David Letterman was beyond pissed off at John McCain for canceling his plans to be on the show at the last minute in late September, leaving Letterman scrambling to fill time. McCain personally called the talkshow host and said that he needed to fly off to Washington and couldn’t appear because “the economy is about to crater” and he needed to take care of it immediately. Letterman initially understood, but when he busted John McCain doing an interview with Katie Couric at the same time he was supposed to be appearing on his show, he was fuming.

To add insult to injury, Letterman noted the next night on his show that McCain didn’t leave NY until the next morning after he canceled. Letterman said that McCain told him in his phone call that “I think people would rather see Sarah Palin, and maybe I’ll send her for you next time.” Letterman made it clear that McCain had insulted him and he wasn’t sure that he would even give the presidential candidate another chance. He said:

“One, suggesting there will be a next time, and I’m not sure that decision is his, and two, that maybe if there is he would bring Sarah Palin and she will come in his place… We’ll just wait and see, is he a man of his word or not?”

It looks like McCain is sort-of a man of his word. He’s agreed to appear on David Letterman this Thursday. I’m surprised that Letterman is even open to it:

After canceling an appearance last month and causing some bruised feelings on David Letterman’s part, McCain is coming back to the Late Show this Thursday, Oct. 16, to face the music, courtesy of Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra.

Considering McCain has appeared on the show 12 times (including the appearance shown above), it’s probably safe to assume the senator and the talk show host will make amends. But there’s always the chance the chat could turn hostile, which would be great for ratings.

[From E! Online]

McCain is not doing too well in the polls, courtesy of that “cratering” economy he mentioned. It may be too little too late for him, but he could ingratiate himself to David Letterman again. The guy had a feud going for 16 years with Oprah, although it was largely thought to be Oprah’s problem for taking offense to Letterman’s 1995 Oscars joke “Uma - Oprah, Oprah - Uma.” That seems pretty tame in comparison to a lot of things you could say about Oprah.

David Letterman continued to rip on John McCain last night on the air. McCain canceled his appearance on the show Wednesday night just a few hours before airtime, leaving Letterman to scramble to fill time. McCain personally called Letterman and apologized, saying he had to get back to Washington right away because “the economy is about to crater.”

Letterman had MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann fill McCain’s spot, and they discovered that instead of going on Letterman’s show as scheduled, McCain was sitting talking to Katie Couric at the time he was supposed to be on. They even showed the live feed that had McCain being interviewed at the time.

McCain didn’t leave NY until Thursday morning
Letterman again expressed his annoyance at McCain on the air last night. He mocked his voice when retelling the story about how he called and told him he couldn’t come, only to turn around and go do an interview with Couric at the same time. Letterman said of course he was understanding that McCain had to take care of the economy, but that he felt really dissed when he discovered that wasn’t the case. He also said that instead of jetting back to Washington right after the Couric interview - he didn’t leave until Thursday morning.

“He said ‘everything’s fine, don’t worry about it, the Senator is on his way back.’

“So not only did he not go back right away, he stopped in to see Katie Couric on his way out. So then we looked at it and we said ‘Ok, well, I understand that’s news and this is nonsense.’

“But then after Katie Couric - right to the airport - No. We find out today he didn’t really leave until this morning.” [audience groans]

“What we learn now is the economy held on enough, just barely held on enough for him to get back there.”

“Whereas you can see 24 hours ago, I felt like a patriot… like I was doing my part… I was going to help in my own little way get this economy out of crater.

“Now I’m just feeling like an ugly date… I feel used. I feel cheap. I feel sullied. I feel cratered.”

[Transcribed from video of The Late Show, found on their website.]

Letterman said he would then “divulge a part of the private conversation that I think comes under the heading of national security, and I know I’m going to be investigated and I don’t care. He said to me on the phone, he said ‘I think people would rather see Sarah Palin, and maybe I’ll send her for you next time.’”

“One, suggesting there will be a next time, and I’m not sure that decision is his, and two, that maybe if there is he would bring Sarah Palin and she will come in his place… We’ll just wait and see, is he a man of his word or not?”

CNN has more details of last night’s Late Show. Paris Hilton was one of the guests and it sounds like they had a few laughs about their mutual issues with McCain. Paris was featured in an ad by McCain’s camp mocking Obama’s “celebrity” status. It featured footage of Obama in Berlin with the fake “Obama Obama” chanting over it which never happened at the event - I was there the whole time. Photos of Paris and Britney were used to illustrate their point that Obama is popular.

He described Hilton — Thursday’s guest whose celebrity was once used in a McCain campaign ad to mock Democrat Barack Obama — as McCain’s first choice for a running mate.

“Here’s how it works: You don’t come to see me? You don’t come to see me? Well, we might not see you on Inauguration Day,” Letterman said.

Noting that McCain wanted to postpone Friday’s first debate with Obama, Letterman said running mate Sarah Palin wanted to put off her debate with Democrat Joe Biden until after Election Day. Letterman said Palin’s meeting with world leaders at the United Nations was like “take-your-daughter-to-work day.”

Letterman’s Top 10 list was “surprising facts about Sarah Palin,” read by citizens of Wasilla, Alaska, where she was once mayor.

No. 10: Palin “sometimes calls John McCain grandpa.”

Later in the show, Letterman couldn’t resist another mention of “that John McCain” while chatting with Hilton, who replied, “I heard he dissed you. He dissed me.”

Milking the moment, Letterman consoled her: “You had a little run-in with him, too, didn’t you?”

[From CNN]

Letterman is not used to being dissed. McCain’s people issued an apology that kind of didn’t sound like one. They said “We deeply regret offending Mr. Letterman, but our candidate’s priority at this moment is to focus on this crisis.”

John McCain is shown at the Clinton Global Initiative in NY on 9/25/08. It looks like he did that yesterday too. Credit: WENN. David Letterman is shown looking serious before a game of tennis with Maria Sharapova on 4/21/08. Credit: FPZ/Fame Pictures

Screenshot from the website for The Late Show. Video is below

John McCain was scheduled to appear on Late Show with David Letterman on Wednesday night, but citing his suspension of his campaign to focus on the economic issues being discussed on Capitol Hill, he cancelled the appearance.  Letterman took a personal call a few hours before showtime from McCain saying he wouldn’t be attending because he was rushing back to DC immediately. The talk show host made his feelings about McCain’s last minute cancellation clear after first praising the Senator as a war hero.

Praises McCain as a war hero
David Letterman talked at length about John McCains hero status in his monologue, making it clear that he has the utmost respect for the Senator and the wartime adversities he experienced.  He called him a true hero, going as far as to say he felt that McCain was the only true hero he has ever known. 

“We always like having the Senator on the program.  Here’s a guy, by the way, I have nothing but the highest regard for the this man because a true American hero, and as Bill Clinton said the other night, gave everything but his life for America during the Vietnam war and we’re in sorry need and short supply of actual heroes like John McCain.”

[Transcribed from video of The Late Show, 9/24/08]

Letterman asks why Sarah Palin didn’t show up instead when McCain canceled
He added, however, that “When you call up at the last minute and you cancel a show… this is not the John McCain I know.”

He went on to point out that the Vice President’s job is to serve when the President cannot.

“But here’s what you do when you’re running for campaign in the middle of an economic crisis…  You’re a fourth term senator… you go back to Washington, you handle what you need to handle.  Don’t suspend your campaign.  You let your campaign go on shouldered by your vice-presidential nominee, that’s what you do… You say ‘I gotta get back to Washington to save this country!’  Good for you!  ’And while I’m gone, campaigning in my stead will be my great running mate from the state of Alaska, Sarah Palin.’ And she comes out and campaigns.  What happened there?  What’s the problem?  Where is she?  Why isn’t she doing that?  Something has gotten to him.  This doesn’t smell right.  This is not the way a tested hero behaves.”

[Transcribed from video of The Late Show, 9/24/08]

The much longer than normal monologue was, of course, peppered with Letterman’s usual humor, but he legitimized his point in all seriousness, too.

On short notice, Letterman got MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann to fill the segment vacated by McCain.  They speculated on the McCain camp’s intention as to why he wants to postpone this Friday’s Presidential debate with Barack Obama.  Olbermann, an outspoken and vigilant GOP critic, surmises that since it’s so difficult to reschedule a debate, one of the scheduled debates would be cancelled… likely suggested to be the vice-presidential debate.

McCain told Letterman he had to go to Washington, did interview with Kate Couric instead
When returning from commercial during the Olbermann segment, Letterman was informed that John McCain was three blocks away in another CBS studio sitting in a live interview with Katie Couric.  Cutting to the live feed, Letterman commented that McCain didn’t seem to be “racing to the airport.”  He asked Olbermann if he thought it was McCain’s fault that he had cancelled on Letterman, or CBS got ahold of him and said he had to come in and do the Couric interview. 

Olbermann responded, “I would be speculating, there’s very little done in that campaign without his knowledge.  I think he dissed you.”

Letterman opened the second half of the show with a joke, saying “We’re told now that the Senator has concluded his interview with Katie Couric and he’s now on Rachael Ray’s show making veal picatta.” 

Transcribed clip in shortened segments from Breitbart.com.

I strongly recommend watching the video above, if possible, to hear everything David Letterman said and all comments in context.

Note by Celebitchy: Unfortunately Redlasso is still inaccessible due to legal action by the networks and we could not watch the show in full online. I would have liked to see the rest of Olbermann’s interview.

The female trailblazers of 70’s rock and founders of Heart, Ann and Nancy Wilson, were not happy when they saw footage of the Republican National Convention using their classic song “Barracuda” as a theme song for Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin. The sisters issued a “cease and desist” letter to the RNC, warning them not to use the song again.

Ann and Nancy Wilson are pissed at the Republican Party and have fired off a cease and desist letter to the McCain/Palin campaign.

Specifically, the Heart women are upset that the GOP has used their classic “Barracuda” as a theme song for Sarah Palin. TMZ obtained a statement from Heart’s rep, who says “The Republican campaign did not ask for permission to use the song, nor would they have been granted that permission.”

The statement goes on: “We have asked the Republican campaign publicly not to use our music. We hope our wishes will be honored.”

We’re told Ann was watching TV today and heard the song at the convention when Palin was touted.

UPDATE: Twenty minutes after we posted this story, the GOP ended the evening after McCain’s speech with the song, “Barracuda.”

[From TMZ]

The Wilson sisters join a growing list of musicians who don’t want their songs associated with politics - particularly the Republican party. It started back in the 80s when Ronald Reagan tried using Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA” for his campaign song. The McCain camp alone has received three other cease and desist letters, from Van Halen (for his use of the song “Right Now”), John Mellencamp (for the song “Pink Houses”), and Orleans (for the song “Still the One.”) Mike Huckabee also got slapped down by Mellencamp for his use of “ROCK in the USA.” Mellencamp stated in a Newsweek article that he’s an Obama supporter.

Maybe the Republicans should ask artists before appropriating their songs or hire artists to write songs for them - John Rich of the country western group Big & Rich has penned a song for the Republican presidential candidate John McCain called…wait for it…”Raising McCain.”

Madonna’s Sticky and Sweet tour opened Saturday night in Cardiff Wales. The 50 year-old pop legend put on a two hour performance that included video montages featuring Kanye West, Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears. The night was based on four themes: “Pimp”, “Old School”, “Gypsy” and “Rave,” and the pint-sized powerhouse wore multiple pants-less outfits designed by Givenchy, Stella McCartney and Miu Miu, with some American Apparel tube socks thrown in for the sporty look.

Not one to pass up a chance to stir up publicity-seeking controversy, one of the videos playing in the background featured photos of “bad” things like war, global warming, Hitler - and John McCain. McCain’s Presidential rival, Democratic candidate Barack Obama, was included on the “good” video of humanitarian leaders:

Amid a four-act show at Cardiff’s packed Millennium Stadium, a video interlude carried images of destruction, global warming, Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, Zimbabwe’s authoritarian President Robert Mugabe — and U.S. Senator John McCain. Another sequence, shown later, pictured slain Beatle John Lennon, followed by climate activist Al Gore, Mahatma Gandhi and finally McCain’s Democratic rival Barack Obama.

[AP as found on PopEater]

Didn’t Madonna already do this in her “American Life” video? At least she’s not hanging herself on a cross or making fun of the church this time around. Blasphemy is so 1989, yet she threw some into her Confessions tour for lack of imagination.

McCain has responded to Madonna’s diss in the humorless, offended way she surely hoped he would. He’s been smearing Obama with attack ads, and yet he’s pointing out that Madonna is doing the same thing to him.

“The comparisons are outrageous, unacceptable and crudely divisive all at the same time,” Bounds said in a statement reported by Fox News.

“It clearly shows that when it comes to supporting Barack Obama, his fellow worldwide celebrities refuse to consider any smear or attack off limits.”

[From News.Yahoo.com]

This is the guy who has an ad calling Obama elitist but who can’t name how many houses he has and thinks that you’re only rich once you make your first $5 million. (link leads to video.) He also keeps repeating that Obama is going to raise taxes, which just isn’t true for 95% of Americans. If you make less than $227,000 a year you’ll save money under Obama’s plan.

He’s right though that douches like Madonna, Ludacris and Roseanne aren’t helping Obama by dissing the Republicans. They’re just giving McCain more fodder to accuse Obama of being elitist and backed by celebrities.

Madonna might had plenty of publicity ahead of her tour for her non-affair with A-Rod and her brother’s “unauthorized” biography, but it wasn’t enough to fill the seats. Only 40,000 out of 70,000 available tickets were sold to the venue. At £150 /$276 USD, they weren’t exactly affordable for a lot of people. Concert-goers said she put on a great show, though.

Here’s the video in question from Saturday set to “Get Stupid,” thanks to user MadonnaWyat on YouTube:

Photos are of Madonna’s opening night in Cardiff on 8/23/08. Credit: Daniel Deme / WENN

Credit: WENN
The US elections are coming up, and I’m watching them closely because they are conducted so differently to the ones in my home country.

In Australia voting is compulsory, probably because as a whole the country is quite apathetic about politics. If you didn’t have to vote it is possible not enough people would submit votes to give an accurate result.

The other interesting element is that in America everyone seems to have an opinion about who should win, no one is scared to wear their vote on their sleeve. In Australia asking someone who they voted for is considered very bad manners.

What even the most obnoxious person in any country would consider bad manners is someone telling someone who they should support. Roseanne Barr did it yesterday, now here comes country singer John Rich, telling the world that if Johnny Cash were alive today, he’d vote McCain.

Johnny Cash’s daughter Roseanne responded on her website:

“It is appalling to me that people still want to invoke my father’s name, five years after his death, to ascribe beliefs, ideals, values and loyalties to him that cannot possibly be determined, and to try to further their own agendas by doing so,” Cash said on her Web site.

According to media reports, Rich told the crowd: “Somebody’s got to walk the line in the country. They’ve got to walk it unapologetically. And I’m sure Johnny Cash would have been a John McCain supporter if he was still around.”

Rich then sang Johnny Cash’s “I Walk the Line.”

“I knew my father pretty well, at least better than some of those who entitle themselves to his legacy and his supposed ideals,” Rosanne Cash said on her site, “and even I would not presume to say publicly what I ‘know’ he thought or felt. This is especially dangerous in the case of political affiliation.

“It is unfair and presumptuous to use him to bolster any platform,” she continued. “I would ask that my father not be co-opted in this election for either side, since he is clearly not here to defend or state his own allegiance.”

Reuters

Go ahead and vocally support your chosen presidential candidate, but don’t attribute a dead man’s values to a cause. It is disrespectful to his family. It also makes the candidate seem a little desperate, needing to drum up business from a dead man.

Note by Celebitchy: Country singer Toby Keith recently announced his support for Obama. However, commenters on the Huffington Post note that he’s donated to Republicans in the past. Keith has also drawn criticism for what many people note is a pro-lynching song, (warning on that link - it includes disturbing lynching images) “Beer for My Horses.”

Maybe we would be a little better off if celebrities and musicians would do it the Australian way, as Helen mentions. I’m all for supporting your candidate but am getting a little tired of the celebrities publicly arguing over it. That’s what a Democracy is all about I guess - people complaining.

Angelina Jolie is being sought by both the Obama and McCain campaigns for an endorsement. The 33 year-old actress and unmarried mother of six says that she’s waiting to reserve judgment on who she’ll vote for and is considering both candidates. When each candidate states their position on the refugee crisis and international justice issue Angelina might be able to make up her mind:

It may seem as if most entertainment industry figures are aligning with Barack Obama and just a few with John McCain, but there are still a handful of famous names who are still on the fence. And both campaigns are well aware of one star who stands out among the undecideds: Angelina Jolie.

Both campaigns have reached out to her, apparently to court her support. But in a statement to Variety provided by political adviser Trevor Neilson, Jolie says that she is waiting to make up her mind.

“I have not decided on a candidate,” Jolie says, “I am waiting to see the commitments they will make on issues like international justice, refugees and how to address the needs of children in crisis around the world.”

Unlike many other celebrity endorsements, Jolie’s carries the weight and influence of her extensive humanitarian work around the world, as the goodwill ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Her statement was an indication that she would be open to choosing a candidate.

[From Variety's Wilshire & Washington via Huffington Post]

Many of you have said that you don’t really care who a celebrity endorses and are going to make up your own mind based on the candidates’ positions on issues that matter to you. Angelina is such a polarizing celebrity despite her charity work that you would think that candidates wouldn’t actively ask for her support. Variety reminds us about Angelina’s op ed piece in the Washington Post, “Staying To Help,” in which she talked about the plight of the 2 million refugees in Iraq and called on the candidates “to announce a comprehensive refugee plan with a specific timeline and budget as part of their Iraq strategy.”

Obama has outlined a phased Iraq withdrawal that does include a provision for “preventing humanitarian crisis” and mentions refugees and international justice specifically. His campaign website says he will provide $2 billion to go to refugee support and that he “will form an international working group to address this crisis.” He also says that he will ensure that those who commit war crimes and genocide will be held accountable.

McCain says we should stay in Iraq until Al Quaeda is defeated and the Iraqi government is “capable of governing itself and safeguarding its people.” He focuses in his policy outline on success in the war and ensuring that US troops stay in Iraq until the government is self-sufficient. There is no mention of the plight of refugees or displaced people on his website, but he does claim that violence and deaths have been reduced there under the counterinsurgency strategy he advocated. He is quoted as saying that staying in Iraq for 100 or “even a million” more years “would be fine” with him, and he didn’t think the American people would have a problem with it.

Staying in Iraq costs $720 million a day by some estimates. It seems the US would have a lot more money and resources to help the Iraqis as well as to partially address the dire economic situation at home if they would withdraw from Iraq under Senator Obama’s plan. That’s my opinion of course, and Angelina seems to believe that too. She said at the Clinton Global Initiative in September, 2007 that an appeal by UNICEF she was advocating at the time would be able to educate 150,000 children at the cost of “eight hours of current spending in Iraq.” I can’t see her backing McCain and the war that never ends.

Somehow both these candidates want Angelina Jolie to announce her opinion and support them. I would have liked to hear her say she’s staying out of it rather than that she’s reserving judgment. Maybe Angelina has already made up her mind, and thinks that if she plays it like she’s waiting both candidates will be pressured into coming up with comprehensive strategies for helping displaced people in Iraq and the surrounding countries. Her father Jon Voight supports McCain and wrote an op-ed piece criticizing Obama, but it’s not likely Angelina is influenced much by her dad’s opinion considering that she hasn’t seen him in years.

Angelina Jolie is shown in photos from the Sudan that appeared in Newsweek in March, 2007

Never ever do I want to give Paris Hilton credit for anything. Ever. But today I have to. The heirhead managed to retaliate against John McCain’s stupid ad in a way that was both humorous and classy. At least for a Hilton. Paris’ mom Kathy went apeshit on McCain for mocking her daughter. And that’s understandable – any good mother would be peeved. But Paris is a grown woman, and actually did a pretty good job in her retaliation – even if it was conceived and written by someone else.

Paris Hilton has thrown her hat into the US presidential race, declaring her desire to campaign against “that wrinkly white-haired guy” and threatening to paint the White House pink if elected. The blond socialite responded to Republican candidate John McCain’s controversial use of her image in a campaign television spot last week with a satirical ad of her own posted on the website Funnyordie.com.

In the ad, the 27-year-old appears reclining on a sun lounger beside a swimming pool, dressed only in a skimpy leopard-print bathing costume. “Hey America, I’m Paris Hilton and I’m a celebrity too,” Hilton declares breezily. “Only I’m not from the olden days and I’m not promising change like that other guy. I’m just hot! But then that wrinkly white-haired guy used me in his campaign ad, which I guess means I’m running for president. So thanks for the endorsement white-haired dude, and I want America to know I’m, like, totally ready to lead.”

Hilton then offers an alternative US energy strategy, suggesting that she plans to combine elements from McCain and Democratic rival Barack Obama’s policy platforms. “We can do limited offshore drilling with strict environmental oversight while creating tax incentives to get Detroit making hybrid and electric cars. … Energy crisis solved, I’ll see you at the debates, bitches!” Hilton then signs off by declaring that she is now mulling her choices for vice-president. “I’m thinking Rihanna,” she said, referring to the singer-songwriter.

“I’ll see you at the White House,” Hilton adds. “Oh, and I might paint it pink. Bye!”

[From Yahoo! News]

Hilton’s acting is generally a bit stiff and uncomfortable – pretty much what you’d expect. Yet she pulls off the harder lines much better than the funny, lighter ones. When she talks about oil drilling, you’d almost think she’s a decent actress. And if you’re me, you’re really surprised that she was able to read such big words. I don’t delude myself into thinking that Paris understood them, and she probably had them sounded out phonetically on big cue cards nearby. But I’m impressed, nonetheless.

The brains behind Hilton’s advert were Funnyordie.com contributors Adam McKay and Chris Henchy, who pitched the idea of filming the spot to Hilton.

“She got it that the McCain thing was a low blow,” McKay told AFP. “And she felt she didn’t want to return it with angry fire, and that this was the best way to respond. It’s a playful jab.”

Henchy and McKay both believe Hilton is more intelligent than her tabloid persona lets on.

“She’s a lot smarter than people give her credit for,” Henchy said.

[From Yahoo! News]

Chris Henchy is Brooke Shield’s husband. And I’m praying to God that he’s just being kind. He’s married to one of the smartest actresses out there. I seriously doubt he was duped into thinking Paris Hilton has two IQ points to rub together. But obviously he’s not going to go around and say, “Hey, this celebrity who was nice enough to mock herself for our website is a total moron!” I don’t think. Either way, it’s a pretty funny response to McCain’s ridiculous advertisement, which was a lame attempt at humor. It’s kind of pathetic when the response is so much better than the original ad.

Paris HIlton is shown at the launch of her footwear collection on 7/29/08 at Macys in Las Vegas. Credit: Chris Connor / WENN

John McCain sure didn’t think through his latest campaign ad very well. In it, he pokes fun at Barack Obama by claiming he’s the world’s biggest celebrity after Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. The McCain camp says it’s supposed to be funny, but it really isn’t. I’m not saying it’s not funny in the sense of “this is very serious stuff; you shouldn’t joke.” It’s just flat-out dumb and not very creative. It isn’t funny. And it’s clear they’re trying to paint Obama as some sort of frivolous dilettante with that ridiculous comparison.

What they really forgot to consider was that the Hilton family donated to McCain’s campaign. And now Kathy Hilton is pretty damn pissed.

If John McCain thought it was tough battling Barack Obama, let’s see how he likes having an angry mom to contend with as well! Paris Hilton’s mom, Kathy, is furious with McCain for picking on her little girl in a TV ad aired last week. McCain says the spot painting his rival as ‘just another celeb’ like Paris or Britney, was meant to be funny — but Momma Hilton doesn’t see the joke.

”It is a complete waste of the country’s time and attention at the very moment when millions of people are losing their homes and their jobs,” Kathy said on the Huffington Post Web site. ”And it is a completely frivolous way to choose the next president of the United States.” And McCain shouldn’t be expecting another check from the Hiltons in the post either.

Kathy and her husband donated $4,600 to his campaign this year, but she said the ad was ”a complete waste of the money John McCain’s contributors have donated to his campaign,” according to the New York Times.

[From OK!]

Obviously McCain isn’t the first person to publicly make fun of Paris. But it is pretty damn tacky to take nearly $5,000 from someone and then turn around and make fun of their daughter. It was a stupid ad that the McCain camp clearly thought was clever, but at best was absolutely banal. At worst it was insulting. They should have spent that $4,600 on an ad agency that actually has a little bit of creativity.

Header image of Kathy and Paris Hilton at the “Can Can” Perfume Photocall at Selfridges in London on May 15, 2008. Images thanks to PR Photos.

Republican presidential candidate John McCain is making fun of his Democratic opponent Barack Obama’s vast popularity by comparing him to celebrities like Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. In a new television ad for McCain they show shots of the 200,000 people gathered to hear Obama speak in Berlin last week with people shouting “Obama! Obama!” over the footage. The narrator says that Obama is the biggest celebrity in the world, but asks if he’s ready to lead. The camera cuts to photos of Britney Spears and Paris Hilton and the narrator claims that Obama will raise taxes - which isn’t true for most people, and that he’s against offshore drilling.

No one yelled “Obama! Obama!” in Berlin, I was there
I live in Berlin and I was at Obama’s speech that day - you may have noticed because the site wasn’t updated much that afternoon. No one was shouting “Obama! Obama!” at all. I tried to do it, but the Germans didn’t pick it up and just stood and sat there patiently listening to music ahead of the speech.

Obama’s speech in Berlin was too moderate for my taste
I wasn’t entirely happy with Obama’s speech. He focused on security and the need to send troops into Afghanistan and to fight terrorism. (Here’s a transcript of his speech if you missed it) I’m a liberal and I want to see the troops withdrawn from Iraq, something Obama has promised under a 16 month timetable, and the focus put back on domestic and economic issues. I believe that terrorism is best dealt with swiftly behind the scenes. Yes there is a huge problem with terrorism, but we only give the extremist groups the attention they want by acting scared and focusing on them in the media. It gives them power when we talk about them. I wanted to hear what he’s going to do to make sure people can afford to stay in their homes and drive their cars.

I will be voting for Obama because McCain has pretty much stated that we’ll be in Iraq forever and you can bet that it will be four more years of Bush’s policies with that guy. Obama does get too much adoration and I don’t really like the way he seems to be courting the celebrity press. He seemed genuinely surprised that he was criticized for allowing his daughters to be interviewed on camera for Access Hollywood, though, and I think that he’s just flying by the seat of his pants and assuming that all positive press is helpful.

Today I asked JayBird to cover the story about Michelle Obama’s interview with People because I’m kind of burnt out on the guy. I thought he was a liberal and it turns out he’s a lot more moderate. That’s probably what will get him elected, and lefties like me will still vote for him so it’s a win-win.

Obama will lower your taxes compared to McCain if you make less than 112k
McCain’s assertion in this ad that Obama will raise taxes is not correct. If you’re one of the 90% of Americans who makes less than 112k a year, Obama will provide you much more of a tax break than McCain. If you make more than 112k a year, or are a corporation, you save more with taxes under McCain.

Obama has issued a response to McCain’s ad. A spokesman said, “On a day when major news organizations across the country are taking Sen. McCain to task for a steady stream of false, negative attacks, his campaign has launched yet another. Or, as some might say, ‘Oops! He did it again.’” We know which side has a sense of humor along with a better grasp of the media.

Yesterday Angelina Jolie’s dad Jon Voight’s wrote a pretty wild op-ed published in the conservative paper The Washington Times in which he said that Obama is a bad candidate because of his radical minister or teachers or whatever. We’ve heard that argument before and it’s weak. I wonder if Voight’s piece will push his daughter away even further. Angelina has said that she’s not behind a specific candidate and is waiting to see who she likes, but I can’t see her voting for McCain. And I would rather focus on Angelina’s relationship with her dad than McCain vs. Obama. The stakes are so much higher in the Presidential race than some celebrity’s feud with their family, and it can be stressful and a little mind-boggling to consider the ramifications of the election. It’s hard to imagine how the economy could get much worse than it has, but it’s surely possible.

Thanks to US Weekly for this ad and to Kaiser for the tip on Voight’s op-ed.