Keith Olbermann Special Comment
Keith Olbermann points out that not only does John McCain have a closer relationship with Rashid Khalidi than Barack Obama does, that relationship means McCain is has a connection to William Ayers as well.
Posted November 01, 2008
TRANSCRIPT
And it is
one
thing—one
stupid,
cataclysmic
thing—to try
to slime
your
opponent
because of
his
relationship
with some
guy, only to
then find
out that
your own
candidate
has a
stronger
relationship
with that
guy.
But this
graduates to
the level of
fatal
political
malpractice
when the
ultimate
result of
your effort
to slime
your
opponent, is
to in fact
draw a
parallel
between your
candidate,
and William
Ayers.
The huffing,
puffing,
panicky
McCain noise
machine has
really done
it this
time. John
McCain, and
William
Ayers, both
gave money
to this man
Rashid
Khalidi.
Sen. McCain,
you may want
to get a pad
and pencil
here and
write all
this down.
I'm actually
going to
agree with
William
Kristol,
when he
wrote in the
New York
Times, that
you should
fire your
entire
campaign
staff. In
three short
steps, while
trying to
link Sen.
Obama to
Rashid
Khalidi;
they have
instead
linked you
to Rashid
Khalidi and
Bill Ayers.
Watch,
Senator —
Step one:
get the
running mate
who thinks
she's
smarter than
everybody
else to
throw out
the first
pitch.
PALIN: It
seems that
there was
yet another
radical
professor
from the
neighborhood
who spent a
lot of time
with Barack
Obama, going
back several
years. This
is
important,
because this
associate,
Rashid
Khalidi, he,
in addition
to being a
political
ally of
Barack Obama,
he's a
former
spokesperson
for the
Palestinian
Liberation
Organization.
Now Senator,
if you're
seeing that
clip for the
first time,
take a
minute to
clean up
whatever you
were
drinking,
and whatever
you hit with
your
spit-take.
As you
remember,
Sen. McCain,
Rashid
Khalidi's
also the guy
you gave
$448,873
dollars to,
ten years
ago.
When you
were
Chairman of
the
International
Republican
Institute,
and Khalidi
wanted grant
money to
spend in the
West Bank,
for his
Center for
Palestine
Research and
Studies.
As you know,
Senator,
$448,000
goes a lot
further than
friendship.
You gotta
tell Gov.
Palin stuff
like this,
Senator.
Unless, of
course, she
already
knew, and
said it
anyway,
which means
that those
stories
about how
she's
stabbin' you
in the back
are just
scratchin'
the
mavericky
surface.
But to
continue
this long,
dismal tide
of
self-destruction,
Senator.
That was
step one.
Step two:
Get the
drumbeat
rolling with
the most
over-rated
strategist
in the
history of
American
politics,
Karl Rove,
on the echo
chamber of
choice,
Fixed News.
ROVE: What
bothers me
about this
is where was
the McCain
opposition
research
when this
article came
out last
April that
talked about
Obama's
presence at
the dinner
for Khalidi
and
mentioned in
the story
the tape.
This would
be a lot
better if
this
drumbeat had
been started
last spring.
Senator, put
the bottle
down.
You may know
all-too-well,
and I may
just be
guessing,
that Rashid
Khalidi had
to have come
up last
spring, but
what used to
be the
cooler heads
in your
campaign
said:
ick-snay on
the
alidi-kay.
Because your
campaign had
to have
known that
you mainline
directly
back to
him—and not
just the
$448,000
grant in
1998 but
another
series of
other grants
from your
group to
Khalidi's
group in
1993, you'd
know how
much those
were for; we
haven't
found out.
Yet. But,
the smart
folks are
all gone
now. All you
got left are
Sarah Palin
and Karl
Rove and
Rudy
Giuliani.
Steps one
and two
having been
completed.
He was step
three. I
know! Let's
ask Rudy!
He'll try
anything.
Honestly,
Senator, I
know you
like this
man, but,
frankly, if
he's talking
about
anything
west of
Hoboken, New
Jersey, or
anything
more
complicated
than how to
speed
cross-town
traffic,
he's lost.
The problem
is, when
Rudy
Giuliani
starts
talking
Rashid
Khalidi, not
only is Rudy
going down,
but he's
taking you
with him.
GIULIANI:
What I do
know is that
Khalidi has
made
Israel... he
has a
connection
with the
PLO... I
believe
Khalidi's
wife was the
translator...
he has a
very hostile
view to the
state of
Israel
...and he
was giving a
party and
Senator
Obama said
laudatory
things about
him... and
Senator
Obama and
Ayers,
sitting on
the Woods
board, gave
something
like $70,000
or $80,000
to Khalidi's
organizations
Senator,
Senator,
Senator.
Morals
aside, this
is the
classic
problem of
guilt by
association:
Obama and
Ayers gave
Khalidi's
organizations
$80,000.
McCain gave
Khalidi's
organizations
$448,000.
Obama and
Ayers. Obama
and Ayers.
Obama and
Ayers and
McCain.
Obama and
Ayers and
McCain.
Ayers and
McCain.
Ayers and
McCain! So
now, not
only is
Rashid
Khalidi your
problem, not
Obama's. But
now you're
connected to
Bill Ayers.
The only
difference
is who gave
this
nebulously
nefarious
guy with the
Arabic name
more money,
you or
Ayers?
Golly,
Senator,
that'd be
you by a
figure of at
least 5-1.
Which is
also the
ratio of
your
campaign's
sleaze bombs
that blow up
in your own
face.
Retire them,
Senator, and
this Clown
College you
have, before
they "advise
you" into
trying to
link Obama
to the
Keating Five
or
something.
Because if
you lose on
Tuesday,
Senator,
you're going
to have a
long time to
think about
not only why
you sold
your soul,
but why you
sold it to
these
chowderheads.
And if you
win on
Tuesday,
you're going
to go into
office with
more
blowback
sleaze on
you than any
president in
our history.
And the
White House
is no place
for a brain
trust,
consisting
of very few
brains, and
nobody worth
trusting.
Hey, got an
idea,
Senator,
maybe you
should turn
to a guy who
evidently
thinks like
you, at
least on
funding
Palestinian
think-tanks.
Maybe you
could get
some late
help from
William
Ayers.
