Adwatch: McCain ad blames Obama for gas price hike

"Campaign - Presidential"

07/22/2008

Associated Press | July 21, 2008


TITLE: "Pump."

LENGTH: 30 seconds

AIRING: National cable and Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Northern Virginia and Wisconsin.

SCRIPT: Announcer: "Gas prices — $4, $5, no end in sight, because some in Washington are still saying no to drilling in America. No to independence from foreign oil. Who can you thank for rising prices at the pump?"

Crowd chanting: "Obama, Obama, Obama!"

Announcer: "One man knows we must now drill more in America and rescue our family budgets. Don't hope for more energy, vote for it. McCain."

McCain: "I'm John McCain and I approve this message."

KEY IMAGES: A lonely gas pump with heat waves rising around it. A pump's price readout rolls over to $5. At first indiscernible, background chanting grows louder. A smiling Obama appears on the screen with a pump rising over his right shoulder. It is now clear that the chants are a pro-Obama crowd: "Obama, Obama, Obama!" The screen goes dark. A clip appears of McCain speaking to a crowd, replaced by a still shot of McCain against a blue backdrop.

ANALYSIS: This ad is the latest tit-for-tat commercial over energy in the presidential campaign. Earlier this month, an Obama ad accused McCain of being "part of the problem" of high gas prices. This one flat out blames Obama.

The main premise of McCain's ad — that opposition to drilling is responsible for high gas prices — is an assertion that has been disputed even by McCain allies. There is a strong case that proponents make for additional drilling, but few will argue that it would alleviate this summer's prices at the pump.