I heard that! ;)
Posted on 09/22/2005 5:11:53 PM PDT by RWR8189
I attended an American Spectator dinner last night featuring John McCain. McCain spent much of the evening casting votes in the Senate, but returned and spoke with impressive energy and at considerable length. He said it was fine if everything was on the record. Those who think that McCain is still smoldering with anger at George W. Bush over the 2000 campaign should think again: McCain spoke fervently and with obvious sincerity about how much he admires Bush and the job he has been doing as president.
McCain addressed two issues that have the potential to divide the Republican base: spending and immigration.
On spending, he said that to offset the spending of Hurricane Katrina and to prevent what "may be the largest deficit in history," Congress should revisit the highway bill—the big transportation bill passed earlier this year—and should consider delaying or repealing the Medicare prescription drug bill. On both of these issues his positions are to the right of the Bush administration's: After all, Bush signed both bills.
McCain's position on the highway bill is consistent with his longstanding and mostly futile attacks on pork barrel spending, but he has more allies this time: Members of Congress like Sen. Richard Shelby and (!) House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi have said they'd delay spending on projects in their state or district. The pork-busters movement of which I have written may be gathering momentum.
As for the Medicare prescription-drug bill, Democrats have been trashing this legislation persistently, and it isn't very popular in the polls. The prescription-drug benefit is scheduled to go into effect next year. Republicans passed this bill because Bush and House Republicans didn't want to go into the 2004 election cycle as opponents of a prescription-drug benefit. But now they don't see it as much of a political plus. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
The other issue that threatens to divide the Republican base is immigration. On this issue McCain stands to the left of the administration. He is the cosponsor, with Edward Kennedy, of one of the two major legislative vehicles on the issue; the other is cosponsored by his Arizona colleague Jon Kyl and Texas Republican John Cornyn. A major difference between the bills is that Kyl-Cornyn would require illegal immigrants wishing to legalize their status to return to their countries of origin and McCain-Kennedy would not.
Arizona is the state through which thousands of illegal immigrants have been coming across the border, and McCain speaks with visible anger at the spectacle of illegals roaming across the desert and dying of thirst. "The borders are broken." To those who favor the Kyl-Cornyn return provision, he says, "We have 11 million illegals. Are we going to send them back? I don't think so." Allowing people to legalize their status and then take their place in line is "not my definition of amnesty."
In response to my question, McCain suggested he was flexible on the issue and willing to compromise on various provisions. He even said he was willing to address first the status of agriculture workers, on which a bipartisan compromise has already been worked out by California Democratic Rep. Howard Berman. White House sources believe it is inevitable that Congress will have to address the issue. McCain will be a major player, and the White House could have no stronger advocate of whatever Congress works out than John McCain.
McCain of course was asked whether he would run for president in 2008, and he of course said that he hadn't made any decision. He spoke evidently sincere words of praise for other possible candidates: Bill Frist, George Allen, Rudolph Giuliani. But if his demeanor Wednesday night was a fair indication, he's running. Polls currently show him and Giuliani leading among Republican primary voters. His comments on spending and immigration were in line with the animating spirit of Republican primary electorates, even if some of the measures he continues to support (McCain-Kennedy, the McCain-Lieberman bill on global warming, campaign-finance regulation) are not.
You just referred to us as what? Note that McCain is leading in the polls.
~Scott~
I voted for him years ago when I lived in AZ, both as Congressman then as Senator the first time around. Fool me once (or even twice) . . . .
I heard that! ;)
Thats because when you ask your average repubican voter who they want for president they only know of Mccain and Rudy and those two tend to split the vote. Ask blog readers and political activists who they want for president(because these people follow politics and are more likely to vote than your average republican voter in a primary) and they rank mccain toward the bottom of the list.
You ask Pro-America who their vote will be with in 2008 and they'll say Senator John McCain.
For a few years, now, I have come to believe that it will be McCain/Guillianni in 2008. McCain has been trying very hard not to further alienate the Republican base as of late and Rudy has avoided extended interviews that might veer into "unhelpful" social policy comments. The dems will most certainly get their Queen Mean to head the ticket and the Republican leadership will not want to put a firebrand or an unknown up against her. As much as I hate to think about it, given such a choice, I'll have to vote for them!
"We need another Reagan Revolution. "
What about Fred Thompson? That probably won't happen but we need somebody who will energize the party and bring it together. Somebody that people recognize but isn't carrying all of the baggage, kind of like Roberts is to the Supreme Court.
>>>George Allen thought Bush shoulda met with Cindy Shehan when she was protesting in TX.
Am I supposed to disavow Allen for one error in judgment and probably a minor one at that?
John (not my candidate) McCain.... never
"but there must be something in his background that caused Gore and Kerry to pass him over for VP. He seems like such an obvious choice because he counts as Hispanic."
It's no coincidence that he wasn't chosen, Richardson' has so much tail on the side that he makes Clinton look like Pope Benedict.
You'll hear more about this if Richardson gains too much in the polls against hillary.
Somebody please tell me how he could ever make it out of the primaries? Sure he can win New Hampshire but recent history has told us that is not nearly has important as in the past.
The only thing he can do is drive moderate republicans away in the general election due to the negative primary coverage where although he will lose, he will get all the media coverage with his talk of "star wars" and the "death star"
All he can do is make the next election closer then it might be. So I wish and hope he stays home!
No, I want George Allen as President, and I'm willing to work to make it happen.
I dont know what youve been smoking but most republicans who follow these things hate John Mccain, y our average republican only sees one side of him not the Mccain who constantly slaps his party just for the attention. As far as im concerned all of the GOP candidates will be fine when it comes to the war on terror(chuck hagel aside). John Mccain got laughed out of the southern primaries in 2000 because of his more liberal stances and his actions these last few years will only cause more republican activists to line up against him. Wake up and take notice.
I'm not a bible thumping pro-life right-winger. I'm more moderate, as is McCain and Schwarzenegger, and I'm staying that way.
McCain is the man in 2008 (as is evidenced by the polls).
Well you forget that the majority of the republican base are in your words 'bible thumping pro-life right-wingers'. Its comments like yours that got your guy mccain in trouble with the base and why they will never accept him.
You keep citing the polls but what you forget is these polls so early out are running on name recognition alone and when it comes down to it the 2008 election will be more about ideas then the persons name. You also forget the polls in 2000 which as i remember correctly had mccain getting trounced among republican voters who voted in their primary but was only carried along by cross over voters in states that allow it. This time around democrats will have their own contested primary and as such cant cross over to vote for Mccain meaning mccain has to win lots of 'bible thumping pro-life right winger' votes in order to win and he wont.
Your 'man' will go down in flames because the party activists wont tolerate moderates and they especially wont tolerate mccain. I always find it amusing how the moderates in the party(read the small minority of the republican party) always try to shove one of their guys down our throats and speak down at us for being a bunch of bible thumping right wingers and that its their turn for a candidate.
Polls 3 years out mean absolutely nothing, but i suppose rush was right when he said we shoudlnt waste our time debating idiots.
McCain isn't my candidate of choice, but I'm thinking he's the only one that can beat Hillary. I can see Hillary winning because I've talked to people that think she's "wonderful."
Remember now this is what was said in 2000 about mccain versus gore and in 1996 about dole versus clinton....
There are plenty of GOP candidates who can win against hillary, its when you nominate a conservative Dem that things get tricky(ie Evan Bayh)
Who? Here in PA Dems think she's great. I just got into a discusision with one on Labor Day.
I saw one poll where McCain was leading Hillary Rodham by 52% to 35%.
Rudy leads by the roughly the same and you keep forgetting that these are based on name ID alone, as things get closer to the date do you honestly think the media will stay fawning over mccain? Of course not they'll turn on him and pummel him for all his corruption all his flip flops and all his inconsistencies with the base. If you think Mccain will crush hillary 52-35 your being ridiculous.
Keep smoking whatever your smoking but when the base is reminded of mccains constnat betrayals and positions they will abandon him.
His voting against and scaling down the bush tax cuts
His driving through of campaign finance reform
His support for all this global warming hoopla
The fact he says roe v wade shoudlnt be overturned at this point in time
His support for big government healthcare
His support for his uber amnesty plan that puts him to the left of president bush
His backstabbing of conservatives during the judicial filibuster showdown
His flirting with being Kerry's VP for a while
HIs bashing of the Swift Boat Veterans Immediately
HIs bashing of the religious right
His involvement with the keating 5
The list goes on and on and on keep spouting your mccain crap but out here and among republicans who will actually vote it falls on deaf ears. I'm done arguing with you because this is pointless and your just clueless.
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