The Screwups of Campaign '08

Poll Results

Ranking the Gaffes

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We all make mistakes, but few get as much notice as the high-profile goofs committed by politicians on the campaign trail. Here's how you ranked the candidate gaffes of 2008.

Rank
Name
Candidate
Avg. Rating
Total Votes

1
Sunni/Shi'ite Slip
McCain
9
490

2
Sniper Misfire
Clinton
9
479

3
Surge Screw-Up
McCain
8
1,489

4
Geography Glitch
McCain
8
1,145

5
Gramm Gaffe
McCain
8
961

6
Tobbacco Warning
McCain
8
938

7
Social Security "Disgrace"
McCain
8
854

8
Terrorism Tussle
McCain
8
766

9
RFK Tribute?
Clinton
8
726

10
Lobbyist Loss
McCain
8
616

11
Unruly Underlings
McCain
8
469

12
Hapless Halloween
McCain
8
433

13
Rationale
Clinton
8
428

14
Hagee Moment
McCain
8
399

15
Mistaken March
Romney
8
270

16
McCain's Housing Crisis
McCain
8
126

17
McCain's Rich Index
McCain
8
122

18
"Czechoslovakia"
McCain
7
1,024

19
Coler Barrier
Clinton
7
631

20
Colombia Crash
Clinton
7
520

21
"Hussiein" Hiccup
McCain
7
373

22
Bill Problem
Clinton
7
318

23
BET Botched Blast
Clinton
7
275

24
MLK Mischaracterization
Clinton
7
274

25
Palin's Doctrine?
Palin
7
268

26
Palin's Takeover Tale
Palin
7
175

27
McCain's ER Care Plan
McCain
7
132

28
"Bitter" Bungle
Obama
6
655

29
Middle East Mishap
Clinton
6
504

30
Pastor Problem
Obama
6
439

31
Power Outage
Obama
6
433

32
Freudian Slip
McCain
6
392

33
Pledge of Allegiance
Palin
6
156

34
Presumptuous Seal
Obama
5
842

35
History Lesson
Obama
5
818

36
Muslim Snub
Obama
5
761

37
NAFTAGate
Obama
5
327

38
Green Screen, Take 2
McCain
5
136

39
McCarthy Comment
Obama
5
7

40
Unfriendly Behavior
Obama
4
1,015

41
Translation Trip-Up
Obama
4
713

42
"Typical" Grandma
Obama
4
515

43
"Proud" Wife
Obama
4
359

44
"Stand Up" Slip Up
Biden
4
200

45
"Muslim" Mishap
Obama
4
192

46
Palin Demotion
Biden
4
159

47
Geography Goof
Obama
4
135

48
"Barack" Bungle
Biden
4
129

49
Presidential Introduction
Obama
4
123

50
Word Game
Obama
3
340

51
Penn State Fumble
Obama
3
176

View the full list for "The Screwups of Campaign '08"

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