In the Spin Room last night, I got a chance (together with Steve Hayes of the Standard) to ask McCain adviser Charlie Black about the senator’s relationship with talk radio. Here’s what he said:
In the case of the most prominent radio hosts, [McCain’s] going to have lock up the nomination, then they’ll be for us. And we’ll reach out to ‘em. He goes on Hannity’s show every time he’s asked….Some of the issues they care about are emotional, and I understand that, but he doesn’t go out of his way to pander to anybody—right, left or center. Some of these folks expect him to sort of, cater to them….The ones that I thought that we had a chance to get on board before the nomination was finished, we were talking to them, and we have a lot of them. The ones that I don’t think are likely to change their mind before we lock up the nomination, that can wait—but again, we are not ignoring it. We go on the shows basically when we are asked.