Obama Camp Responds to Troop Visit Flap

The Obama campaign is pushing back furiously against the charge from the McCain campaign that Obama dissed the troops by scrapping a visit in Germany. As McCain pressed the issue yesterday, the Obama campaign released three statements, beginning with these two from campaign spokesman Tommy Vietor:

As Senator Obama said today, the last thing he wanted was to have injured soldiers get pulled into the back-and-forth of a political campaign. That's why we imagine Senator McCain would be surprised that his campaign released this wildly inappropriate accusation that politicizes the issue. Senator Obama and Senator McCain share the belief that we must do everything we can to honor and support our troops, which is why Senator Obama has met with our men and women in uniform in Iraq and Afghanistan this week and visited wounded soldiers at Walter Reed numerous times.

Hours later Vietor released this:

John McCain is an honorable man who is running an increasingly dishonorable campaign. Senator McCain knows full well that Senator Obama strongly supports and honors our troops, which is what makes this attack so disingenuous. Senator Obama was honored to meet with our men and women in uniform in Iraq and Afghanistan this week and has visited wounded soldiers at Walter Reed numerous times. This politicization of our soldiers is exactly what Senator Obama sought to avoid, and it's not worthy of Senator McCain or the 'civil' campaign he claimed he would run.

Finally, the campaign also released a statement from Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), who accompanied Obama on his visit to Afghanistan and Iraq:

I was with Senator Obama last week as we met privately with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Senator Obama listened to their concerns and expressed his gratitude for their service without press or fanfare. He cares for our troops deeply and has worked hard to give them not only the resources they need, but also honor their service with a clearly defined mission and by providing them with the support they have earned when they come home. And just as Senator McCain's support of President Bush's veto of funding for our troops doesn't mean he does not support them, neither does Senator Obama's insistence that we not give George Bush a blank check.

--------------------------------------------
Follow the RCP Blog on Twitter.
Become a fan of RCP on Facebook.
--------------------------------------------



Copyright © Time Inc. All rights reserved.

Powered by WordPress.com VIP

Subscribe | Customer Service | Help | Site Map | Search | Contact Us | Privacy Policy
Terms of Use | Reprints & Permissions |
Press Releases | Media Kit Try AOL for 1000 Hours FREE!