The McCain camp fires back on the houses controversy. They're ready to rumble:
Does a guy who made more than $4 million last year, just got back from vacation on a private beach in Hawaii and bought his own million-dollar mansion with the help of a convicted felon really want to get into a debate about houses? Does a guy who worries about the price of arugula and thinks regular people 'cling' to guns and religion in the face of economic hardship really want to have a debate about who's in touch with regular Americans?
It must be admitted, a good return of serve. It's the Rezko business that's tricky here. The McCain people are saying: You make this an issue, we make Rezko an issue. The whole thing with the Obama house purchase always mystified me. I don't think he did anything irredeemably sleazy, but truth be told, the way the purchase was arranged did sound like something that a regular person couldn't ever pull off. I just can't understand why a guy in that position, who was clearly already thinking of big things at the time he bought the house, didn't just make a normal above-the-board home purchase like the rest of us schlubs.
But assuming there's nothing new on the Rezko front, this isn't the time for the Obama camp to back down. You don't launch an attack and then wilt when the other guy throws his first punch. The vitriol in the McCain statement indicates that they know this is a potentially serious Achilles' Heel for them. The Obama people have to keep pushing this one. One home worth about $1.5 million (the Obamas) isn't in the same league as seven homes worth $13 million (the McCains).
