Representatives of GOP presidential candidate John McCain’s campaign said they were unaware the moderator of Thursday’s vice presidential debate had penned a book about the Democratic presidential candidate, to be released on Inauguration Day.
“I confirmed for us here on GretaWire: the McCain campaign did NOT know about Gwen Ifill’s book,” Fox anchor Greta Van Susteren reported on her blog, GretaWire, a day before the debate is scheduled to occur.
Conservative websites were on fire Wednesday morning after it was discovered moderator Gwen Ifill was planning to release a book about Barack Obama’s impact on race and politics on January 20, 2009.
Ifill’s tome is titled "The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama" and is being published by Random House.
Promotional material about the book released by Random House says, "Gwen Ifill surveys the American political landscape, shedding new light on the impact of Barack Obama’s stunning presidential campaign and introducing the emerging young African American politicians forging a bold new path to political power."
Ifill is currently the moderator and managing editor of PBS's Washington Week and senior correspondent of The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.
Lehrer moderated the first presidential debate Friday night.