In a new campaign ad, John McCain criticizes Obama's overseas trip, accusing him of choosing exercise over wounded troops.
Barack Obama returned from his Mideast-European trip, facing this charge from Republican rival John McCain. "He made time to go to the gym, but canceled a visit with wounded troops. Seems the Pentagon wouldn't allow him to bring cameras."
The McCain campaign pounced on Obama's decision to cancel a visit with wounded troops in Germany.
Obama's campaign said the senator was trying to avoid letting the troops get dragged into a political campaign. Obama's travel mate, Senator Jack Reed, defended the candidate.
"I think the ad is baseless and insinuating that Senator Obama did not care to visit troops when, in fact, Senator Obama and Senator Hagel and I visited troops all through Afghanistan, all through Iraq," Reed said.
McCain's latest criticism came amid his recent charge against Obama's position on the troop surge in Iraq.
McCain has called the surge successful. "Senator Obama can't quite bring himself to admit his own failure in judgment. Instead, he commits the even greater error of insisting that even in hindsight, he would still oppose the surge."
Speaking at a journalism conference, Obama fired back. "I have not heard yet somebody ask John McCain whether his vote to go into Iraq was a mistake. I haven't. During the entire week that we were having this conversation."
Now that both candidates are back in the states, the conversation will likely turn toward domestic issues, especially the economy.
