Reply #27: IMHO it was a big misunderstanding between campaign & Pentagon [View All]

[RamboLiberal]

Sen. Barack Obama's campaign staff and the Pentagon are putting forth different versions of what happened before Obama cancelled a planned Friday morning visit to the Ramstein air base in Germany.

The Obama campaign has suggested the Pentagon interfered with its decision to visit U.S. troops at the Ramstein and Landstuhl U.S. military bases in Germany -- something the Pentagon denied Friday.

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But on Wednesday, Gibbs said, Gration received new information from the Pentagon, saying that this visit would be viewed as a campaign stop.

He said the Pentagon said Obama could visit wounded troops from Illinois in his capacity as a senator, but that was it. Gration dealt with the legislative affairs office within the office of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.

"He could go as a United States senator, but it was pretty clear from the guidance that we received from the Pentagon that the trip would be viewed as a campaign stop," Gibbs told reporters Friday. "Given the information that we had received, Senator Obama made the decision that we were not gonna have wounded men and women become involved in a campaign event or what would be perceived as a campaign event."

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/story?id=5449455&page=1

BERLIN,GERMANY) UPDATE, 1:30pm ET Barack Obama spent the morning working in his room at Berlin's Adelon Hotel after the campaign canceled a planned visit to Ramstein Airbase and Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. Late last night, the campaign canceled the planned troop visit because they said they did not want to politicize the meeting.

Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell told CBS News today, "The senator is more than welcome to visit any military facility, he always has been and always will be, as a senator."

"The Pentagon was willing to accomodate the fact they were on a campaign trip," Morrell added, saying that the Pentagon would have kept the campaign staff and traveling press outside while Obama was inside visiting the troops.

"It was their decision to cancel the visit," Morrell said.

http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2008/07/25/politics/fromtheroad/entry4292302.shtml

But the wingnuts are going to run with it. Obama camp needs to get out there and explain it was a big misunderstanding and let someone do a huge mea culpa.

Perhaps Obama needs to ditch the cameras and quietly fly back with a small press contigent and visit the hospital before flying back to U.S.

Yeah, IMHO a rare misstep by campaign.