Analysis: Chiding aide, McCain forgets own remark

[Ron Burgundy]

AP - John McCain wasted no time disavowing comments by an aide who suggested a terrorist attack on U.S. soil would boost his presidential campaign. McCain may have wanted to take a moment to consult the history books before he spoke.

In ways both overt and subtle, the Republican presidential contender has been making much the same point as senior adviser Charlie Black, who backed off Monday after he was quoted as saying an attack "certainly would be a big advantage to him."

Black also told Fortune magazine that last December's assassination of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto "helped us" amid the final run-up to the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary.

The day Bhutto died in a bombing and shooting attack, McCain told reporters, "My theme has been throughout this campaign that I'm the one with the experience, the knowledge and the judgment. So perhaps it may serve to enhance those credentials to make people understand that I've been to Pakistan, I know (President Pervez) Musharraf, I can pick up the phone and call him. I knew Benazir Bhutto."

The Arizona senator took his point one step further, contrasting himself with rival Mike Huckabee, just weeks before the former Arkansas governor beat him in Iowa.

McCain said Huckabee doesn't have "the same experience and background on national security issues that I do," prompting Huckabee to accuse McCain of "playing political games" with the attack.

More recently, McCain has taken to taunting his Democratic presidential rival, offering to escort first-term Sen. Barack Obama on a visit to Iraq and chiding him for never receiving a briefing from Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. forces in the country.

McCain, like President Bush, views the war in Iraq as critical in the effort to prevent another terrorist attack on U.S. soil.

Obama has called instead for a withdrawal of U.S. troops, prompting McCain to scold him Monday by saying, "Remarkable how someone can make an assessment of the situation without asking for a briefing from the commanding general."

Few political outsiders disagree with the underlying theme of Black's comment: McCain, a former naval aviator and Vietnam prisoner of war, benefits politically anytime the White House campaign is focused on national security issues.

Obama, by contrast, contends that security comes first through diplomacy and emphasizes his willingness to enter a dialogue even with America's enemies.

Where Black, a former lobbyist and veteran GOP strategist, ran into trouble was suggesting there would be political gain in an attack on the United States. That wound is still too raw from the nearly 3,000 deaths suffered in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington.

"He was making a valid point in the most impolitic of ways," said Scott Reed, a veteran Republican consultant who managed Bob Dole's 1996 presidential campaign. "I think Charlie was caught in a moment of candor and was talking a little too blunt."

Reed said that when comparing the experience of McCain and Obama, "everyone knows that contrast exists." He also said it is a critical point to make, because "likeability and experience are always two big foundations of a presidential campaign."

In suggesting political gain could come from national suffering, though, Black crossed a line.

"Suggesting that any particular political candidate could benefit from a tragedy, particularly a terrorist attack, is inappropriate and that's obvious," Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a prospective McCain running mate, said Tuesday on MSNBC.

Change to Win, a group of labor unions that support Obama, called on McCain to fire Black for his "anti-American" comments. "The memory of our workers and all Americans who died on 9/11 demands it," the organization said in a statement.

Word of Black's comments also diluted his boss's big moment Monday: McCain offered to give $300 million to anyone who can develop a revolutionary new battery to power the nation's automobiles.

Appearing ashamed, Black told reporters, "I deeply regret the comments. They were inappropriate. I recognize that John McCain has devoted his entire adult life to protecting his country and placing its security before every other consideration."

McCain was equally eager to distance himself from the remarks, not even bothering to verify them for himself before he responded to a reporter's question about them.

"I cannot imagine why he would say it. It's not true," the senator said. "I've worked tirelessly since 9/11 to prevent another attack on the United States of America."

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EDITOR'S NOTE — Glen Johnson has covered local, state and national politics since 1985. He covers the Republican presidential race for The Associated Press.

source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080624/ap_on_el_pr/mccain_terrorism [link]