If age is on table, then…
Posted: Friday, May 09, 2008 1:45 PM by Domenico Montanaro
Filed Under:
2008, McCain
From NBC/NJ’s Carrie Dann
JERSEY CITY, N.J. -- Asked to respond to Obama's comment that the 71-year old senator is "losing his bearings," McCain said today that questions raised about his age are "fine with me."
And, he added, if age is a legitimate issue, so are a few things about his likely opponent.
"Every issue that the American people want to be an issue, and it's part of their discussions, it's fine with me," he said in response to the question about his age.
Not missing a beat, he added the controversial statements of Jeremiah Wright onto that same list. Obama, McCain noted, "has said that [Wright] is a legitimate topic of discussion.” He added, “If that's what the American people want to discuss, that's fine.”
McCain also told reporters that the recent complimentary remarks of
Obama by a Hamas spokesman are also fair game for debate. Prefacing his comment by saying he believes it's clear Obama "shares nothing of the values or goals of Hamas," the presumptive GOP nominee added that the Palestinian organization's favorable assessment of Obama's candidacy is "a legitimate point of discussion."
"That's of interest to the American people," he said. "And that is something that needs to be discussed."
McCain said he was not offended by Obama's assessment that he is "losing his bearings," a comment interpreted by some observers, including campaign big Mark Salter, as a swipe at the older McCain's mental sharpness.
During the morning press conference at Liberty Science Center here, the senator was flanked by Sen. Joe Lieberman (I) and former New Jersey Gov. Tom Kean (R). Lieberman was quick to jump to his ally's defense with characteristic jokiness.
“I just want to report that this morning I personally checked John McCain's bearings. He has not lost any of them," said the white-haired Connecticut senator. "They are all in really great shape."