In what is beginning to look like a pattern, Barack Obama is again shooting back at John McCain and the GOP after the Republican National Committee released what the Obama camp considers a false ad.
An RNC radio spot, which features the voice of a teacher, alleges that Obama voted to raise taxes on Americans making "as little as $32,000" and is "acting like a typical politician" by "saying one thing and doing another."
In a sharp response, Obama released his own radio ad Friday in two important swing states -- Virginia and Ohio. In "Makin' Stuff Up" (subscription), a man and a woman accuse McCain of using the George Bush/Karl Rove playbook to fight dirty. "This is shameful. He's just makin' stuff up," the man charges, before pointing to independent Web site FactCheck.org, which has disputed the RNC's claims about Obama's tax policies. In reality, the man contends, "Obama's plan cuts taxes on the middle class and won't raise taxes on anybody making less than $250,000 a year."
McCain, on the other hand, "wants billions in new corporate tax breaks" but has "no way to pay for it," according to the Obama spot. "Sounds like George Bush all over again," the woman muses, while the man adds: "Guess that's why they say: John McCain -- McSame as Bush." --Finally an announcer encourages listeners to "get the facts" on Obama's tax plan by visiting his web site. -->
The spot continues what has been Obama's main strategy (subscription) for contrasting himself with McCain: link the Arizona senator to the Bush White House and its increasingly unpopular policies.