McCain-Palin plan joint town halls in battleground states
McCain plans on getting his town halls from SOMEWHERE, dammit
RENO, Nevada (CNN) - CNN has learned that John McCain and Sarah Palin plan to hold joint town hall meetings next week.
A McCain adviser says early plans are to hold the town halls in western Michigan and Wisconsin, although the exact details of where and when they will be held are still being worked out.
These events would likely mark the first time Palin takes questions from voters.
Aides say her solo campaign events planned for Nevada Saturday, Colorado Monday, and Ohio Tuesday are all scheduled as rallies where she will speak to but not interact with voters.
McCain is known for his town hall meetings, and often touts his penchant for the ask-anything approach as proof of his "straight talk."
But he hasn't held a town hall in almost a month - since August 20 in New Mexico.
And the man who promised to hold frequent press conferences in the White House hasn't held an availability with traveling reporters in exactly a month: His last press conference was August 13.
McCain aides are quite candid about the fact that they tried for months to persuade him to hold fewer press conferences in order to stay on message, and finally succeeded.
First, he stopped bringing reporters on his bus for his signature "straight talk legs."
Then he severely cut back on what had been a McCain campaign trail staple - a press conference after events with voters.
Senior advisers say they believe that has allowed them to better refine and control their message, and insist that contributed to his rise in the polls even before Palin was picked.
Instead, McCain does a slew of interviews with local reporters and anchors - not just in the states he's visiting, but also via satellite.
It’s a tried and true way for candidates to get their messages out through what campaigns consider to be less of a “filter.”
McCain aides have been getting complaints from traveling reporters about the reduced access, but it is still unclear when or if he'll hold another press conference.
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this disgusts me, mostly because i know they will be scripted, and she will likely have an earpiece. he'll also do the lion's share of the answering, and she'll probably only jump in on select issues where she can give the air of competency, mark my words.
this election is giving me heartburn. why are these people even close?