Obama’s professional spinmeister Robert Gibbs maintains that the campaign “learned from the Pentagon that the trip to Ramstein and Landstuhl will be viewed as a campaign stop”. But First Read reports that the Pentagon says they never discouraged Obama’s visit:
Did the Pentagon discourage Obama from visiting Landstuhl? “No,” says Pentagon spokesperson Bryan Whitman. Did the Pentagon tell Senator Obama that it was inappropriate for him to visit because he is on a campaign trip? “No. That’s inaccurate,” Whitman said. Was Obama’s Senate office told that he and his Senate staff could visit the facility? “Absolutely.” “As a sitting United States senator, Obama obviously has an official interest in the well being of our service members and how the wounded are being treated,” Whitman said, adding:”He is welcome to visit a military medical center any time that he wants to. As you all know, we do have certain policy guidelines for political campaigns and elections and what is appropriate and what’s not appropriate in those situations,” Whitman said. “The Pentagon did not tell the senator that he could not visit Landstuhl.” “If you are both a sitting senator and a political candidate when you are doing things like a visit to Landstuhl, you need to do it in your capacity as a sitting senator or you have to do it with the restrictions that apply,” Whitman added.
