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Why is John McCain Spending so Much Campaign Cash?

By: knitwit (Diary)  |  July 26th, 2010 at 02:44 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

For some reason, many here at Red State and elsewhere seem to feel that JD Hayworth’s challenge to John McCain is a lost cause, and are determined to jump on McCain’s bandwagon while simultaneously disregarding his penchant for turning on the very folks who support him.  Their reasoning leaves me significantly puzzeled, but they are welcome to their opinions.  I am curious about other considerations than why someone would not want to replace McCain…..

John McCain, on the other hand, seemed to annoint JD Hayworth a worthy opponent even before JD made the official announcement that he would be running against McCain.  John preemtively started ads attacking JD before he was even an official candidate, and has spent more cash pounding the airwaves on a ‘less than stellar’ (to quote JD’s opposition) candidate than makes any earthly sense.

McCain looks like the boxer, who when he has his opponent (supposedly) on the ropes, redoubles his efforts to turn the face into unrecognizeable hamburger.  Doesn’t this seem over the top to anyone else?  I could understand a race that the pundits were calling as ‘close’, but not one where seemingly everything is over but the shouting (again quoting the JD opposition)….

Call me paranoid, but when the action is too lopsided, when it appears to be overkill, I start looking for a secondary purpose.  Either John McCain’s camp sees something that the pundits don’t see, or there is a hidden purpose for keeping up the brutal degree of pressure.  What does John McCain have to hide that necessitates his continued pounding barrage to keep the Hayworth campaign engaged in defense rather than going on offense?

What makes such extravagant expenditures necessary for the McCain camp?  What is hiding in the closet waiting for someone to just open that door, that they need to keep our attention away?  As someone famously said, “Follow the money”.  What business deals, what contracts for minerals, land, etc, what little tag-ons in legislation, what payments, what ethical issues, what exactly is causing John McCain to pour this kind of resource into a battle with someone who ‘doesn’t matter’, in a primary in a generally Republican state?  Disproportionite response is a red flag if ever there was one.  Call me cynical, silly, whatever you like, but if anyone has the ability to follow the threads, engage in some patriotic recon, maybe it would be better done before the primary election than after? 

I think, for the future of our country and the state of Arizona, that it would be better to unseat McCain and then to have 6 years to find an alternate to JD if necessary, than it will be to send McCain the wrecking ball back to the Senate to continue his 30 year history there, and to do whatever it is that he is attempting to distract us from seeing.

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  • AceInTX

    Going after JD is PERSONAL…it’s about tearing anyone who would dare to challenge this legend in his own mind and embarrass him before his adoring fans in the so called objective media

    • acat

      was put there by the media he adores, and used that mean streak to go after *them* …

      Mew

  • snowshooze

    Remember back in the campaign..McCain would not brace Obama. Even said something like ” I respect him”
    But another Republican comes along…oh no… McCain drops all the nice guy stuff and goes for the throat.
    Ok Johnnie boy….we got your number.

  • mbecker908

    Nobody I can think of doesn’t want McCain replaced. The point is, and has been from the very start, that JD Hayworth can’t do it. On a statewide basis the numbers are not there and have never been there.

    1. JD is very well known statewide.
    2. JD is basically reviled statewide. He lost his seat to Mitchell in ’06 because the voters were tired of listening to him whine.
    3. JD is his own worst enemy. HE is the issue in the campaign and he’s done a laundry list of really stupid stuff. He’s a birther (I know, he denies it, but there’s plenty of record from his radio show). He routinely sticks both feet in his mouth – no declaration of war for WWII, marrying his horse, “free money” and the latest attempt to link McCain and a very well respected County Sheriff to David Duke for starters.
    4. JD was in the House for 12 years with nothing but lots of face time on Fox to show for it. Well, there were a ton of earmarks.
    5. Go back to the Magellan poll in June and you’ll see that McCain has a +23 point fav/unf rating statewide. JD is -12. That is not the result of McCain’s advertising which, IMO, isn’t all that effective.
    5. Why is McCain spending the money? Because he can. He would win this going away if didn’t spend a dollar.
    6. You can “think” anything you want, but you have to completely ignore the facts on the ground to come up with a conclusion that has McCain losing. I’ve written in detail about this on a number of occasions, talking about candidate history, demographics statewide, the effect of endorsements, the candidate’s image, etc and no one has even bothered to try to refute my argument. It always comes down to “I think” with no thought applied to the conclusion.

    Oh, and there’s a new poll out today. It’s a Rasmussen from July 21. MoE 4%, McCain 52 JD 32. That’s +20. And don’t take heart because the last poll showed JD -45, because the bottom line is direction not a unique number. For Rasmussen, the direction for JD looks like this: March 16, -7. April 13, -5. May 17, -12 (and McCain broke 50% to 52). July 21, -20 (McCain is at 54). The third candidate, Jim Deakin is pulling from Hayworth not McCain.

    The JD worshipers have been consistently holding out some “hope” or another. First it was McCain’s position on immigration that would put JD over the top. Then came SB1070 and McCain actually stuck his thumb in Obama’s eye and that issue went away. Then there was “The Debates”. JD was going to clean up the floor with McCain. The July 12 poll is after the debates. Big winner Deakin. Now I’m seeing that the “Great White Hope” is turnout. Don’t hold your breath. If you go back to the June Magellan poll you’ll see that the most conservative group of folks in the state, 55+, have the most positive view of McCain and the most negative view of JD and JD’s margin has the largest negative in that group. They also happen to be the most likely group to vote in the primary.

    Grasping at straws really makes you look foolish. Get some facts, make an argument. Otherwise you’re wasting everybody’s time.

    • snowshooze

      And you reinforce it.
      Is it too late for a good man to stand up ?
      Possibly.
      Because neither of these seem to be worth a darn.

      • mbecker908

        He never had a chance, no name recognition, no political history, no money. And frankly, nobody really has a clue what he’s all about.

      • conservativeinabluestate

        The media wanted McCain to lose Hayworth because he picked a Conservative Running Mate with Palin. The media hates him for it because Palin is the ultimate threat to Liberals. The fact that media is rooting for Hayworth is proof that McCain is the right choice. McCain is now going to do everything he can to stop Obama and the Dems that wronged him. I don’t see McCain ever helping the Dems or the media, while Obama is President!

        • Joliphant

          nt

    • AceInTX

      in fact…it is THE point.

      You’ve made your points…and you were right…JD is a loud mouth, a Hypocrite, a bafoon, a clown, and any other term you can come up with to describe a bombastic ass….

      What the poster is calling attention to is the undeniable fact that McCain’s and his team’s continued kicking what has become a dead and stinking corpse is a bit of a mystery. In fact…the disproportionate assault is at such a level that it is disturbing to a point….it points to a maniacal fanaticism in McCain and the people he surrounds himself with.

      • aesthete

        McCain’s last campaign (namely, the Presidential one) was virtually tone-deaf, and he arguably lost because of an atonal and inconsistent campaign. His ability to judge campaigns is obviously middling to worthless, and my guess is that he sees (and doesn’t trust) this Tea Party thing and its strength, has money and nowhere to spend it, and doesn’t feel like losing.

        • http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Politics-Examiner Mike gamecock DeVine

          Attacking Obama would have precluded him from being a member of the DC Elite/Ruling Class as defined by Codevilla (Rush is highlighting the past two weeks), whereas attacking a fellow Republican enhances his reputation with the Ruling Class (libs, Dems, you know the type).

          Reagan was never accepted as a member of the ruling class. JD will never be accepted as well. Ace, ‘thete, we are all safe with JD from being drafted into the Ruling Class as well.

          • aesthete

            However, he attacks Republicans all day long without spending money; it’s natural as breathing for him;. I was merely answering Ace’s comment on McCain’s spending.

            (As an aside, my problem isn’t that JD was ever, or will ever be, a member of the ruling class. I just think he’s both unconservative and a fool. Sadly, some of those who aren’t ruling class can be truly foolish at times!)

          • http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Politics-Examiner Mike gamecock DeVine
          • AceInTX
          • http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Politics-Examiner Mike gamecock DeVine
      • mbecker908

        It does not matter. It’s petty and sniveling in addition to being totally pointless. You’re pointing out stuff that most people assume whether it’s true or not or whether it matters or not. The only real “truth” here is that none – absolutely none – of this silliness matters at all. McCain is going to win going away and the OP is just wallowing in whine because he can’t stand the thought.

        Ace you’re a whole lot better than associating yourself with empty-headed arguments like this. Or the new he one put up.

        • AceInTX

          I think Mike nailed it with his discussion of the ruling class and McCain’s pandering to it.

          To me it’s an interesting contrast i.e. the milk toast half assed way McGoo ran against Obama…and to watch the fanatical…almost maniacal way they’ve pummeled, pounded and continued to pile on JD long after the contest has been over.

          I’m not shedding any tears for JD here…he’s a pompous ass a blowhard and a buffoon as you’ve said all along…again…it’s an interesting contrast.