McCain Fakes Out Audience, Doesn’t Take Questions
WILMINGTON, N.C. -- The sight of a troubling sign on the way to Sen. John McCain’s stop here at Cape Fear Community College didn’t presage an eventful rally --
WILMINGTON, N.C. — The sight of a troubling sign on the way to Sen. John McCain’s stop here at Cape Fear Community College didn’t presage an eventful rally — sort of.
The event was much smaller than the morning rally in Virginia Beach, where McCain and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin appeared. Fewer than 2,000 were attendance in the college’s gymnasium.
And McCain gave essentially the same speech as he did in the morning.
But at the beginning of the event, McCain indicated that he would take questions from the audience. “Before our conversation,” he said, “I’ve got to give you some straight talk…” — signaling his intention to talk with supporters.
But when he finished his speech, he abruptly left the stage, “Rocky” theme music blaring from the PA system. All indications were that the rally was over.
The audience stayed put for a few minutes, presumably wondering, as did reporters following the campaign, if the candidate was going to return to the stage and take questions.
He did not. And the audience left.
Rumor had it that the event was originally scheduled as a town hall meeting; McCain’s daily schedule showed an hour set aside for the event. Normally, his staff does not block off such long periods of time for rallies.
But in the wake of the bad press generated by some of his town-hall rallies last week — at an event in Minnesota an audience member said Sen. Barack Obama was an Arab — it might be understandable why the campaign would pass up holding a town hall where it could happen again.
Still, the abrupt end to the rally was a bizarre moment that left more than a few reporters wondering aloud if this campaign has become a rudderless ship.
Related
MA-Sen: 150 Conservative Bloggers Fan Out, Looking for Scandals
BOSTON -- The mysterious Election Journal blog, which first released the infamous 2008 video of two bumbling New Black Panther Party members waving nightsticks
MA-Sen: 66 to 19
BOSTON -- That, via Alex Isenstadt and Josh Kraushaar, is the number that defined the Massachusetts Senate race more than anything else. From the primary
MA-Sen: A Text Message From Scott Brown
BOSTON -- Having signed up for Scott Brown’s text message service for election day, I just got this text: Are you about to have lunch? It’s a great time to
MA-Sen: Loyal Democrats Grouse About Coakley
BOSTON -- A little while after noon, a steady crowd of Democratic voters streamed into the Cathedral High School Gymnasium to cast votes for their party’s
MA-Sen: Brown Wins
BOSTON -- At 9:20, the first rumors of Scott Brown’s victory in the Massachusetts Senate race started to work around the room. A moment later, Doug Flutie
MA-Sen Photos: ‘Paint the Town Red! Croakley’s Dead!’
Below are some photos of yesterday’s People’s Rally in Worcester, the rally that Brown held to counter-program the Obama rally in Boston. The crush of
MA-Sen: Out-of-Staters for Brown
BOSTON -- A surprising discovery at yesterday’s People’s Rally in Worcester was just how many people had traveled into the state to assist, in whatever way,
Menendez, Lautenberg to Continue BP-Lockerbie Investigation
Sens. Robert Menendez and Frank Lautenberg, both New Jersey Democrats, will continue to seek details about BP’s alleged involvement in the release last year of
Net Investors Bullish on Palin’s Prospects for Staying on Ticket
Just for fun, the Internet prediction Website Intrade has opened a contract on whether Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will be withdrawn as McCain’s running mate.
No Experience Necessary
Gov. Sarah Palin’s a middle-class hockey mom, but does that really qualify her to be vice president?