Many have wondered when Barack Obama would strike back against John McCain’s truth-stretching political ads, which have alternately painted Obama as a celebrity, a pervert and–most recently–an opponent of immigration reform. Earlier this week, Obama released an ad that takes bits of quotes from the media, and ends with, “It seems deception is all he has left.” The ad is negative, for sure, but it’s a bit general, and relies too much on the media to deliver any solid blows.
But, with a newly-released Spanish-language ad (click through for video), which takes McCain to task for spreading mentiras (“lies”) about immigration policy, things begin to get interesante. McCain’s original ad paired Obama with Christopher Dodd, Patrick Leahy and Harry Reid in claiming the Democrats inserted “poison pills” into the immigration debate, though all four Senators favored the immigration bill, and voted to end discussion and pass the legislation (which, thanks to a largely Republican-led opposition, failed). Obama’s ad counters by pairing McCain with Rush Limbaugh, while quoting the radio host as saying, “Mexicans are stupid and unqualified” and “Shut your mouth or get out.” The association with Limbaugh is appropriate, not because the two are conservative, but because the original McCain ad treated Spanish speakers as if they truly were stupid.