I think John sometimes says things for effect, not because he believes it.
McLaughlin does like to shake things up. He's probably the sort of person to avoid in real life, but his act can be entertaining sometimes. He has become more liberal in recent years. It may be a younger wife or girlfriend, or something that happens to ex-priests. It's also unlikely that he does much of his writing or research now, so some of the views you hear may be those of a 23 or 24 year old.
There are old Nixon or Reagan or Bush Sr. hands who aren't so impressed by the President, and McLaughlin is clearly in that group. McLaughlin and Bush's father both worked for Nixon, so for him now it's like a coworker's kid has become big boss and is calling the shots. Time moves on, and whoever has the top job was somebody's kid once, but it can be galling when it happens so close to home.