OXFORD, Miss. - It’s the seal that just keeps on giving.

Republican presidential candidate John McCain needled White House rival Barack Obama again on Friday for using a seal earlier in his campaign that mirrored the one used by the U.S. president.

The exchange was prompted by ribbing from Obama over McCain’s refusal to commit to a meeting with the prime minister of Spain if he wins the November 4 election.

“(McCain) even said the other day that he would not meet potentially with the prime minister of Spain, because he — you know, he wasn’t sure whether they were aligned with us. I mean, Spain? Spain is a NATO ally,” Obama said.

McCain, who was in the middle of criticizing Obama for being willing to meet with U.S. foes, reacted sharply.

“I’m not going to set the White House visitors schedule before I’m president of the United States,” he said. “I don’t even have a seal yet.”

The Obama seal, which the Illinois senator used at a campaign event in June, had a picture of a bald eagle on it and an inscribed phrase that read “Vero Possumus,” a Latin expression that roughly translates to the campaign’s slogan, “Yes, we can.”

The seal drew some ridicule for being presumptuous and the campaign never used it again.

Click here for more Reuters 2008 campaign coverage.

ALBUQUERQUE - Barack Obama’s presidential campaign is retiring a presidential seal that made its debut at a Chicago event last week.

“It was a one-time seal for a one-time use,” Obama spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. The seal, which resembled the official presidential seal, had a picture of a bald eagle on it. A phrase inscribed above it read “Vero Possumus,” a Latin expression that roughly translates to the campaign’s slogan, “Yes, we can.”

The seal helped complete a presidential-looking setting as Obama sat at the head of a U-shaped table with Democratic governors in a stately hall of a Chicago museum. In addition to the seal on the podium, blue curtains adorned the backdrop along with a row of flags.

Our earlier blog post on the Obama seal posted on Friday prompted mixed reviews from readers. Some liked the seal and thought the Latin expression was clever. Others thought it conveyed a penchant for image over substance.

Marc Ambinder of the Atlantic.com said there were second thoughts about the blog at Obama’s campaign headquarters.

“The worry for Obama’s image managers is that it gives the press a pretext to call Obama arrogant, an example for them to add to a list of arrogant moments, and a way to distract them from what Obama is saying,” Ambinder wrote in his blog.

Photo credit: Reuters/Carlos Barria (Obama delivers speech)