We all knew this would happen sooner or later: John McCain is using Hillary Clinton’s “3 a.m.” spot against Barack Obama.
VIDEO
TRANSCRIPT
CLINTON AD: It’s 3 a.m. and your children are safe and asleep. Who do you want answering the phone?
ANNCR: Uncertainty. Dangerous aggression. Rogue nations. Radicalism.
HILLARY CLINTON: I know Senator McCain has a lifetime of experience that he will bring to the White House. And, Senator Obama has a speech he gave in 2002.
ANNCR: Hillary’s right. John McCain for President.
ANALYSIS
This is easily McCain’s most effective ad yet. It has none of the feel of cheapness the the constant invocation of his days in the Hanoi Hilton or his using Joe Biden’s kind words against Biden. He’s playing his strength against his opponent’s weakness while at the same time exploiting bitterness that Hillary supporters feel over their candidate losing.
Interestingly, the ad is likely to be more effective for McCain than it was for Clinton. After all, Clinton hardly had any more first-hand experience than Obama. While McCain hasn’t exactly sat in the Oval Office at 3 a.m. dealing with a crisis, either, he’s unquestionably got more training and experience in military and foreign affairs than his opponent.
Ed Morrissey goes further:
Had Hillary used this strategy from the beginning, she would have won the nomination handily over Obama. Instead, she didn’t start attacking Obama until it was too late. McCain isn’t making that same mistake, and he’s not only using the most effective attack, he’s using its most effective spokesperson.
While Obama’s lack of foreign policy experience is somewhat overstated — most incoming presidents have had precious little of it — undecided voters genuinely worry about Obama’s qualifications in that regard. This spot does a good job reinforcing those concerns.
Amusingly, Dan Riehl thinks McCain should offer Hillary Clinton the VP spot on his ticket. I have a high degree of confidence that won’t happen.
