Obama features Bush in ad

[Ron Burgundy]

Politico - With gas prices as one of the biggest flash points in the presidential race, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) on Monday launched an ad attacking Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) for contributions from “Big Oil� – and showing him with President Bush.

Republicans are striking back by mocking Obama for his suggestion**in Missouri last week that Americans can save energy by “making sure your tires are properly inflated.�

The Michigan GOP planned to give out tire gauges at the speech in Lansing, Mich., where Obama was unveiling his energy plan on Monday.

The Republican National Committee was also delivering tire gauges emblazoned “Obama Energy Planâ€� to Washington newsrooms. The party said the stunt was meant to suggest that the tire comment suggested naiveté and inexperience on Obama's part.

But Democrats pointed out that Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, both Republicans, had made similar suggestions.

Obama's 30-second ad* features a shot of the president, then the camera pans back to show him side by side with McCain – visual shorthand for the Democrats' argument that voting Republican in November is tantamount to giving Bush a third term.

The announcer says “Every time you fill your tank, the oil companies fill their pockets. Now, Big Oil's filling John McCain's campaign with 2 million dollars in contributions. Because instead of taxing their windfall profits to help drivers, McCain wants to give them another 4 billion in tax breaks. After one president in the pocket of big oil, we can't afford another. Barack Obama – a windfall profits tax on big oil to give families a thousand dollar rebate. A president who'll stand up for you.�

Then the senator comes on and says: “I'm Barack Obama and I approve this message.�

McCain campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds said in response: “Barack Obama's latest negative attack ad shows his celebrity is matched only by his hypocrisy, after all it was Senator Obama, not John McCain, who voted for the Bush-Cheney energy bill that was a sweetheart deal for oil companies. Also not mentioned is the $400,000 from big oil contributors that Barack Obama has already pocketed in this election."

In Lansing, Mich., on Monday, Obama was outlining his “New Energy for America� plan, which the campaign says would create 5 million new jobs and “eliminate our need for Middle Eastern oil in 10 years.�

Theeight-page plan promises to within 10 years “save more oil than we currently import from the Middle East and Venezuela combined.�

source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20080804/pl_politico/12276 [link]