Campaign Briefs

After the first complaint from members Ann and Nancy Wilson of the band Heart was issued, many would have thought that John McCain and Sarah Palin would have stopped using their music to promote the Republican ticket, but they continue to do so.

On September 9, 2008 at a rally in Lebanon, Ohio, they replayed the song "Barracuda", a reference to Palin's high school nickname, Sarah Barracuda, against the wishes of the band. Yet, the Republican Party is within their rights, because they paid a blanket fee to the ASCAP in order to obtain licensing to use the song.

"The Republican campaign did not ask for permission to use the song, nor would they have been granted that permission," read a statement from Heart's camp. Also in an e-mail to Entertainment Weekly, the Wilson sisters said "Sarah Palin's views and values in no way represent us as American women... While Heart did not and would not authorize the use of their song at the Republican National Convention, there's irony in Republican strategists' choice to make use of it there."

The irony of it all is that former band member and Nancy's ex, Roger Fisher, plans to contribute part of the royalties from the use of the song to Barack Obama's campaign.