Obama camp says McCain is the real celebrity

Barack Obama, having endured weeks of rival John McCain's criticism that the Illinois Democrat is a celebrity who is not ready to lead, attempted to turn the tables by calling the Arizona senator "Washington's biggest celebrity."

{mosads}A new ad released Monday refers to McCain as "a Washington celebrity playing the same old Washington games," and repeatedly features McCain in pictures with an unpopular President Bush.

The ad even features McCain onstage at "Saturday Night Live" and on "The Tonight Show."

McCain got two weeks of free media for a July 30 ad that called Obama the "biggest celebrity in the world" and included footage of celebrities Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Hilton responded a week later with a Web video of her own, which kept the issue in the public spotlight.

The Obama campaign said in a statement that its ad, titled "Embrace," addresses "the numerous ways in which the special interests in Washington have embraced John McCain and how McCain has hugged right back, employing lobbyists in top positions and giving tax breaks to oil and drug companies, instead of working to ease the burden on middle-class families."

The ad will begin airing on national cable Tuesday.