McCain works the room, one town hall meeting at a time
When John McCain campaigned here last week, he relied on his signature event, an unscripted town hall meeting, to sway undecided voters in this crucial swing state.
The presumed Republican presidential nominee paced with a microphone at Xavier University, taking questions about energy, the economy and other issues from 150 people.
But McCain's hourlong pitch didn't persuade Rosemary Meinders, a wavering Democrat. His answers were too general, she said. "Honestly, I don't know what I'm going to do."
The next day, Janine Koss, a lifelong Republican, also was unconvinced after McCain met about 80 autoworkers at the General Motors Lordstown plant outside Youngstown. "Now I don't know," the 31-year-old assembly line worker said. "I really don't know."
Such tepid responses suggest a mounting problem for McCain as he battles likely Democratic nominee Barack Obama. More than any major-party candidate in modern times, McCain is relying on low-key question-and-answer sessions, rather than boisterous rallies and set speeches, as the linchpin of his campaign.
"It's never been done before, so no one knows if it will work," said Todd Harris, a Republican strategist who served as spokesman for McCain's unsuccessful 2000 presidential bid. "But we've never had a candidate like John McCain."
Aides and supporters say the freewheeling sessions showcase the Arizona senator as a straight-talking candidate who is an expert on policy issues and ready to be president. It also lets him display a sense of humor that, they admit, is more appealing than his formal speeches, which can sound stilted. Even some GOP leaders have panned his delivery.
Working the room like a lounge act, McCain clearly enjoys the banter and the intellectual challenge of mixing it up with voters. Although many supporters lob softballs, McCain also engages with critics and cranks in the crowd.
"It's not a staged speech that's pre-written, pre-scripted," said Tony Fabrizio, a GOP pollster. "It's a shoot-from-the-hip, speak-from-the-heart setting, and that underscores his image as a maverick who is not afraid to take people on."
Sometimes it's too unscripted.
On June 24, McCain's campaign arranged for him to call a group of registered Democrats and independents in South Florida in what his campaign billed as a "tele-town hall meeting." As reporters listened in, technicians dropped three of the voters in mid-question.
