McCain and Obama Denounce Each Other as 'Flip-floppers'

The two presidential candidates spent last week calling each other “flip-flopper”, introducing a term into the 2008 campaign that had made Democrat John Kerry lose in 2004.

While until recently John McCain denounced off-shore oil drilling, on Tuesday, June 17, he announced that he supported it, arguing that “the stakes [of off-shore oil drilling] are high for our citizens and for our economy.” For this, Barack Obama accused him of “flip-flopping”, that is, of opportunistically reversing his position.

The Republican camp retorted that Mr. Obama was ill-placed to give lessons on ethics: a November 2007 questionnaire asked the potential candidates if they would take part in the public campaign financing system if their adversaries were using it. Barack Obama had responded, “Yes, I will actively look to find an agreement with the Republican candidate to maintain a general election that is publicly financed.” After proving to be excellent at fundraising – collecting much more than the $85 million federal dollars – Mr. Obama ultimately decided to finance his campaign with private funds.

John Kerry, First Flip-Flopper

In 2004, Democratic candidate John Kerry said during a meeting: “I voted in favor of 87 billion dollars [in funding to support the war in Iraq] before voting against.” The Republican camp seized upon the phrase as an example of the candidate’s reversals of position, and then created an advertisement with images of John Kerry on a windsurfer. The ad ended with these words: “John Kerry, whichever way the wind blows.”

At the moment, Barack Obama does not risk the same fate as John Kerry. First, because John McCain can be accused of acting like a weather vane as much as the Democratic candidate. Also because the subject of campaign financing doesn’t interest most voters, explains the Guardian. But the insult remains symbolically powerful for Mr. Obama, since he built his campaign around the ideas of change and authenticity, far from political strategists.