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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2008 > August > 28 > Entry
Eye On Ohio: McCain ‘3 a.m.’ ad
By Ellen Belcher
Dayton Daily News
The ad: “3 a.m.,” 30 seconds.
Producer: McCain campaign.
Where to see it: It’s airing in battleground states, including Ohio, and in Denver during the Democratic National Convention. View it at DaytonDailyNews.com/eyeonohio.
Script: Narrator from Hillary Clinton ad that aired in the primary: “It’s 3 a.m. and your children are safe and asleep. Who do you want answering the phone?”
Announcer: “Uncertainty. Dangerous aggression. Rogue nations. Radicalism.”
Clinton: “I know Sen. McCain has a lifetime of experience that he will bring to the White House. And, Sen. Obama has a speech he gave in 2002.”
Announcer: “Hillary’s right. John McCain for president.”
McCain: “I’m John McCain, and I approved this message.”
Video: The ad opens with footage from arguably Sen. Hillary Clinton’s most controversial — and maybe most effective — ad from the primary. A mother cracks the door to a dark bedroom of a sleeping child. The voiceover asks, “Who do you want answering the phone,” an unsubtle suggestion that Clinton is prepared to be president and Barack Obama is not.
The footage then shows tanks barreling over windswept ground, a missile being launched and hooded jihadists on the march.
Next, it’s back to Clinton saying Obama’s claim to fame is a single speech. Pay close attention and you’ll see Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland in the frame to Clinton’s left.
After showing type saying “Hillary’s right,” there’s a flattering portrait of McCain.
Analysis: The McCain campaign is mining and milking Clinton’s criticism of Obama during the primary for all it’s worth. This is at least its third ad featuring Clinton since Obama announced Saturday, Aug. 23, that he had chosen Sen. Joe Biden to be his running mate. In the previous ads, he’s said Obama passed over Clinton for VP because she told the truth about him; in another, a former Clinton delegate declares she’s switched to backing McCain.
This ad began airing Tuesday, Aug. 26, the second day of the Democratic Convention and the day that Clinton was making her speech appealing for party unity. It’s the McCain campaign’s reminder that no matter what Clinton is saying now, once upon a time — and not long ago — her criticism of Obama was scathing.
Ellen Belcher is the editorial page editor of the Dayton Daily News. E-mail: ebelcher@daytondailynews.com.
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