From Greg Sargent at Election Central:

The McCain campaign triples-down on its "celeb" sneer, releasing a
third ad on the topic that hits the theme even harder than the last
two...Clearly, the McCain camp thinks this is working, and they're going to keep hammering away at it for weeks, if not months.

But is it working? The "experts" weigh in at WaPo. Predictably, the conservatives congratulate McCain on a successful ad; the liberals express mild concern or shrug their shoulders.

ED ROGERS, former deputy assistant to President Bush
John McCain's celebrity ad was effective...Questions about Obama's desire for celebrity status will linger.

CARTER ESKEW, chief strategist for Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign
A casual attempt this week to flick McCain's charges off his shoulder dragged Obama into a silly and distracting discussion of race. The ghosts of losers past must haunt his team -- will Obama be Swift-boated if he doesn't strike back hard?

BENJAMIN GINSBERG, veteran of three Republican presidential campaigns
Over the next 12 weeks, the McCain campaign needs to reinforce its message, making certain that voters retain the image of Paris-Britney-Obama in one vacuous celebrity breath.

WILLIAM A. GALSTON, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution
The Obama campaign needs to think harder about how to respond.

EDWARD J. ROLLINS, head of Ronald Reagan's 1984 reelection campaign and Mike Huckabee's campaign chairman this year
An ad man's dream.

TAD DEVINE, principal consultant to Al Gore in 2000
Will they work? Perhaps. But I believe that Obama will prove to be a more elusive target than previous Democratic nominees, stretching back to George McGovern, who were subjected to the Republican attack machine.

RALPH REED, Southeast Region Chairman for the George W. Bush campaign in 2004
Obama's celebrity has spawned a kind of modern-day Beatlemania, complete fainting fans, Men's Vogue cover shoots, swooning politicians and an admiring press corps. But with the celebrity ad, McCain has now officially taken that strength and turned it into a weakness.

JAMAL SIMMONS, press secretary to Bob Graham's and Wesley Clark's presidential campaigns
While the Republican's strategists must believe that these negative attacks will take a toll on Obama, the greater danger is for McCain, who is proving the Democrats' point: John McCain is a maverick no more.

Certainly, the ads are effective in the sense that they've attracted significant media attention. But will the charge itself stick? During the primary, Hillary Clinton and Republicans floated a number of caricatures of Obama:
- inexperienced
- elitist

- naive

- unpatriotic
- empty suit
- plagiarizer
- tainted by associates
- brass-knuckled politician

Most of these caricatures failed to take hold. Judging by anecdotal experience, I suggest that the elitist and inexperienced/naive attacks were the most effective and still dog Obama. Other attacks, such as Obama's association with Ayers/Wright/Rezko or his alleged plagiarism, have all but disappeared from the campaign narrative.

And the celebrity charge? Many people who call it effective allude to Obama's perceived elitism. The elitisim charges have been effective because Obama is, to an extent, elitist--in his education, in his tastes, and in his rhetorical style. But celebrity is not elitism. In the age of American Idol, celebrities are often quite plebian: undereducated, unintelligent, crass. Britney Spears, in particular, is often criticized for lacking class and derided for her "trailer trash" ways.

Moreover, despite the media attention he receives, Obama does not seem to love the spotlight. He seems a tad uncomfortable with the adoration and is protective of his personal life, in contrast with Spears and Hilton, who seem to relish in their exposure. The charge of celebrity fits much better with Obama's predecessor, Bill Clinton, who enjoys the spotlight and engages in tabloid exploits. Clinton is less of an elitist than Obama but more of a celebrity. I also note that Americans did not seem to begrudge Bill his celebrity.

For these reasons, I predict that while the celebrity charges have a enjoyed a solid summer week of media stardom, they will soon exit stage right.