By Holly Bailey
For a candidate trying hard to stay on message, it’s always the unscripted moments tell you most about John McCain. The presumptive GOP nominee was in San Diego Monday, where he spoke before the National Council of La Raza. The group, which heard from Barack Obama on Sunday, is considered one of the most influential Latino groups in the country and has been heavily courted by both Democrats and Republicans hoping to make inroads with Hispanic voters this fall. There was no big news in McCain’s speech. As he does before most Latino audiences, McCain talked up his experience as a border state senator and his support for immigration reform—noting that he did so even when it wasn’t the best move for him politically. And he dinged Obama for not doing the same. “Senator Obama declined to cast some of those tough votes,” McCain told the group, even as he insisted he wasn’t there to “criticize” his opponent but that he felt the need to “correct the record.” (Here’s McCain’s full remarks, as released by the campaign.)
But it was what happened after the speech that was the most notable moment of the day. McCain, who continues to talk up his idea of joint town halls with Obama, decided to take questions from the audience after his remarks. After fielding several questions, many not so friendly, McCain was about to take another when he was interrupted by one of the organizers, who announced over the PA system they were out of time. As he often does when his own staff tries to wrap up an event, McCain shook off the intrusion like a pitcher defying his catcher and took the next question. But NCLR reps, trying to keep the event on time, just wouldn’t be stopped. While McCain was answering the question, one of the organizers took away the microphone audience members had been using to talk to McCain. When the senator finished his answer and saw the microphone was gone, a look of annoyance flashed on his face. And then, McCain simply threw his own microphone into the audience, calling for one last question. It’s a move that’s trademark McCain. In the run up to Super Tuesday, the senator often rebelled against his staff, who packed his schedule with quick airport rallies rather than his preferred town halls.
At one rally, McCain decided to have his own impromptu town hall, handing his microphone into the audience. “We just have time for a couple,” McCain said, as his staff exchanged glances. Then, as now, it’s almost always those unscripted McCain moments that produce the most newsworthy moments on the trail, which is a challenge for a campaign that’s been criticized lately for lacking a coherent message. But what do you do when you have a candidate whose natural tendency—and, frankly, his reputation—is all about going off script? It’s a balance that Team McCain is still trying to find.
