Politics | Barack Obama McCain Misfires by Targeting Prosecutions Instead of trying to paint Obama as wimpy negotiator, McCain should stick to Iraq By Jonas Oransky Posted Jun 20, 2008 6:35 PM CDT Copied Republican presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., left, speaks to reporters during a news conference at Dallas Love Field in Dallas, Friday, April 11, 2008. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) Terrorism may be the one issue on which John McCain out-polls his presidential rival, Jonathan Chait writes in the New Republic, yet he has faltered by slamming Obama's call to prosecute terrorists. None other than 9/11 hawk Rudy Giuliani wanted prosecutions too—and other options, like guns and bombs, don't always work. Would anyone want an anti-terror air strike in downtown New York? "McCain actually had a perfectly credible line of foreign-policy attack against Obama," Chait writes, "that Iraq is improving and could be imperiled by a pullout," an argument that's "looking steadily stronger." His latest argument "suggests his campaign thinks winning on Iraq wouldn't be enough. It's as if, by invoking 9/11, he can summon the return of the mentality that prevailed in the years after the attack." Read These Next New Fox star, 23, misses first day after car troubles. White House rolls with Trump's 'daddy' nickname. Man accused of killing his daughters might be dead. Supreme Court ruling is a big blow to Planned Parenthood. Report an error