[dude1394]

A new kind of politician...oh yeah...

Over the weekend, I saw on several occastions an Obama campaign ad attacking John McCain's credentials as a reformer by pointing out that lobbyists occupy key positions in his campaign. The ads are classic "guilt" by association attacks, and their effectiveness against a candidate known to much of the public as a maverick reformer and a war hero is likely to be limited. On the other hand, with Obama apparently now trailing McCain, he has little choice but to go negative with ads of this sort that seek to peck away at McCain's image.

However, today comes word that, with the exception of Chris Dodd, Barack Obama received the most money of any member of Congress in campaign contributions from Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac, a total of $126,000 plus change. John McCain is well down the list at around $22,000.

If the choice is between a candidate whose aides make money by lobbying for various big industries and a candidate who himself benefits through contributions from an industry that Congress failed to keep an eye on, to the well-publicized detriment of taxpayers, it's pretty clear who wins that argument.