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McCain Almost Left the GOP -- Twice March 24, 2008 BEGIN TRANSCRIPT Senator McCain has not wrapped up the Chuck Hagel endorsement yet, and I wanted to mention this to you. Hagel was on This Week with Stephanopoulos on Sunday, and Stephanopoulos said to him, "Senator McCain is a good friend of yours. Why haven't you endorsed him?" HAGEL: When I work for someone or commit to someone, I want to be behind that person in every way I can. I've obviously got some differences with John on the Iraq war. That's no secret. I want to understand a...

The McCain people have been floating the name of Governor Crist of Florida as a potential vice presidential candidate. I realize, of course, that publishing the names of several people in this way is a time-honored practice that gives them publicity and gains the support of people who have no chance of ending up as the vice presidential candidate. As a conservative Republican, I have had to swallow hard to embrace Senator McCain for president, but at least I have always felt that his views, including some that were badly mistaken, were honestly held.

(The Politico) "The hot-button issue of immigration doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon – at least not in Republican circles. On NPR’s “Morning Edition” today, John McCain suggested that strong anti-immigrant rhetoric contributed to two recent, high-profile GOP Congressional losses – of former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum, who badly lost to Sen. Bob Casey in 2006, and Jim Oberweis, who lost the heavily Republican seat of former House Speaker Dennis Hastert this month in a special election.

Rove explained that he and McCain “got to know each other during the 2004 campaign.” In a separate interview, Mehlman noted that “McCain was completely loyal to the president in 2004 and worked incredibly hard to help him get elected.” According to Taylor, “The Bush Republicans here in town are excited for John McCain.”

To the Leaders of the Republican National Committee and the Members of the State Legislature in the state of_________________: We, the undersigned registered members of the Republican Party in the state of ____________________, hereby protest and reject the current and ongoing results of the 2008 Republican presidential primary selection process on the grounds that the incongruous methods, rules, and provisions set forth by the individual and various state Republican National Committee Leaders, and the members of the various State Legislatures, have failed to provide the members of the Republican Party across the nation with an effective primary election process, thwarted...

After being forced to respond to three separate incidents in recent weeks of conservatives alluding to Barack Obama's middle name, John McCain's campaign manager today sent a memo to top supporters urging them to stick to the campaign's preferred message -- and to avoid taking gratuitous shots at their Democratic rivals. "We expect that all supporters, surrogates and staff will hold themselves to similarly high standards when they are representing the campaign. To help guide you, please find talking points below."

Sen. John McCain has asserted his opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin a number of times, going so far as joining with Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., in 2005 to introduce legislation calling on President Bush to suspend Russian's membership in the Group of Eight. That opposition, however, is being called into question by links that have been established in various reports between McCain's campaign manager, Rick Davis, and Ukrainian billionaire Oleg Deripaska, who is suspected of having ties to organized Russian crime. Davis even arranged for McCain to meet Deripaska at a time when Davis' lobbying firm was working under...

JOHN McCAIN Who is the real John McCain? McCain dumped his first wife after she had been disabled in an auto accident. Although this woman had worked tirelessly to get him released from captivity as a POW in Vietnam, he did not hesitate to betray her with other women upon finding her crippled when he returned home. In fact, McCain developed a serious reputation as a womanizer during the years following his release. Finally, he acquired a fortune through his second marriage and settled down with his second wife, Cindy. According to the Phoenix Gazette of May 19, 1987, "the...

Over the weekend, Paul did a post that talked about demands that some conservatives are making on John McCain as the soon-to-be Republican nominee. I added some comments of my own; it's fair to say that both Paul and I are skeptical of the reasonableness of such demands. That prompted an email from talk radio host Mark Levin, the subject heading of which was "John, Did You Actually Mean to Write This?" This initiated an exchange between Mark and me, which, with Mark's permission, I'm reproducing below: John, did you actually mean to write this? If there are conservatives who...

A spokeswoman for Sen. John McCain today condemned comments by Iowa Rep. Steve King (R), who on Friday said terrorists would be "dancing in the streets" if Barack Obama is elected president. "The Senator rejects the type of politics that degrades our civics and this campaign will be about the future of our country," Communications Director Jill Hazelbaker said. "[Sen.] McCain could not be clearer on how he views these types of comments and obviously that view extends to Congressman King's statement." King, a three-term Republican, made the remarks to a radio station Friday as he announced his bid for...

ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate John McCain criticized his Democratic rivals on Tuesday for pledging to renegotiate a hemispheric trade treaty that Democrats blame for U.S. manufacturing job losses. At a town-hall meeting in St. Louis, the Arizona senator also called for the Democratic-controlled U.S. Congress to approve a free-trade treaty with Colombia that is being stymied on Capitol Hill. "On trade, I'm a free trader," McCain told employees at Savvis Internet company, a session dominated by questions about the ailing U.S. economy. McCain, the likely Republican nominee to run in the November election, is spending the week...

John McCain is a "strong conservative." That's the message that President Bush put out on "Fox News Sunday" yesterday. How does one define "strong conservative?" Is it defining waterboarding of terrorists as torture like John McCain has? Is it when one wants to close down Gitmo like John McCain does and give suspected terrorists the rights of American citizens. And speaking of the rights of American citizens, is a "strong conservative" one who wants amnesty and a path to citizenship for people who enter America illegally. Well, that's one where President Bush and Senator McCain have been on the same...

McCain will begin a cross-country tour emphasizing his life story. His advisers believe that while most Americans have a vague sense that McCain served his country in the military and in political life, they don't actually know his story. This trip--the "Service to America" tour--is intended to fill out that narrative.

WASHINGTON — Over a smattering of opposition, U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez of Florida was elected today to be general chairman of the Republican Party. Martinez, 60, a native of Cuba, is the first Hispanic to hold the largely honorary position that has not existed in recent years. Mike Duncan of Kentucky was chosen to be the Republican National Committee's chairman and will be in charge of the party's day-to-day operations. In accepting the position, Martinez said: "I am truly humbled by the opportunity that you give me and the responsibility that you place upon me." A handful of delegates objected...

Robert Novak reports that President Bush won’t support Mitt Romney because he changed his mind about shamnesty (hat tip - reader Rosebud). While President George W. Bush has maintained neutrality among contenders for the Republican presidential nomination, he privately expresses to friends his exasperation with Mitt Romney’s hard-line stance on immigration. Bush is upset that Romney changed his position on the issue, compared to what it had been when he was governor of Massachusetts, at the expense of the president’s immigration reform. Bush and Sen. John McCain are not close, but the president is grateful for McCain’s support on Iraq...

ARLINGTON, VA — U.S. Senator John McCain's presidential campaign today announced that former Florida Governor Jeb Bush has endorsed John McCain for president. "John McCain is a patriot and devoted conservative leader," said Governor Bush. "Like no other candidate in the field, John McCain has made tremendous sacrifices for this nation. He is beholden to no interest other than that of the public good. He is determined and steadfast in his commitment to reducing the burden of high taxes, restoring the people's trust in their government, and winning the war against radical Islamic extremists. It is with pride that I...

While John McCain was being coronated as the heir apparent at a highly publicized White House meeting with President Bush, his colleagues on Capitol Hill couldn't resist rolling out what could be described as a Lou Dobbs dream package of immigration bills. It was one of those moments where one had to wonder if the right hand of the Republican Party was talking to the left, er, moderate hand. Immigration is the preeminent issue that has divided McCain from his party, as he has supported an ill-fated comprehensive immigration overhaul, including a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants. Since that...

Senator McCain Thanks Democrats March 5, 2008 BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: Listen to this, Snerdley. Listen to this, all of you. A portion of Senator McCain's victory speech. MCCAIN: I want to thank all of you here, all the Republicans, independents, and independent-thinking Democrats in all parts of the country who supported our campaign for the nomination and have brought us across the finish line first, an accomplishment that once seemed to more than a few doubters, unlikely. RUSH: All right. So apparently McCain can thank the Democrats for making him the Republican nominee, can thank independents for making him...

Dear Friend, Last night, we did it. We won the Republican nomination for President. It was a long, up and down journey, but we worked hard, spoke honestly to the American people, and our steadfast determination has paid off. As we come to the end of our party's primary contest, we begin what will certainly be a spirited and hard-fought campaign against the Democratic nominee. In November, Americans will have a clear choice to make. And I intend to fight as hard as I can to make it very clear that I am the candidate with the experience and leadership...