Posted on 06/12/2010 10:07:26 AM PDT by rabscuttle385
Senator John McCain's record as a staunch conservative came under fire during his Yuma town hall meeting Friday evening at Booth Machinery, prompting the senator to fire back in his own defense with a level of fiery passion reminiscent of his younger days.
“It seems to me that every time you run for election you tack very much to the right…” Steve Replogle, a member of the Colorado River Tea Party, told McCain during the town hall.
“I have personal questions in regards to your positions. You have at times advocated cap and trade… amnesty, and the McCain-Feingold Bill made it illegal for you to publicize the voting record of an elected official within sixty days, which … seemed to me, to be the biggest assault on political free speech in the history of this country.”
Replogle said he is troubled by McCain's history and advocacy.
“I mean I had vowed that I would never vote for you again after you passed McCain-Feingold… if we can't get people to stand on their record, if we can't hold them accountable to the way that they vote, they can say whatever they want. It's what they actually do that we have to know and be able to publicize in order to have an accountable government.”
McCain responded vigorously to defend his conservatism.
“…I have received the support… and awards, from literally every conservative organization,” he said.
“…I stood up when other people were earmarking and pork barreling and (involved in) corruption. I investigated Abramoff… and he eventually ended up in jail. So did members of congress. I have fought fraud, abuse and waste throughout my time.”
As in previous speeches during his presidential campaign, McCain discussed his “maverick” approach to politics to prove his level of conservatism.
“I stood up for the surge when it was going to cost me my entire campaign…” he said.
“I fought for what I believe in. Now you may not agree with what I believe in, but I will leave it to the judgment of the organizations that grade, and support and endorse people because of what they have done.
“I will be glad to… put my record for being a fiscal conservative up against anybody's. I fought against my own party and fought against President (George W.) Bush… and you may not like some of the positions I've taken but I am a proud Ronald Reagan conservative and I am proud of my record and I'll match it up against anybody's.”
Bob Lovelace discussed the issue of immigration at length with McCain.
“We the people don't have to be afraid of social activists, and we don't have to be afraid of this La Raza socialist movement in this country,” Lovelace said.
“And we don't have to be afraid of the president of Mexico… When he crosses our border and he criticizes the laws of our state, and he says that we are prejudice and we are guilty of… racist discrimination, when we know that we are not, then senator, it is becoming very obvious to us who the bigot really is.”
Lovelace called on McCain to take immigration reform head on.
“We've got to stop this, senator…” he said.
“It doesn't matter how you phrase things. You can say, and you often do say this… you say that you never have been for amnesty meaning that you have a plan. What we are really worried about right now… is repeating the same old pattern, and that is what's fixing to happen right now. If you don't stand up… and if you are not willing to stand up, we'll find somebody else that will.”
In response, McCain said the first step is to secure the border.
“(Senator) Jon Kyl and I are committed to getting the border secured. There has been improvement in Yuma, there has not been improvement in the Tucson sector and we have to get the border done completely…”
McCain went on to talk about what other issues are important to him.
“The most important thing is to make sure that our future is secure, whether the issue be jobs, the economy, illegal immigration (or) the national security issues...” he said.
“I am most proud to be effective for the state of Arizona in Washington, and achieve a number of goals, but there's a number of goals that need to be attained , and one of them… here in Yuma is protecting our bases, protecting the men and women in the military. I think I have a very solid record on that respect.”
McCain said he has been consistently going to bat for conservatives.
“I have been fighting against this administration, and leading the fight as they have shifted to the left. I believe that the tea parties and the frustration that is being displayed across America is going to be manifested this November.”
The senile old warhorse needs to be sent out to pasture.Not to mention that this senile old warhorse fought more battles against us than for us. Even as a young warhorse his brain was encrusted with the senility that comes from compulsive pathological lying.
To the extent Republicans are not now trusted, I can’t disagree. I’ve been harping on the Bush administration and it’s excessive spending for some time.
How do I go to a Democrat and talk up fiscal responsibility now? Bush totally destroyed one leg of our base there.
His brain dead great society program Medicare Part D was essentially a bullet to the brain of Conservatism. The public thinking him one, it telegraphed what Conservatives were disposed to implement, even if he wasn’t one.
You and I don’t disagree with the bad effects of TARP. I’m just not as convinced as you are that the wealthy benefited and the middle-class didn’t. Look, a lot of wealthy people were destroyed during this process.
LMAO!!!!!!!
“I’m done with RINOs. They’re either purged from the party, or I am.
No tolerance for those who consort with the enemy and call it “reaching across the aisle”.
Too much is at stake.”
I suspect you share the opinion of most of us, NFHale!
“I have received the support… and awards, from literally every conservative organization,” he said.”
That’s the problem. People have been lying to him all along.
Sure, I can tell them what I am. Heck, they don’t care what I am.
As for fiscal conservancy or founding principles, Bush actually betrayed both these concepts. And unfortunately, our Republican elected officials are who folks look to, to confirm if we mean what we say or not.
We’ve got to stop this say one thing and do another routine.
It’s destroying us, even if we are pleased as punch at our favorite’s excursions away from Conservatism.
We can all have our rah rah moments between us, but what good are those the next election? Even if we can’t admit it, others see our political people for what they are or aren’t.
If we’re not honest with them, they’ll mistrust us. Wouldn’t I concerning a Leftist who lied to me?
You and I beat TARP to death :)
Before the Russian revolution the Royalty in Russia was demagogued, ‘haves’ criticized to the point either was fair game.
China instituted something like this to usher in the Communist government there.
Italy, Vietnam, Nicaragua, Venezuela... the people are assured they are victims and the new regime is going to set things right.
Obama has already got him meat-hooks in GM, Wall Street, Banking, our Health care,... and now he want’s a piece of BP.
It probably sounds like I’m a real corporate bastard here, but in truth I don’t want this to turn into a complete fascist zoo.
Do some of these entities need to be reigned in? I’m not immune that that, if some reasoned fair to all parties legislation is able to do that.
Under the current climate? Oh hell no!
I hope you understand why I’m trying to hash this out with you and not real inclined to say yes to some of the things you suggest now, that I might be more inclined to agree with, with a sound government in there.
I don’t own stock. I am not a corporate employee, although I have worked for a corporation several times.
Corporations are owned by stock-holders, but I can be very anti-corporation when I think it’s called for. Our trade policies being a topic that has caused that in the past, and still does today.
Take care.
The title should read "McCain finds his conservatism".
If anything like that, it should read, McCain Pretends to Find His Conservatism”.
Look, he’s been in D.C. for 28 years. If he didn’t find it by late 2009, he was unable to.
Jesse Jackson was on MSNBC Ed Schulz Friday and they called for Obama to take over BP (which I assume would cause diplomatic problems.) They used TARP as a precedent/excuse. TARP is a curse to freedom and capitalism. I have posted 10s of times that TARP was a gift to progressives(socialists), the dream come true. That is why Maxine Waters said she lobbied for TARP vote to her socialist BCC friends in the house who naturally were opposed to it as were conservatives. It was Maxine Waters who slipped and said she wanted to take over oil companies in hearings.
Cutting taxes and reducing government.
I never voted for him however.
I think there are valid reasons to say that about TARP, the way it entangled the federal government in various concerns.
Look, this stuff makes me sick. Jackson, Schulz... good grief.
Hey, take care. I’m off the forum for a while.
D1
Uh, ok, whatever. Do you own cats?
Xaviera Hollander defends her virginity.
Have a great day Tailback. Sorry we couldn’t agree on this one. Later...
McCain thinks he can just use magic words and amnesty will not be amnesty.
taxes will not be taxes.
and his lack of fight in 2008 is excused because he attacks republicans.
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