Obama for America

"Destination"
30-second ad run on national cable starting Sept. 23, 2008




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Obama (voiceover): I'm Barack Obama and I approve this message.

[Calypso Music] Male Announcer: Bermuda.  It’s more than just a vacation destination for John McCain. 

McCain went to Bermuda…  and while he was there pledged to protect tax breaks for American corporations that hide their profits offshore.

And grateful insurance company executives and their lobbyists who benefit from the tax scheme, gave McCain $50,000. 

John McCain.  He took a vacation, and so much more.

And we get more of the same.  


Notes: This ad was released on the day that Obama outlined his "New Energy for America Plan" in a speech in Lansing, MI.  McCain campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds responded with this statement:

Notes: Democrats also organized an event tied in with this ad.  From the DNC press release...

"Congressman Xavier Becerra (D-CA), Congressman Joe Baca (D-CA), Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) and concerned citizens gathered outside of the Republican National Committee in Washington, DC today to highlight John McCain's record of putting corporate CEOs ahead of working families.  The event coincides with the release of the Obama-Biden campaign's launch of a new television ad that shows that McCain visited Bermuda and pledged to protect the corporate tax breaks for American companies that hide their profits offshore.  In return, the grateful insurance company executives and their lobbyists who stand to benefit gave McCain $50,000."

Observations
: This ad and other recent ads in the Obama oeuvre may make valid points, and with its calypso music and snide tone the ad may be clever, but doesn't this kind of thing, the 30-second attack ad, undercut the fundamental premise of Obama's campaign...that he can transcend the smallness of our politics and bring change to Washington?