It’s striking the extent to which John McCain’s campaign is premised on the deep, unyielding hope that voters aren’t paying attention to the campaign at all. It very well might work, but it’s kind of annoying to think the man who wants to lead the nation thinks we’re all a bunch of ignorant dolts.
Yesterday, for example, McCain spoke to the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) in DC, and tried to play the audience for fools.
After suffering politically in 2007 for his support of legislation that critics derided as “amnesty,” McCain reversed course during the GOP primary and said it was imperative to secure the borders first. At a debate in January, McCain said he would even oppose his own legislation if it were to be voted on again. […]
McCain, speaking first, promised the approximately 700 attendees that resurrecting the bipartisan immigration bill he helped shape last year would be at the forefront of his agenda as president.
“It would be my top priority yesterday, today and tomorrow,” McCain said in response to a question about whether he would pursue a comprehensive approach beyond his campaign promise to secure the border in his first 100 days in office.
Seeking to win some points for his initial support for a comprehensive immigration bill, McCain noted that his position “wasn’t very popular…with some in my party.”
Well, no, Republicans didn’t care for his legislation at all — which is why he announced his opposition to his own bill.
Yesterday, however, he pretended that recent events no longer exist in this reality, and said the secure-the-borders-first approach that he promised Americans he’d pursue as president is no longer his policy.
Barack Obama, who spoke to the NALEO after McCain, reminded the audience, “[McCain] was a champion of comprehensive reform, and I admired him for it,” Obama said after a loud ovation that included a chant of his last name. “But what he didn’t mention is that when he was running for his party’s nomination, he walked away from that commitment.”
I can’t begin to imagine how anyone, on any side of this issue, can trust Jukebox John’s word anymore. At this point, his promises to voters are little more than a punch-line.
Here’s McCain seven months ago, promising not to support comprehensive immigration reform:
“I understand why you would call it a, quote, shift,” McCain told reporters Saturday after voters questioned him on his position during back-to-back appearances in this early voting state. “I say it is a lesson learned about what the American people’s priorities are. And their priority is to secure the borders.”
And here he is four months ago, promising not to support comprehensive immigration reform:
“[I] have pledged that it would be among my highest priorities to secure our borders first, and only after we achieved widespread consensus that our borders are secure, would we address other aspects of the problem in a way that defends the rule of law and does not encourage another wave of illegal immigration.
And here he is two months ago, promising not to support comprehensive immigration reform:
“As the recent immigration debate demonstrated, Americans have little trust that their government will honor a pledge to do the things necessary to make our border secure. As president, I will honor that pledge by securing the border, thus strengthening our national security. I will also require that, among other things, border-state governors certify that the border is secure before proceeding to other reform measures.”
McCain felt so strongly about this, he told a national television audience earlier this year that he’d vote against his own bill if it came to the Senate floor.
And yesterday, playing one of the nation’s largest Latino organizations for fools, McCain said the bill he’s repeatedly rejected “would be my top priority yesterday, today and tomorrow.”
Truth be told, in terms of my issue priorities, immigration reform is relatively low. But I know for Republicans, it’s among the most important issues, if not the most important domestic policy issue. And yet, here’s the Republican nominee, running on a platform of consistency, breaking his word.
I wonder, how are voters supposed to know which McCain promises we’re supposed to take seriously, if he changes his mind depending on the audience?
Just a few days ago, McCain’s in-house blogger, Michael Goldfarb, admonished Obama for trying to “have it both ways” on issues. Looking back, maybe he was trying to be funny.