MSNBC's "Imus In The Morning," 2/3/04 (Excerpt from RNC Research w/Sen McCain interview) MUST READ

Republican National Committee ^ | Feb 3, 2004 | RNC Research

[PhiKapMom]

THEY SAID IT!

RNC RESEARCH
February 3, 2004

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MSNBC's "Imus In The Morning," 2/3/04

DON IMUS: So Senator Kerry, sort of, subtly brought up yesterday, and I guess apparently Terry McAuliffe, who came from under some rock some place probably -- but anyway, they brought up this question about the president's military service and whether, in fact, there was -- whether he was AWOL from the Alabama National Guard. Are those appropriate questions, and should the president answer those questions and clear this up?

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ): That issue came up in the last election cycle. I think they were responded to. If this turns into a nasty campaign, clearly they have to respond to it. But, look, I believe that service in the National Guard is honorable service. There are thousands and thousands of National Guardsmen and women who are in Iraq as we speak, and so to somehow denigrate service in the National Guard is totally inappropriate, and I think there would be a backlash to it if they pursued that.

IMUS: I don't think they're doing that. I think what they're -- the question is, it's fine to be in the National Guard if you go to the meetings. I don't think he went to the meetings. I think that's the charge.

MCCAIN: Well, but that charge was never proven, and again, it was brought up in the primary that President Bush and I were in. I never pursued it. I never asked questions, but there were questions asked by the media about it. I don't know. You know, all is fair in love and war, and maybe they'll have to answer those questions again. But everything I know is that President Bush served honorably in the National Guard, and if you're going to make an allegation that somebody didn't, you better have some pretty good proof besides just throwing it out there. You see my point?

IMUS: Sort of.

MCCAIN: Well, look, I mean, you can accuse anybody of anything. But the burden of proof is on the person who is making the accusation.

IMUS: Well, that's not the way it works. You know that. That's not the way it works.

MCCAIN: Look, I know that President Bush has a record of honorable service during the Vietnam War in the National Guard where he also went through pilot training and flew a rather difficult airplane to fly and did well. And that's what I know about his service, and I will believe that until somebody proves otherwise. I mean, you can't say that you're guilty until you prove yourself innocent.

IMUS: I've always said that he went to enough meetings to learn how to fly one of those planes.

MCCAIN: Yes. And it's a difficult airplane to fly.

IMUS: But if he got transferred to the Alabama National Guard for some reason and then didn't show up for any of those meetings, I don't think...

MCCAIN: But, see, I don't know that that's the case.

IMUS: If you don't know that that's the case, that means it's never cleared up then.

MCCAIN: Everything that I've heard -- every bit of information I've ever heard, I never got into it because I wasn't that interested, is that he served honorably and well. And I assume that to be the case.

[olliemb]

" I don't feel the same sense of betrayal, for the same reason that Bernie McGuirk doesn't -- we never bought into the WMD crap in the first place."

I never felt betrayed. If you listen to all of President Bush's speeches before the war as well as to Wolfowitz speeches, WMD program activities were mentioned, the torture and rape and murder of Iraqi people were mentioned, the AlQuaeda fellow living in Baghdad was also mentioned and Salman Pak was mentioned and "not wait for an imminent threat" was mentioned. Everyone knows that Saddam had WMD--ask the dead Kurds and Iranians about the WMD if you want to see their dead faces. The inernational community said he had WMD, the democrats said he had WMD, UN said he had them. So either everyone was wrong and the WMD were all used up on the Kurds or they are still hidden--either in Iraq or Syria or maybe even US.

[olliemb]

McCain was campaigning for Bush in New Hampshire when the democrats wer having the primary. McCain spoke very nice things about Bush. McCain always speaks measured--never wanting to say something if not 100%. He said he did not look into Bush record so his answers just merely cover him--but I think it a joke--Michael Moore, Chris Mathews, Imus and McAuliffe (all chickens in my book are questioning about Bush service) What did Imus do and about Chrissy--how old is he?

[StarFan]

Imus is part of the Cheney-Rumsfeld are evil crowd That's today but tomorrow he will change with the wind. He announced he and his wife are republicans and he voted for Bush yet now says he's pulling for "his man" Kerry. Go figure.

I heard part of the interview and was shocked that McCain acted honorably in defending GWB.

[lepton]

The only evidence that he didn't show up in Alabama, is that his records were never transferred back to his home unit when he returned. People remember seeing him there (aside from the unit commander, who has no idea), but no contemporary statements that he wasn't there. Also, at the time of the assignemt, he was a pilot for a plane that had been decommissioned.

Military units care where their own people are. They only care where other units people are when there is a problem, and are seldom concientious about forwarding records when people they are only tangentially responsible for leave. I know that multiple times I had to go back and get records for training that were supposed to have been forwarded - and that was during a time when admin was generally actually functional, rather than during the draw-down of Vietnam.

[Huck]

McCain actually sounded disgusted to me. Not fake politician disgust. He sounded like he thought Imus was over the line.

[floriduh voter]

You are absolutely right. The plan was to run as many candidates as they could, each one setting out to bash President Bush around the clock in every venue imaginable. That's why hardly anyone has dropped out. They've been INSTRUCTED to stay in for the exclusive purpose of scorched earth against an honorable man.

[Reagan Man]

.... light bulb came on last night that this whole RAT primary has been a farce with the sole intent to destroy Pres Bush's numbers and his credibility ...

Mentioned this to you some time back. It was obvious from the get-go, having as many Demlibrat candidates as possible, hitting on PresBush day after day, week after week was the plan. The Clintonistas are responsible. Specifically, Bill Clinton's fingerprints are all over this strategy. Der schlickmeister knew Bush wouldn't respond in the early stages of the nomination process.

When the Bush campaign does decide to respond, I don't think the nominee is gonna like it. Did you hear that John "The Schmuck" Kerry?!

[PhiKapMom]

I woke up in the middle of the night with the thought the clintons were behind this and then I could not remember who else had told me that sometime back. I am glad you wrote that because I was beginning to think I had dreamed that too.

[windchime]

Is this the story to which you're referring, PKM?  It hasn't gotten much attention here either.  The dems scream AWOL louder than we toss back the Johnny Chung info on which  the Boston Globe did a story on February 1.  When did Terry MacAuliffe begin yelling AWOL.....again?  Sunday, February 1.  And, the Newsweek magazine was due out Monday.  Sheer misdirection of the media......and it worked.

John F. Kerry - Johnny Chung Links:

KERRY'S FUND-RAISER ACCOUNT DOESN'T ADD UP (Kerry and Clinton buddy---Johnny Chung)

NEWSWEEK: Cash and Kerry

 

[jstolarczyk]

Don't forget Cleland is on of those "angry white men". You know the ones, liberal democrats from the south. Must be getting lonely! I am sure he'd call Mother Theresa names is she was a conservative.

[jstolarczyk]

If you go back you will find WMDs were not the reason for war, it was one reason. We went to war because Saddam refused to comply with UN mandates, one of which was the basis for the 1991 cease fire. The UN report in Feb 2003, mentions a huge unaccounted for stockpile of VX gas, that IAW the UN mandates, Saddam had to account for. He didn't, he lost. Besides, unless 300,000+ known murder victims is chump change, I say we found the weapon of mass destruction in a spider hole with a beard. He may have been more a threat to humanity than to America, but who knew (possible the French, but since they were bought off they could not notify the rest of us). So nobody should feel used!