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Rick Santorum's latest attempt to use a Mitt Romney aide's "Etch-A-Sketch" remark against the Republican front-runner instead gave his rival a chance to fire back on Thursday, after Santorum seemed to say he'd rather see President Obama reelected than send Romney to the White House. Speaking at an event in Texas, Santorum again made the case that Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom's comments Wednesday on CNN about a "reset" of the campaign if Romney clinched the nomination showed the former Massachusetts governor's efforts to appeal to conservatives were insincere. "You win by giving people the opportunity to see a different vision...

Former GOP presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, who this week referred to Tea Party lawmakers as "hobbits," publicly criticized Pennsylvania's Pat Toomey Sunday during an unusual unscripted debate on the Senate floor. McCain, who appeared to be having a great 'ol time during a back and forth with Democrat Majority Whip Sen. Dick Durbin, referred to Toomey and those who share his views as "terrible." (snip) "...the terrible obstructionists on this side of the aisle, the terrible people, their flawed philosophical views about the future of America..."

Veteran Sen. John McCain has had enough with tea-party-aligned lawmakers who have vowed not to vote to raise the debt ceiling before passage of a constitutional balanced budget amendment. The Arizona Republican, the GOP’s 2008 presidential nominee, described their position as “foolish,” “deceiving, even bizarro,” given Americans’ anxiety about the sliding stock market, a halt on hiring and the possibility of higher interest rates related to the looming default.

Mr. McCain mocked Tea Party-allied Republicans in the House for believing — wrongly, he said — that President Obama and Democrats will get the blame for a default if Republicans refuse to increase the nation’s debt ceiling. By that flawed logic, “Democrats would have no choice but to pass a balanced budget amendment and reform entitlements and the Tea Party Hobbits could return to Middle Earth,” he said, quoting a Wall Street Journal editorial. “This is the kind of crack political thinking that turned Sharron Angle and Christine O’Donnell into G.O.P. nominees,” he jeered, referring to two losing Tea Party...

As rain splatters the windows of Sen. John McCain’s second-floor office on Capitol Hill, the 74-year-old Arizona Republican leans back, clasps his hands, and recalls the Nineties. Brinksmanship, he says, cost the party then, and it could cripple Republicans this summer — especially if Rep. Michele Bachmann gets her way. Over in the House, “I am told that it is very difficult,” McCain says. “There are Republicans who are committed, like Michele Bachmann, to vote against raising the debt limit under any circumstances.” Bachmann, he warns, is acting “sort of like Senator Obama did.”(snip) Yet as poorly as Obama has...

July 3, 2011 2 Republicans Open Door to Increases in Revenue By JOHN M. BRODER WASHINGTON — Two senior Republicans said Sunday that they might be open to raising new government revenue as part of a deal to resolve the dispute over the federal debt ceiling, but they warned that there was little time to enact a comprehensive deal. One of the senators, John Cornyn of Texas, said he would consider eliminating some tax breaks and corporate subsidies in the context of changes in the tax code, provided there was not an overall increase in taxes. “I think it’s clear...

You spent three years trying to hide this, Sarah. You failed. The email account of Aug. 29, 2008, the day John McCain announced Palin as his running mate, tells a tale of jubilant shock and amazement from Palin devotees… “Wow governor! Just watched you on TV!” wrote budget director Karen Rehfeld. “You knocked their socks off!” “Can you believe it!” Palin replied. “He told me yesterday — it moved fast! Pray! I love you.” Vice President Dick Cheney called the governor’s office requesting a call back. “Talked to him. Thank you – you rock – i love you!!!” Palin wrote...

<p>At least one mystery from Sarah Palin's short reign as governor of Alaska appears to have been cleared up by claims made in a manuscript for a book proposed by former Palin aide and confident Frank Bailey.</p> <p>Many have wondered why Palin, who professes to be pro-life, named to the Alaska Supreme Court Morgan Christen, who is pro-choice. The move took both conservatives and liberals by surprise in 2009.</p>

Arizona U.S. Senator John McCain says he will not be backing any of the potential Republican presidential candidates as they look to defeat President Barack Obama in the 2012 election. “I think I’m staying out of this for the first time in many years,” Mr. McCain told Politico on Thursday. The comment comes as Mr. McCain returned from a one on one meeting with President Obama at the White House. The Arizona Republican said he viewed the meeting as a sign of increasing bipartisanship on Capitol Hill, adding that his meeting with the president was “cordial” and that Mr. Obama...

(snip) Of his campaign rival, President Obama, McCain revealed that they now have a "common interest" and "common values" that will help them work together. Specifically, McCain believes the two could cooperate on "enhanced rescission" and "once we get the border secure…immigration reform," along with "several other issues."(snip)

(snip) Having a better relationship with Obama allows McCain to have the president's ear on his key priorities, while Obama can gain a clearer picture of what is happening on the Republican side by talking to McCain. While there was no doubt they have differences on many policy issues, Obama and McCain discussed areas where common ground between Democrats and Republicans might be found. McCain spokeswoman Brooke Buchanan said they discussed the situation in the Egypt and the Middle East, immigration reform and border security, free trade and ways to end pet spending projects called "earmarks" that are tucked into...

John McCain said a reluctant goodbye to his longtime Senate colleague and “true friend” Russ Feingold on Tuesday. “I have to confess I think the Senate will be a much poorer place without Russ Feingold in it,” McCain said in a floor speech.

The tactic Republicans used to win the midterm election was to tie every Democrat in Washington, D.C. to Barack Obama. He and his liberal policies were so unpopular that identifying a Democrat candidate with the president delivered a Republican's victory. At the ballot box, the American people sent liberalism to the woodshed. The nation cast off Obama, as well as Pelosi and much of her progressive Congress. In January, the Republicans triumphantly arrived in Washington, D.C. promising to repeal health care reform, address out-of-control spending, and elevate conservative principles by making the U.S. Constitution the foundation of legislative discussion. It's...

WASHINGTON -- Two years after running against President Barack Obama, Senator John McCain says he sees a change. Appearing on CBS' "Face the Nation," McCain expressed optimism that Obama will lead Democrats and Republicans to find common ground on key issues.(snip) Asked if the push to repeal health care reform is a waste of time -- because Senate Democrats will block repeal and, should it pass, the president would veto it -- McCain said, "We need to have a vote on it because we promised the people we would. We campaigned that we would `repeal and replace'. We have to...

(snip) "The president, I think, has learned a lot in the last two years as any president does. He is a very intelligent man. I think he's doing a lot of right things," he said. (snip)

Congress should take up work on comprehensive immigration reform once the U.S. borders are secure, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Wednesday. McCain, a longtime proponent of comprehensive reform who had tacked right in his race for reelection last year, said that an immigration deal could be an area of compromise between Republicans and Democrats. "Once we get the border secured — and we can get the border secured — I would look forward to working on comprehensive immigration reform," the 2008 Republican presidential nominee said on NBC's "Today" show. The Arizona senator had in the past favored legislation that would...

PHOENIX — Bristol Palin, the 20-year-old daughter of Sarah Palin, has bought a five-bedroom house in Maricopa, a modest community south of Phoenix, setting off a flurry of speculation as to exactly what her plans — and those of her famous mother — are for the desert dwelling.

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin continues to be a highly polarizing figure, with a whopping 57 percent viewing her unfavorably according to a new poll. The Bloomberg survey, released Monday, also found that the negative feelings about Palin are particularly strong. A third -- 33 percent -- said they view Palin "very unfavorably." That's the same percentage that viewed her favorably cumulatively -- respondents who either viewed her "somewhat" or "very" favorably (!). The survey results indicate that Palin faces a significant image problem as she decides to run for president. Just look at how Pres. Obama's numbers compare. Obama...

SCRANTON, Pa. -- Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin said Tuesday that her running mate John McCain's plan to reduce or eliminate taxes and help distressed homeowners with their mortgages will "get this economy moving again." At a raucous rally in Scranton, Palin said McCain's mortgage proposal is "not a handout, but a hand up" to help financially overwhelmed Americans hang on to their homes. "This is going to get our country through a time of testing, and it's going to get the economy back on the right track," Palin said. "Under this plan, we'll help American families keep their...

Michelle Malkin offers a scorecard of GOP Senators who remain uncertain as to whether they should oppose the nightmarish DREAM Act, a bill that has been kicking around for years, but now has the urgency of a liberal lame duck congress to pass what amounts to a 2.1 million future Democrat voter recruitment drive — before year’s end. Topping the list is none other than our own Arizona amnesty architect, Señor Juan McCain, now ditching the A-word for the focus group winner: “Guest worker.” Safely ensconced for another 6-year term, he is once again a-free-from-restraint, open-borders agent. His staff says...