Interesting report earlier tonight from Fox News Channel’s Bill Hemmer. He said that advisers to Mitt Romney told him that their candidate would be going after John McCain on integrity, specifically focusing on McCain’s comments last week on Romney and Iraq. We saw this previewed yesterday. “I think Senator McCain is willing to say anything he has to say to get elected,” Romney said. The Romney campaign also sent out a press release detailing accusations that McCain has problems with his temper. It’s a high-risk, high-reward strategy. By targeting McCain’s strength, Romney could chip away at his favorable ratings. In my discussions with McCain supporters this week, many of them pointed to “integrity” and “character” as reasons they intended to vote for him. If Romney can successfully raise questions about these things, he could make voters very nervous about supporting McCain. But the risk here is a big one. Ask most voters to name the first thing that comes to their minds when they hear John McCain and they will likely say “veteran” or “patriot” or “war hero.” Will voters who might disagree with many of McCain’s positions find him sympathetic if he is attacked on character? Depending on how it’s done, that is possible, perhaps likely.
