Lipstick on a Pig

The GOP is choosing to act offended because of a comment shown out of context by the McCain campaign. Obama uses a saying that has been repeated by many politicians saying Obama called his opponent a pig. Here is an article from the LA Times today:








When is it OK to talk about lipstick on pigs? It depends.
Sen. Barack Obama is being lambasted for his statement about Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin's policies not being about change but "just calling the same thing something different."
"You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig," Obama said during a town-hall style event in Virginia on Tuesday night.
As you probably recall, Palin got applause at the Republican National Convention when she said that the only difference between a pit bull and a hockey mom (meaning herself) is that the latter wears lipstick. I think there are a few other differences, but I won't go into that here.
Now McCain's camp is acting outraged, outraged! It is accusing Obama of talking about Palin, calling Barack's comment "offensive and disgraceful" and saying Obama owes Palin an apology. This war hero and his self-described pit bull are so sensitive!Meanwhile, McCain may have conveniently forgotten (hey, the dude's, like, really old) that he once used the same analogy in a 2007 Chicago Tribune article about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's healthcare plan. And I didn't hear anything about Hillary demanding an apology.
"I think they put some lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig," McCain is quoted as saying about Clinton's proposal.





"Hardball" with Chris Matthews this afternoon is having a field day talking about the nuances od such a comment. McCain has used it in an attack ad. That is below the belt. Matthews is doing a good job of getting to the bottom of the GOP BS.

Here is what the Obama people say about this cloud of nonsense being produced by the right:

Barack Obama said Republican John McCain's outrage was "phoney", a diversion from debating real issues.
The controversy began on Tuesday after Mr Obama said his rival was advocating change while pursuing the politics of the current Bush administration.
Mr McCain's campaign accused him of smearing running mate Sarah Palin.
Mrs Palin joked last week that lipstick was all that separated a "hockey mom" and a pitbull.
'Made-up' controversy
Mr Obama made the remark during a rally in Virginia where he accused the McCain campaign of trying suddenly to adopt the promise of change - a platform he himself has been running on for months.
Drawing a link between the Republican senator for Arizona and President George W Bush, he suggested change would be impossible for Mr McCain to achieve.
Responses to "lippygate" range from the trenchant to the sympathetic but over over over academic.
"You can put lipstick on a pig. It's still a pig. You can wrap up an old fish in a piece of paper and call it change. It's still going to stink after eight years. We've had enough."
Mrs Palin, a self-described "hockey mom", made her joke about lipstick during a speech at the Republican National Convention last Wednesday.
Soon after Mr Obama's comments, McCain aides produced an election campaign ad referring to "sexism in American life", and accusing the Illinois senator of "smearing" Mrs Palin, governor of Alaska.
And there was speculation that Mr Obama might apologise, but he took a more aggressive line, says the BBC's Kevin Connolly in Washington.
He dismissed the "made-up controversy" on Wednesday - defending his remark as an "innocent expression".
Mr Obama said his comments had been taken out of context.