Posted on 02/06/2006 3:55:52 PM PST by hipaatwo
From the Office of Senator John McCain comes this heroic smackdown of the other media darling in the Senate. The letter speaks for itself and it is brilliantly done.
The Honorable Barack Obama
United States Senate
SH-713
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senator Obama:
I would like to apologize to you for assuming that your private assurances to me regarding your desire to cooperate in our efforts to negotiate bipartisan lobbying reform legislation were sincere. When you approached me and insisted that despite your leaderships preference to use the issue to gain a political advantage in the 2006 elections, you were personally committed to achieving a result that would reflect credit on the entire Senate and offer the country a better example of political leadership, I concluded your professed concern for the institution and the public interest was genuine and admirable. Thank you for disabusing me of such notions with your letter to me dated February 2, 2006, which explained your decision to withdraw from our bipartisan discussions. Im embarrassed to admit that after all these years in politics I failed to interpret your previous assurances as typical rhetorical gloss routinely used in politics to make self-interested partisan posturing appear more noble. Again, sorry for the confusion, but please be assured I wont make the same mistake again.
As you know, the Majority Leader has asked Chairman Collins to hold hearings and mark up a bill for floor consideration in early March. I fully support such timely action and I am confident that, together with Senator Lieberman, the Committee on Governmental Affairs will report out a meaningful, bipartisan bill.
You commented in your letter about my interest in creating a task force to further study this issue, as if to suggest I support delaying the consideration of much-needed reforms rather than allowing the committees of jurisdiction to hold hearings on the matter. Nothing could be further from the truth. The timely findings of a bipartisan working group could be very helpful to the committee in formulating legislation that will be reported to the full Senate. Since you are new to the Senate, you may not be aware of the fact that I have always supported fully the regular committee and legislative process in the Senate, and routinely urge Committee Chairmen to hold hearings on important issues. In fact, I urged Senator Collins to schedule a hearing upon the Senates return in January.Furthermore, I have consistently maintained that any lobbying reform proposal be bipartisan. The bill Senators Joe Lieberman and Bill Nelson and I have introduced is evidence of that commitment as is my insistence that members of both parties be included in meetings to develop the legislation that will ultimately be considered on the Senate floor. As I explained in a recent letter to Senator Reid, and have publicly said many times, the American people do not see this as just a Republican problem or just a Democratic problem. They see it as yet another run-of-the-mill Washington scandal, and they expect it will generate just another round of partisan gamesmanship and posturing. Senator Lieberman and I, and many other members of this body, hope to exceed the publics low expectations. We view this as an opportunity to bring transparency and accountability to the Congress, and, most importantly, to show the public that both parties will work together to address our failings.
As I noted, I initially believed you shared that goal. But I understand how important the opportunity to lead your partys effort to exploit this issue must seem to a freshman Senator, and I hold no hard feelings over your earlier disingenuousness. Again, I have been around long enough to appreciate that in politics the public interest isnt always a priority for every one of us. Good luck to you, Senator.
Sincerely,
John McCain
Did you read where some Bush Campaign Team Members are signing up to work for McCain in 2008, (if Jeb or Condi don't run). I take that to mean McCain will be very supportive of Bush for the next 2 years, no more snide sniping, I would think.
This open letter to Obama is pure McCain, a ploy, I bet designed to please folks like us. Oh, I'm sure the quick-tempered McCain was p.o. at Obama for what McCain considered a double-cross, but a letter like this? very unusual to go after a fellow senator so openly. (McCain might not realize this kind of impetuous, petulant, vindictive behavior is exactly what the right fears in a McCain White House.)
Yes he did, but is it about something we care about? Is he trying to take away more free speech, for his own posturing? Too bad it isn't about abortion or the war, or something else that really matters.
Dan
Never trust a Rat!
1. Well, I wonder just how much of that whopping 50.8 percent vote would have been without help from moderate libertarians like us/me who voted for Bush because of folks like McCain?
2. As far as McCain playing the stooge for Kerry your argument is as empty as Bush's promises about reducing the size of government.
3. Finally, IMHO, the only things that Bush has got right in his far-less-than-Reagan-expected presidency is the War on Terror and SC nominations...and I give him full credit, at least, for those.
Precisely what I said above. Typical McLame posturing but an eye opener for anyone considering voting for this maniac. Politics has made us far too cynical, hasn't it, LOL?
We can wait together for that, okay? Tick tock...
WTF? ARE YOU MOCKING MY PROPHET !!!!!!!!!!
OMG................forgive me. I shall do penance!
:-)
Better put some ice on that Barack.
Yeah, well that "first term junior Senator" found out what it's like to step on McCain's unstable nerves.
This letter creates a new adage: "Fool me once, shame on me".
The media feels bettrayed by McCain.
After all these years of grooming and fawning over McCain, the media feels puzzled and betrayed about the tone of this letter.
I've always known McCain possessed a short fuse. This letter cements this thinking for me.
The funniest part of this whole drama is the fact the media had quickly come to the aid and defending Obama's stature as a "rising star in the Democrat party".
I only wish McCain would make a habit of going after Democrats more often with this short fuse of his.
I don't give a rip who McCain is going after in the Democrat party. The Democrat party is filled to the brim with repugnant individuals. Obama just found out what it's like tap dancing on McCain's short fuse.
LOL
Well there's one democRat who is positively giddy over this -- Chris Matthews. He and McLame had a laugh fest going on over the letter which proves the ulterior motive on McLame's part. I'm sure he's booked on IMUS and all the Sunday talk shows.
Read a freeper's take on his Hardball appearance.
Much as I love to see Barack Obama get b!tch-slapped, I am not going to be rooting for Johnnie McMeMeMeCain on this one. He has pretty much gutted the right to free speech in this country. I would not be surprised if he went after the right to petition the government for redress of grievances as well.
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