Score this one for McCain

McCain demonstrated terrific timing with his call out of Barack Obama's war strategy. In a debate Sen. Obama mentioned that he would reserve the right to attack al Qaeda in Iraq rather than proceeding to withdraw troops. The dust-up came just before Pew Research found Americans positive about the outcome in Iraq and willing to have troops there.

"I always reserve the right for the president...to make sure that we are looking out for American interests. And if Al Qaeda is forming a base in Iraq, then we will have to act in a way that secures the American homeland and our interests abroad."
(Pakistan Dawn)

Note the "if Al Qaeda is forming a base in Iraq." McCain did.

"I understand that Sen. Obama said that if al Qaeda established a base in Iraq that he would send troops back in militarily. Al Qaeda already has a base in Iraq. It's called al Qaeda in Iraq," McCain said.

"It's a remarkable statement to say that you would send troops back to a place where al Qaeda has established a base -- where they have already established a base."

(CNN)

Perhaps the most interesting thing about Obama's response was his readiness to shed his above-it-all approach to attack and counterattack politics. But the lack of real content was a close second.

Watch the dodge:



Faced with the dissonance between advocating withdrawal and his position on opposing al Qaeda in Iraq, Obama ... changes the subject to We shouldn't be there in the first place.

It's a consistent winner with the brainlessly antiwar left; you can see and hear the crowd lapping it up. But it won't fly with most Americans. The electorate is coming around on the war, and thinking observers saw the dodge.

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