Let’s drop the ‘maverick’ nonsense, shall we?

July 26, 2006

I know there are still a few Dems out there who like [tag]John McCain[/tag]. They see him on [tag]The Daily Show[/tag], they find him charming, and they hear the far-right complain bitterly about him, and these Dems are left thinking, “McCain isn’t like his [tag]GOP[/tag] colleagues.”

In case it wasn’t abundantly clear before, it’s well past time for any stragglers to disavow these ideas once and for all. Consider the last 48 hours.

First, McCain sat down with Jon Stewart on Monday, defended a “stay the course” approach in Iraq, and praised [tag]Bush[/tag] for acknowledging previous mistakes over the course of the war — acknowledgements that appear to exist only in McCain’s imagination.

Second, M[tag]cCain[/tag] announced his opposition to legislation that would allow Congress to sue Bush over “signing statements.” Asked for an explanation, McCain said, “I think the [tag]president[/tag] will enforce the law.” (There was no indication McCain was kidding.)

And third, McCain criticized congressional Democrats being right about Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. It’s clearly the worst of the three.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has repeatedly refused to condemn Hezbollah for its role in initiating the Lebanon-Israel conflict. Yesterday, in a press conference with President Bush, he “criticized the ‘damage and destruction’ caused by Israeli attacks but said nothing on Hezbollah’s role.” Other Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt, have condemned Hezbollah for its role in initiating the conflict.

Sen. John McCain appeared on Fox this morning and falsely claimed that Maliki has “condemned Hezbollah.” McCain said that, as a result, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and others who have criticized Malaki for his position on Hezbollah are “not qualified to lead.”

It’s one thing to get the story wrong about al-Maliki. Maybe McCain assumed he had condemned Hezbollah, and didn’t realize that he hadn’t. He should know what he’s talking about before addressing the subject on national television, but hey, mistakes happen.

But McCain felt it necessary to add that Dems’ criticisms of al-Maliki on this issue suggest to him that “[tag]Democrats[/tag] are proving again why they’re not qualified to lead.”

And these are just from the last couple of days. In case there was ever any doubt, it’s time to give up on McCain. His drive to be president has overtaken his sense of decency.

He must really be an idiot, because at this point, to think that those views would get him elected is borderline insane. Maybe he just thinks that he’d like to be a president with such strong powers. Maybe he is going senile. He obviously has lost touch with what the vast majority of the US wants in a next president, so go ahead, let him talk this nonsense. He’ll get on the ticket, and then get trounced.

  • Jon Stewart and McCain enjoyed a chuckle over Alaska’s Ted Stevens’ opinions about the Internet and his opposition to net neutrality.

    How about we cut through the bonhommie yuck-yuck bullshit?

    George Allen, maverick McCain, and Conrad Burns all voted against a free internet. Here’s the amount of money they took from telecom PACs and associated individuals:
    George Allen: $72,000
    John McCain: $44,250
    Conrad Burns: $162,600

    M as in Maverick…
    or M as in Mountebank?

    Just another over-cologned repug…
    trying to mask the sweet smell of his own bullshit…

    Off with his head…

  • The irony is that the 2000 version of McCain might actually have had a chance now the way things have changed. He zigged when he shouldn’t have even zagged.

  • Captor: McCain we will release you but we will keep your comrades in this prison camp.
    McCain: No I refuse.
    Captor: How about if we throw in 50k of Telecom money?
    McCain: Okay, I’m out of here.

    From hero to Pet Goat.

  • McCain is a real, honest to God, Conservative. He’s not even a Libertarian Conservative. He’s a small Government, low Taxes, Fiscal Conservative.

    Say it load and clearly to everybody who swoons over his supposed Maverick status.

  • If McCain is the best the Republicans have, they will lose in ’08. He could be a metaphor for all that has gone wrong with their vision for the future.

  • Mark Kleiman has being trying to remind people of what a slimeball St. McCain is — for example, reading selected passages from someone’s psychiatric record into the Congressional Record in revenge for their speaking out about misconduct by his friend John Tower and telling an offensive joke about 18-year-old Chelsea Clinton.

    Then recently he’s been hiring graduate of various campaign corruption scandals.

    What do the media see in him, and how can he possibly have a reputation for honesty or principled behavior?

  • Why does Jon Stewart even entertain this jerkoff? Don’t they realize that they’re just pushing his agenda by putting his face on TV? I realize that he plays nice with Jon, but it’s time to pull the plug on McCain promoting himself and his opinions on TDS.

  • Gracious,

    If McCain is the best the Republicans have, they will lose in ’08. He could be a metaphor for all that has gone wrong with their vision for the future.

    Not if Hillary is the ‘ 08 Dem nominee. Sad, but true.

  • He is worse than Bush. He REALLY thinks he is right. GW only “follows his hunches.” He is truly a mental case.
    I heard his POW story. It claims he made an American flag out of socks and stuff in captivity. When the guards found it, they beat him and took it away. He started making another one.
    I know people who were POWs, and no one in their right mind would act that way. Your life is literally at the mercy of the guards.
    They don’t believe the story and neither do I. If it is true, he is psycho. Isn’t bush boy bad enough?
    Another dead-eyed slimeball.

  • Look, John McCain has been promised the VP job. After November elections, Cheney will either step down or be indicted and McCain will be nominated by Bush. Win Win for the Repugs – they get a leg up on the 2008 elections with a sitting VP running for the top job, they get a somewhat well-respected repug who can pull votes from the center and retain votes from the right.
    Listen to what he says and you will see this is what makes the most sense for his about face on so many issues.

  • McCain’s face always looked like a puffy marshmallow. His behavior, since the campaigns of 2000, confirms it. If in my imagation I morph Orrin Hatch into Joe Lieberman, an intermediate stage is definitely McCain.

  • John McCain showed me his true colors when he embraced Bush in 2004. Also with his neocon koolaid stay-the-course pronouncements on the Iraqi “Cakewalk.” I guess I’m not as forgiving as John would be. If someone slagged me and my family the way Rove and Bush did to McCain then the only photo op I’d ever share with them would be of the moment I pounded the crap out of them (but I guess its just ole vindictive me.)

    John has morphed from the man who pushed campaign reform in face of serious opposition from his own party back to the man who defended the 80s version of Kenny Boy, Charles Keating.

    I can understand why Jon Stewart would entertain him. He was the first major politician who took an interest in TDS and helped put the show on the map. Jon does fawn, but not so much.

  • I thought McCain was a good guy during the ’04 elections. but when he refused to join Kerry’s ticket I knew that he was full of shit

    here he had a chance to make history of a joint democratic/republican ticket and do what’s right to help the country, but he caved in to the White House and the crackheads with pipe dreams about ’08 presidency.. “it’s ok, let’s doom the country+world+dog for another 4 years, as long as I might get to be a president”

  • Some democrats still like McCain because he’s got a little backbone, knows something about foreign policy and is less crooked that 95 percent of the rest of our elected leaders. Plus, if the democrats nominate Hillary Clinton for ’08, then some democrats know they have someone they can go to for ….er….backbone…..foreign policy knowledge…. and a far lesser evil when it comes to honesty.

  • I like him.

    Lance said: “He’s a small Government, low Taxes, Fiscal Conservative.”

    That is fine with me. Put that together with a Democratic Congress and you have a prescription for good legislation. Not everything I want, but probably pretty close.

    Re: Signing statments. Suing the executive is BS when you have the power of the purse. Congress should exert its own power rather than ask the Courts to do it. You don’t have any power if you don’t exercise it or need others to enforce it.

    Re: Maliki. The Democratic move was petty politics. It was done in part to embarrass Bush and in part to assuage some Jewish voters. I would invite the Ayatollah to address congress if he’d come. Its about time we started talking with people we don’t agree with.

    His Iraqi policy is more troubling, but I confess I don’t know what we should do there.

    And finally, I could be wrong. It wouldn’t be the first time that a politician fooled me.

  • Sen. John McCain appeared on Fox this morning and falsely claimed that Maliki has “condemned Hezbollah.” McCain said that, as a result, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and others who have criticized Malaki for his position on Hezbollah are “not qualified to lead.”

    When my Senator, Dick Durbin specifically asked Maliki about Hezbollah during a meeting, Maliki absolutely refused to even address the issue.

    • Comments are closed.