McCain: Despite report, Iran remains dangerous

Concord Monitor ^ | 12/8/07 | Margot Sanger-Katz

[Norman Bates]

The world should not take too much solace from this week's intelligence estimate suggesting Iran has not been pursuing a nuclear weapon program for several years, Arizona Sen. John McCain told a group of Monitor reporters and editors this week.

Though the news is good, Iran's government is still dangerous and adversarial. And though it appears that human intelligence has improved, he said, the report's reversal of recent conclusions highlights problems in U.S intelligence more broadly.

"Iran still supports Hamas and Hezbollah, terrorist organizations bent on the destruction of Israel," he said, and it still supplies Iraqi insurgents with some of the most deadly explosive devices used against U.S. troops.

McCain said that he hopes the information could form the basis for new talks between the U.S. and Iran, but he warned that the U.S. needs to be careful not to give Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a public relations opportunity without being certain that he would grant certain concessions.

In a broad discussion that touched on health care policy, immigration and the war in Iraq, McCain, who is seeking the Republican nomination for president, focused on detailed appraisals of the country's international threats, showcasing his long history in military and foreign policy matters. On the stump, McCain has emphasized those credentials, arguing that he's ready to speak to the world's leaders without additional training or an over-reliance on advisers.

[Norman Bates]

McCain flexes his foreign and domestic policy chops in New Hampshire.

[Norman Bates]

The McCain List.
Common sense conservatism

[Norman Bates]

"We've come back, Lazarus like, as you know," McCain joked about his change in fortunes.

(snip)

He said that as president, he would not be open to a plan that included a requirement that every American buy insurance. Health insurance, like a home or college education, he said, should be "affordable and available" but not mandatory, and not provided by the federal government. He said that the Democratic plans will make health care more expensive by increasing federal bureaucracies while failing to harness individuals' desire to minimize their costs.

"When it's free and it's no cost to you, obviously you are less cognizant of how you use it and less careful," he said. "Ronald Reagan once said, 'nobody ever washed a rental car,' and when you think about that, I mean it's a true statement."