Subject: RE: New CDA Scripts
From: "Begala, Paul" <[email-masked]>
To: "Lori Lodes" <[email-masked]>, "Tom Matzzie" <[email-masked]>, "Tara McGuinness" <[email-masked]>, "Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza" <[email-masked]>, "Ari Rabin-Havt" <[email-masked]>, "susan" <[email-masked]>, "John Podesta" <[email-masked]>, "Stan Greenberg" <[email-masked]>, "Anna Greenberg" <[email-masked]>, "ic2008" <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 17 Feb 2008 09:09:43 -0500

Quick Feedback:

TRAIN STATION - Fine, but I don't think we're ready to launch an ethics attack on McCain.  In our strategy meeting we agreed that would come later.  No need to produce an ad on it until we're more locked-down on the research.

CHECK IN  - Same feedback as above.

IT'S THE NETWORK - Clever and original, but also premature.  (see above)

SHOW RESPECT - No.  It is rude, too frontal, too overt. The age issue is more delicate than this script.

REPAST -- Not great.  The "first increase in min. wage in 30 years" is a factual error.   I wouldn't give him credit for voting against the congressional pay hike - better to say "When the Congressional pay raise was delayed a year, he said..."  

OLD DOG -- No.   The pee thing is too gross (and if it's too gross for me, that's bad,)  I don't like the dog sleeping thru a burglarly, as no one thinks McCain is too lax on security.  Far from it, he wants to bomb countries at random.  I do not like going at age this way.  We need to be more artful, like Podesta's line that "it's not that he's old and set in his ways; it's that he's old and set in Bush's ways."

HOTHEAD --I like quoting Cochran.  Anytime we can use exact quotes is good.  Does the issue of temperament poll well?  If so, this is a good execution...but perhaps voters want a quick-draw artist when bad guys are coming into town, so I don't know.

ONE MAN REDUX -- Not as good as the other Bush = McCain ads.  

ARE YOU KIDDING? -- Great, but do not use 'BULLSHIT" or "BUSHIT" or any variant thereof.  too over the top.

EYE TEST -- I like.  I think it's easy to paint McCain as clueless on economy.  That, I think, is easire than saying he's evil.

PRIORITIES -- I like, but it is similar to the kids with the cards that FTM did.

MY FRIENDS -- Okay if we're doing corruption.  But why does it say Greenberg-Traurig was McCain's biggest supporters?  The press will say it was McCain who blew the whistle on Abramoff -- and he leaked copiously to the press to ensure he got full credit.

PARROT -- I love a flip-flopping parrot.  Like McSame, this has the added advantage of being a recurring character, with spots on abortion, immigration, falwell.  Could even have a guy in a parrot suit follow McCain around.  This could be great.

DOLLARS -- Worried it's potentially weird to see dollars pouring out of McCain's mouth.  I also prefer schools, healthcare, etc. as the cost of war, rather than just dollars.

BUS --Love it.  Before the first u-turn, i want a shot of the bus with the McCain logo and 'STRAIGHT TALK EXPRESS,' then, after the U-turns, the logo reads, 'DOUBLE TALK EXPRESS.'

MINIMUM WAGE -- Straight, simple, good.  Is the imagery too poor, however, for folks to relate to?  Most families worry about making ends meet.  Few voters, however, have actually had to put kids to bed without heat.

GAS STATION -- great ad.  

begala

-----Original Message-----
From: [email-masked] on behalf of Lori Lodes
Sent: Fri 2/15/2008 9:58 PM
To: Tom Matzzie; Tara McGuinness; Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza; Ari Rabin-Havt; Begala, Paul; susan; John Podesta; Stan Greenberg; Anna Greenberg; ic2008
Subject: New CDA Scripts
 
Hello all - 

Attached are 18 new scripts from two of our production firms. I'm expecting more tonight or over the weekend, which I will add in and resend to you all. Please send me any of your comments or notes of which ones you like.

Thank you,

Lori

-- 
Lori Lodes 
m: 202.351.1147
[email-masked]