The purpose-driven lie | Philly

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Monday, August 18, 2008

The purpose-driven lie

You know that "cone of silence" that John McCain supposedly sat in so he couldn't hear Barack Obama or the questions that he would be asked next in Saturday nights' values forum with "Purpose-Driven Life" pastor Rick Warren?

Well...missed it by THAT much!

Mr. Warren, the pastor of Saddleback, had assured the audience while he was interviewing Mr. Obama that “we have safely placed Senator McCain in a cone of silence” and that he could not hear the questions.

After Mr. Obama’s interview, he was joined briefly by Mr. McCain, and the candidates shook hands and embraced.

Mr. Warren started by asking Mr. McCain, “Now, my first question: Was the cone of silence comfortable that you were in just now?”

Mr. McCain deadpanned, “I was trying to hear through the wall.”

People who watched the debate instantly wondered about that after McCain came on the program; he acted as if he anticipated many of the questions and in one case seemed to answer something he hadn't been asked yet. Now it seems those wonderers may have been onto something.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Senator John McCain was not in a “cone of silence” on Saturday night while his rival, Senator Barack Obama, was being interviewed at the Saddleback Church in California.

Members of the McCain campaign staff, who flew here Sunday from California, said Mr. McCain was in his motorcade on the way to the church as Mr. Obama was being interviewed by the Rev. Rick Warren, the author of the best-selling book “The Purpose Driven Life.”

Not that this is the scandal of the century, but I'm a little disappointed in Rick Warren here -- what in the h-e-double-toothpicks did the good pastor think he was talking about, then? As for McCain, check out his team's response to that, as highlighted earlier by Atrios:

“The insinuation from the Obama campaign that John McCain, a former prisoner of war, cheated is outrageous,” Ms. Wallace said.

You get that, America? A former POW simply cannot cheat, period -- even 40 years later. It's like some kind of lifetime "get out of accusations free" card, apparently.

Light blogging today -- by popular demand. :-)

Posted by Will Bunch @ 9:23 AM Permalink | 102 comments

Comments

Posted 09:39 AM, 08/18/2008

legatus

"You get that, America? A former POW simply cannot cheat, period -- even 40 years later. It's like some kind of lifetime "get out of accusations free" card, apparently." Will, since you imply that McCain cheated, please tell us which view that McCain expressed that he has not expressed in the past.

Posted 09:48 AM, 08/18/2008

montani semper liberi

LOL, right Legatus, McCain was frantically getting briefed on the answers by the real McCain campaign, the one he doesn't speak for.

Comment removed.

Posted 09:50 AM, 08/18/2008

will

Cheating wouldn't be changing your answers -- it would be a matter of familiarity with the questions and comfort level. For example, if Bush had known in advance that a reporter was going to ask him to name one mistake, he might have actually thought of one (although in that case, maybe not.)

Posted 09:53 AM, 08/18/2008

Rheinhard

Of course McCain would never cheat, as his first wife and all the investors at Lincoln Savings & Loan can testify!

Posted 09:54 AM, 08/18/2008

bon

"People who watched the debate instantly wondered about that after McCain came on the program." This is shoddy reporting and rumor-mongering, Will. This is beneath you. You pretend the focus of this post is Rick Warren, but clearly it is promoting unsubstatiated rumors to hurt McCain's credibility. It is not McCain job to prove he DID NOT cheat. There is no evidence he did. It is your job, if you suspect he cheated, to prove it. If you cannot even find any evidence of it, you must admit McCain bested your guy in a forum Obama was supposed to shine in. Since there is no evidence, none, that McCain had any foreknowledge of the questions aside from his doing an excellent job in the forum, maybe you should drop it? (When McCain wiped the floor with Obama in the other debates, I wonder what the DailyKos will accuse him of.)

Posted 09:57 AM, 08/18/2008

ivb

It might be something like McCain saying to Warren, When are we going to get to the Supreme Court question? Warren responded that comes later. Sounds like McCain heard some questions. What reason could he have had for being late by a half hour?

Comment removed.

Posted 10:15 AM, 08/18/2008

joshuae

b.atkinson - Will didn't expressly say that McCain had cheated, only that this whole "Cone of Silence" gimmick wasn't necessarily true. He also draws out the fact that the McCain Campaign keeps pulling out the POW credentials as some sort of proof that McCain is infallible. But please, you and your righ-wing pals should keep pompously spouting off like overconfident swill-bags, it's great fun to read!

Posted 10:15 AM, 08/18/2008

pagoda

I have yet to get a response to the following: Why McCain now? when the Republicans chose Bush over him in 2000 and did so by ruthlessly cutting John off at the knees- Then, knowing the horrible truths of the South Carolina primary and more, plus the reckless, hardly conservative spending of the Bush administration, the Republicans once again chose Bush for 2004- instead of demanding the great John McCain. So why should your opinion matter now? Why should undecided voters trust your judgment. If Obama had been passed over, TWICE, by a candidate as clearly flawed as GW, I would understand why Obama has skepticism. Oh, and McCain is now a decade older. I think the Republicans blew their chance 10 years ago.

Posted 10:16 AM, 08/18/2008

legatus

"Cheating wouldn't be changing your answers" Ok, so he hasn't said anything markedly different than he's said in the past. "it would be a matter of familiarity with the questions and comfort level." Oh, well in that case, with which questions would he have been unfamiliar or uncomfortable? I mean, it's not like he's been running for President since last year, and has clearly stated his position on all of the topics that were broached. It has been reported by CNN that "Warren decided to tell them each the first two questions in advance, about the three wisest people you know, and the biggest moral failings." How much of the first half hour, when McCain wasn't in the actual 'cone of silence' room, did these questions take up?

Posted 10:16 AM, 08/18/2008

Politburo

Obama, "uhh's" included, is far more coherent and intelligent than any poster on this site.

Posted 10:23 AM, 08/18/2008

jmc

As ususal with this blog, there is no evidence that McCain heard any of the questions in advance. That kind of forum is no good for Obama because he needs to be told what he thinks. McCain knows what he thinks so it is much easier to give clear, coherent answers rather than talking in vauge terms about hope and change. Will, I know your guy isn't living up to all your expectations, and buyer's remorse is a darn shame, but maybe Hillary can still pull it out if they put her name in nomination.

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About Will Bunch

Will's book: Learn about it here and purchase it here.

Will Bunch, a senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News, blogs about his obsessions, including national and local politics and world affairs, the media, pop music, the Philadelphia Phillies, soccer and other sports, not necessarily in that order.

E-mail Will by clicking here.

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