“The press loves John McCain. We’re his base.” – Chris Matthews

Barack Obama’s trip to Europe and the Middle East last week – culminating with a Berlin speech in front of 200,000 people – was such a roaring success that it feels like he’s already President. Which is driving John McCain nuts. Sensing he will soon be ignored, the Arizona Senator has chosen a new target: the media, and their “fawning” coverage of Obama. Hillary Clinton pulled the same stunt during the primaries, but she could credibly point to a pattern of sexist attacks in the press that spawned over two decades. Meanwhile, no American politician has enjoyed more praise in the media than John McCain – making his recent swipe look pathetic. As the New York Times continues to hold a double standard in his favor, McCain’s new strategy is akin to attacking his own base – which is never a sound strategy.

Frustrated at the huge crowds and goodwill that Obama is generating on his world tour, the McCain campaign shot this ad joking about how the press gives the Illinois Senator favorable treatment. Which talking heads in the ad get the most face-time complaining that the media favors Obama? Joe Scarborough (an ex-GOP Congressman and disciple of Newt Gingrich), Tucker Calrson (conservative co-host on Crossfire), and Lou Dobbs (known for his right-wing hatred of immigrants.) Most examples in the ad of “gushing media coverage” come from Chris Matthews – who once said “the press loves John McCain. We’re his base.”

Several months ago, Hillary Clinton attacked the media for its alleged “pro-Obama” bias (with some limited success) – and now McCain is trying to duplicate that strategy. But the press was never Clinton’s base – as they’ve given her shabby treatment since her botched attempt at health care reform in the early 1990’s. Clinton had always held the media in contempt, as she kept her distance from reporters for fear of another “gotcha!” moment. She unexpectedly won the New Hampshire primary because voters reacted to sexist media coverage. In other words, there was no downside for her to attack the press.

Compare that with John McCain – whose “straight-talk express” was famous for giving reporters unfettered access and candid interviews. As David Brock and Paul Waldman explained in Free Ride: John McCain and the Media, it’s because McCain treats the national press corps with open arms that they give him fawning coverage. Gaffes that would sink any politician’s career were dismissed as “refreshing candor,” while his rare defections from Republican orthodoxy get highlighted as the norm. As his presidential campaign floundered last year, the national media came to McCain’s aid – as they framed his woes as prefacing a new comeback.

Now that Obama’s trip overseas is overshadowing McCain – and state-by-state polls predict an Obama landslide – McCain is lashing out at his base. On July 24th, he blatantly dissed a Wall Street Journal reporter – probably because she co-authored a piece highlighting the irony of John McCain complaining about media coverage after getting decades of puff pieces. McCain’s love affair with the press earned him the ire and hatred of many conservative Republicans. Now that he’s struggling for attention, why is he attacking the people who were nice to him for so long?

It’s not like McCain doesn’t have friends in the media – nor that Obama still gets hit with despicable attacks like the famous New Yorker magazine cover. The New York Times has had such atrocious coverage that favors McCain and attacks Obama that BeyondChron has started running a weekly series called “BeyondTimes.”

Obama gives a historic speech in Berlin that earns favorable comparisons with John F. Kennedy, and the New York Times describe it in their headline as “vague on issues.” Europeans may be excited about Obama, said the Times, but European politicians “are not so sure” – even though French President Nicolas Sarkozy all but endorsed Obama when he came to Paris. “Obviously,” said Sarkozy, “one is interested in a candidate who looks at the future rather than the past.”

Is McCain justified to attack the press for their favorable coverage of Obama? Maybe it just that McCain is an awful candidate – and by Labor Day many will have compared him to Bob Dole. Meanwhile, Obama has been subject to the most rigorous standards in the media – and by sheer virtue of his superior qualities as a candidate has exceeded their expectations and earned favorable press coverage. It’s hard for McCain to appreciate how after getting decades of fawning coverage he didn’t deserve, he’s facing a rival who actually deserves that treatment.

When you’re down on your luck, the last thing you do is attack your base. After McCain relied on the press as his base for years, attacking the press is a stupid strategy.

EDITOR’S NOTE: In his spare time and outside of work hours, Paul Hogarth has done some volunteering for Barack Obama’s campaign – but has not played an advisory role. This piece was not coordinated with anyone in the Obama campaign team.