McCain Advisor Calls Americans "A Bunch Of Whiners" On Economy

[slinkerwink]

Phil Gramm, the top economic advisor for John McCain, said in the Washington Times that:

"You've heard of mental depression; this is a mental recession," he said, noting that growth has held up at about 1 percent despite all the publicity over losing jobs to India, China, illegal immigration, housing and credit problems and record oil prices. "We may have a recession; we haven't had one yet."

"We have sort of become a nation of whiners," he said. "You just hear this constant whining, complaining about a loss of competitiveness, America in decline" despite a major export boom that is the primary reason that growth continues in the economy, he said.

And here's rapid-fire response from Karen Finney, the DNC spokeswoman:

What John McCain, George Bush Phil Gramm just don't understand is that the American people aren't whining about the state of the economy, they are suffering under the weight of it -- the weight of eight years of Bush-enomics that John McCain and Phil Gramm have vowed to continue. How dare John McCain and his advisers so callously dismiss the challenges the American people face. no wonder voters feel John McCain is out of touch, he and his campaign don't even understand the everyday issues Americans are dealing with."

Out of touch, indeed.

[slinkerwink]

1. It's being covered on TPM, Dailykos, and HuffPo

[skooooo]

3. Has McCain responded??

[me b zola]

26. Per msnbc

McCain made a statement essentially saying that his campaign adviser does not speak for him. :crazy:

[TwilightGardener]

2. If the DNC and Obama don't address this in ads, they don't DESERVE to win.

[slinkerwink]

4. did you miss the response from DNC's spokesperson, Karen, in my post?

[TwilightGardener]

9. Yes, I saw that, and I'm glad they are on it. However, there must be ads, on national TV--

the general public doesn't read DNC press releases. This, IMO as a political observer, is one of the worst statements a campaign can make--the wealthy legislators and corporate greedmeisters on the McCain campaign who profited off of gaming the system and scamming ordinary folks now calling those ordinary folks "whiners". There must be damaging ads, or this is a massively wasted opportunity.

[dsomuah]

30. You aren't going to get much ad mileage from this

After all McCain didn't say it himself an advisor said it, and McCain disowned it.

What would be ideal is if you had a youtube clip of actual footage of McCain downplaying economic issues. Ads revolve around audiovisuals, and an ideal ad would have a clip of McCain saying "America is in a mental depression."

You could probably make a good web ad quoting Phil Graham, and Obama's can get a lot of mileage out of this on news conferences, and on the campaign trail, but that's about all you are going to get out of it.

[TwilightGardener]

31. Nope. As this was McCain's chief economic advisor, there's only one way to play this--

WITH ADS! BIG TIME! After all, the GOP is still going after Austin Goolsbee and Obama for supposed shifts on NAFTA. We can make some serious hay out of this--if it didn't matter that Obama distanced himself from someone like Wright, who wasn't an important part of his campaign, why should it matter that McCain tries to distance himself from Gramm, who is an INTEGRAL part of McCain's campaign?

[my2sense]

5. Let's see how much MSM coverage this gets n/t

[slinkerwink]

6. won't get any attention if The Page or Politico doesn't pick it up

[ErinBerin84]

14. it is on politico

But agree with you about The Page...that damn thing has become the new drudge report.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0708/11658.html

[slinkerwink]

15. but not picked up by Ben Smith. It's just Jonathan Martin.

[Colobo]

19. Ben needs to post about this.

[Mz Pip]

7. I want to see this

in an Obama ad. It really needs to be emphasized the level of comtempt the McCain campaign has for the American people. They are counting on low information voters to vote based just on the soundbites they offer up.

Well, this one is a good one and we should use it often.

[islandmkl]

8. m.c.johnny and gramm seem to offer the same approach as one of their buddies:

"Just relax and lay there and enjoy it."

there can't possibly be a hell befitting of this crew of neoconazis....

[DarienComp]

10. Watch how the pundits handle this: "Sure, it was incendiary, but didn't he have a point?"

[bkcc]

11. And then he shouted "Hey you kids, get off my lawn!"

Seriously, the Democrats need to run the hell out of these comments in their ad campaigns. McCain's team is about the same as Bush's was, except without the PR savvy.

I hope he and his people keep screwing themselves like this.

[Overseas]

12. Let's hope someone asks John Sidney McCain III on camera if he agrees with Gramm

I want to hear at a town hall meeting, someone like that veteran who dared to ask about JSM III's anti-veteran votes, ask if he agrees with his economic adviser Phil Gramm that America has become a nation of whiners.

[blondeatlast]

13. Yep, if the press did their jobs, the DNC/Obama campaigns wouldn't need to run ads. nt

[DogPoundPup]

16. Well SEE? 300 economists “enthusiastically support” McCain's economic plan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, no, that is a lie.....

"On Monday, John McCain’s campaign released a statement signed by 300 economists who “enthusiastically support” his “Jobs for America” economic plan, providing a heavyweight testimonial to the presumptive Republican nominee’s “broad and powerful economic agenda.”

There’s just one problem. Upon closer inspection, it seems a good many of those economists don’t actually support the whole of McCain’s economic agenda. And at least one doesn’t even support McCain for president."

There's not a shred of doubt in my mind that this scandal will dominate the cable news coverage of the campaign to an even greater extent than did coverage of Wesley Clark observing that being a POW is not the same as running the country. After all, the McCain campaign is lying here. And lying about their campaign's macroeconomic policies, which is a very consequential matter. So this is going to be a huge story on teevee, right? Of course it will.
http://matthewyglesias.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/07/demanding_a_recount.php

:rofl:

[central scrutinizer]

17. McW: Stop whining and marry a multimillionaire heiress

That's MY economic plan

[Johonny]

18. It's almost like that growth

never trickled down to the vast majority of Americans

[kentuck]

20. Phil "I went thru the 3rd grade 3 times" Gramm ?

It figures.

[Robyn66]

21. This is a huge gift to Obama

if he uses it and I PRAY he uses it!!!!! This should be in an ad that runs in every state constantly!!! I would gladly give money to see that happen and I can barely afford the contributions I have given so far!

Is there someone we can e-mail??

[Colobo]

22. He needs to hit McCain hard on this- TV ads, radio ads, surrogates.

He needs to pound McShit and weaken him.

[Mz Pip]

23. MSNBC just mentioned

how McCain was distancing himself from Gramm following the remark. The spot was less than 30 seconds before they went into the Christie Brinkley divorce settlement. :eyes:

[bunnies]

25. It was on again just now.

Looks like its getting some legs. *fingers crossed*

[L0oniX]

24. Phil Gramm is the asscarrot that got us into the economic mess we are in today.

He is the one who got a bill passed that allowed the bundling of those risky home loans. Article from 7/9/08 is on Democracy Now for those who wish to listen to it.

[MarjorieG]

28. I hope that is a debate point. Enron loophole, etc., all his. Then there's Carly.

[me b zola]

27. Ah, shades of the "...Americans wouldn't pick lettuce for $50/hour" remark

IMO, both of these statements should be used in one ad illustrating what McCain & Co think about working class people.

[unblock]

29. what's to whine about? exxonmobil is growing more than other companies are shrinking

so what's the big deal?

:sarcasm:

[SuperTrouper]

32. McCain just threw Phil under the bus

"I strongly disagree with his comments. He does not speak for me, I speak for myself"

[ElsewheresDaughter]

33. Oh

Phil Gramm needs to go fuck himself.

Remember the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000:
http://www.msplinks.com/MDFodHRwOi8vb25saW5lam91cm5hbC5jb20vYXJ0bWFuL3B1Ymxpc2gvYXJ0aWNsZV8zNDY3LnNodG1s

Oh yeah......Asshole.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0F-LVfcbOxs