were very different from what we face in the Middle East.
This isn’t my all-time favorite ad. I would like to see more ads focus on why McCain is very bad on other issues. But I think it’s fair game to highlight his “100 years” comment.
desmoinesdem Wed 18 Jun 8:06 PM
The Next "War President"
John McCain wants very much to be the next “War President”. He is a man who was cultured in the art of war from his childhood up until now. A son and grandson of four-star Navy Admirals, a Navy veteran and POW of the Vietnam War, he is now a stalwart supporter of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
John McCain has a disturbing fervor for war. McCain has made troubling comments on the campaign trail concerning the war in Iraq. According to him, we will fight the war in Iraq for 100 years. His ill witted comments about bombing Iran indicate his strong desire to engage in military conflict with that country.
Older men like John McCain declare war, but it is the youth of America that must fight and die for the actions of old men. We must not forget the young soldiers who have suffered the scars of wars and the son and daughters of those honored veterans.
mitch Mon 23 Jun 7:05 PM