MSNBC's Witt: McCain's Use of the Tire-Gauge Issue 'Perpetuates the Problem'

The media continue to have Obama's back after his ridiculous claim tire inflation could be a substitute for oil drilling in a speech at a rally in Missouri on July 30.

MSNBC anchor Alex Witt is the latest in a long line of media personalities expressing irritation that McCain is using the presumptive Democratic nominee's tire inflation comment in his campaign against Obama. Witt interviewed former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott on August 7 about McCain's strategy.

"But sir, when John McCain picks up this tire-gauge issue and you know - throws it about back and forth, doesn't he just perpetuate the problem?" Witt asked. "I mean, if you were advising him, wouldn't you say, ‘Can you leave it alone?' or does it work for him?"

Lott, who Witt disclosed is a lobbyist for the oil and gas industry prior to the interview, disagreed that McCain is perpetuating the problem by using the tire-gauge issue against Obama.

"No, I think that the air gauge thing emphasizes how actually frivolous the Obama, you know, proposals are with regard to energy," Lott said. "Sure, everybody says inflate your tires more, turn your thermostat up a little bit more. But is that going to solve the problem? Sure we want conservation. We should give people tax incentives to insulate their homes better and do other things to conserve energy. That's not enough. You can't solve this problem just by shrinking your usage. You've got to produce more."

Obama has stuck to his guns on the tire-gauge claim at a rally in Ohio on August 5, calling naysayers "ignorant."

"The other thing is, they are making fun of a step that every expert says would absolutely reduce our oil consumption by three to four percent," Obama said. "It's like these guys take pride in being ignorant. They think it's funny that they're making fun of something that is actually true."