Obama fires ad blitz to woo voters; McCain terms it as 'gauzy'

Sridhar Krishnaswami
Washington, Oct 30 (PTI) Flush with cash from record-breaking fund-raising, Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama rolled out a multi-million-dollar advertisement blitz to woo voters, an event dismissed as a "gauzy, feel-good commercial" by his Republican rival John McCain.

In the 30-minute advertisement in at least seven national
TV networks -- with the exception of CNN -- costing several
million dollars, 47-year-old Obama promised to keep the doors
of government opened for the people and called for their
participation in American democracy again.

"America, the time for change has come," said Obama
Wednesday night in the prime-time ad, which was mocked by
McCain even before it was aired.

"And to all of you and all of those who've joined us from
across the country, in six days, we can choose an economy that
rewards work and creates jobs and fuels prosperity, starting
with the middle class," the Democrat said.

Listing his priorities if elected President in the
November 4 polls, Obama said in the ad, where there was not
even an indirect mention of Mccain, that he will "cut taxes
for every working family making less than USD 200,000 a year;
give businesses a tax credit for every new employee that they
hire right here in the US over the next two years; and
eliminate tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas..."

McCain, the 72-year-old Vietnam War veteran, dismissed
the ad as a "gauzy, feel-good commercial" paid for with broken
promises when he appeared on CNN's 'Larry King Live'.

Terming the Obama broadcast as a "TV special", he said
"as with other infomercials, he's got something to sell you."

"He's offering you government-run health care," McCain
said in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Earlier, McCain played the fear card questioning Obama's
security credentials and claiming that his Democrat rival was
incapable of protecting Americans from terrorism.

"The question is whether this is a man who has what it
takes to protect America from Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda and
other grave threats in the world," McCain said after a
security round-table meeting in Florida. "And he has given you
no reason to answer in the affirmative."

Obama got a major boost six day before the polls as
former President Bill Clinton joined forces with him and
exhorted Americans to vote for the Illinois Senator who
represented "America's future".

Clinton, whose wife Hillary abandoned her bid for White
House in June after losing in primaries to Obama, told a huge
gathering of over 30,000 people at a joint appearance ith
Obama in Florida Wednesday night that he was "honoured" to
voice his support for the 47-year-old Senator from Illinois.

Both Obama and McCain campaigned yesterday in the
critical state of Florida, where Republican Governor Charlie
Christ said that McCain was ahead of Obama.

Political pundits, however, are still focussed on Ohio
which has 20 electoral votes and is seen as a must-win for
McCain to make difference in the November 4 showdown.

In spite of being aware of the odds in the Buckeye state
where Obama is favourite, the McCain camp is still hopeful as
a new poll showed a tight race between the two.

The poll conducted by Marist College Institute for
Public Opinion gives Obama a slight edge over his Republican
rival, with the Democrat receiving support of 46 percent of
registered voters in Ohio compared to 43 percent for McCain.

In an interview to ABC, Obama promised to choose a
bipartisan Cabinet if elected in the November 4 polls, saying
he would want Republicans in the government but "not just as
show pieces". He declined to say whether Defence Secretary
Roberts Gates, who has earned praise from both Democrats and
Republicans, would be in his short list. PTI Team