Commenter's Delight: The McCain Campaign
What Happens to the Campaign in the light of McCain's Immigration Reform?
By Hunter Baker Posted in 2008 — Comments (35) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Prior to the introduction of the new McCain-Kennedy immigration bill, I think it was fair to say John McCain was positioned to gain votes as a reliable pro-lifer against the pro-choice Rudy and the unproven Mitt. I think it is also fair to say that two weeks of severe censure from conservatives and conservative talk radio may take a toll on the McCain campaign going forward.
Question: Does the McCain campaign survive his key role in the new immigration bill? Why or why not?
Update: Ultra-browseable text of bill here.
END.
« Dueling June Obama fundraising claims? — Comments (2) | Grist for the mills. — Comments (6) »
Commenter's Delight: The McCain Campaign 35 Comments (0 topical, 35 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
This may explain the president's strategy as well. Since no one with his last name as of right now wlll ever darken a county commission seat again let alone the Oval Office, his plan must be to purge the GOP of everyone but Bush supporters (all 20,000)! That way the family biz can be saved. Who says Rove has lost it? This is brilliant stuff!
You made me laugh, someone. Seriously.
because I despise him for his efforts on amnesty last year along with his predilection for cavorting with the enemy on other issues and generally sacrificing our dear principles in trade for getting his face on TV. But had he won the primary he might have gotten my support.
If the Bush Kennedy McCain Amnesty becomes law I promised myself that I am going to hold the entire Republican Party responsible and take vengeance in the ballot booth on all Republicans from dog catcher to President.
But that's just my personal opinion. Of the 5 leading candidates on our side (Rudy, John, Newt, Fred, and Mitt-- heh, anyone else notice that those are all 4-letter names?), John is the one that scares me the most (immigration, campaign finance reform, judges, general disrespect of civil liberties).
---
(Formerly known as bee) / Internet member since 1987
Member of the Surreality-Based Community
McCain is a wonderful human being and a true patriot and I agree with him on 80% of the issues but he's a ticking time bomb. The Hillary camp must be salivating at the idea of running against him as he just doesn't have the temperament for the job.
We thrive in spite of government, not because of it.
and there are many, it does come down to his temperament. And the explosion with Sen. Cornyn, a true gentleman, and the Romney remarks probably have done more to finish off the McCain campaign than anything policy-related, including this amnesty package.
It will be a difficult enough year in 2008. We can't afford a campaign trail or televised debate meltdown, both of which almost would be a certainty if the senator were the nominee.
We all know that instead of "Guatemalans" as the clever temperament-challenged AZ Senator threw at Mitt, it's those fleeing the oligarchical narco-state kleptocracy named Mexico that everyone with a brain wants to stop hemorrhaging its least likely to succeeds across our southern border. Like the narco-traffickers who supply our own low-lifes with their dope.
Lindsay Graham should just switch parties and get a Lieberman Free Pass into the bowels of the Democratic Caucus.
_________________
THE DEMOCRAT PARTY'S MANIFESTO 1. You have to believe the AIDS virus is spread by lack of Federal funding. 2. You have to believe that the school system that can't teach a fourth grader how to read is some how the best qualified to teach those same children all about sex. 3. You have to believe that guns, in the hands of law abiding Americans, are more of a threat than U.S. nuclear weapons technology in the hands of Chinese communists. 4. You have to believe there was no art before Federal funding. 5. You have to believe that global temperatures are less affected by cyclical, documented changes in the earth's climate, and more affected by Americans driving SUVs. 6. You have to believe that gender roles are artificial, but being homosexual is natural. 7. You have to be against capital punishment but support abortion on demand. 8. You have to believe that business creates oppression and governments create prosperity. 9. You have to believe that hunters don't care about nature, but loony activists from Seattle do. 10. You have to believe that self-esteem is more important than actually doing something to earn it. 11. You have to believe that the U.S. Military, not evil and tyrannical regimes, start wars. 12. You have to believe the NRA is bad because it supports certain parts of the Constitution, while the ACLU is good because it supports certain parts of the Constitution.
My ultra-conservative brother has been pounding me over the head for the last 3 years on Bush's follies and he has proven to be right. I have erased that line in the sand and backed up with each succeeding year of the Bush administration and the line stops at this moronic ILLEGAL immigration policy pushed by McCain etal and approved by President Bush. Senator McCain has NO chance of getting my vote.
The longer we dwell on our misfortunes the greater is their power to harm us - Voltaire
Electing RINO Rudy isn't exactly what I'd call a "win". The general election is over 17 months away; the current "Hillary vs. Candidate X" polls mean next to nothing. Anyone who thinks that an anti-gun candidate who thinks it would just be "OK" if the blatantly extra-Constituational Roe v Wade decision is overturned would follow through on a promise to nominate constructionist judges is naive in my opinion.
McCain is a great American, a decent Senator, a poor Republican, and an AWFUL general election candidate.
Hopefully his backers will realize we can only win with Rudy and will join us.
Imagine a UNIFIED GOP behind Giuliani- he would crush Hillary!! All it takes is for us to do it!!
United States Air Force
http://airforcepundit.blogspot.com
We may only "win" with Rudy but we will lose our way.
he has now graciously provided Mitt with a lifeboat, rations and a cannon to shoot back.
Fred, Newt may also be big winners here.
Yes, it is perfect timing for Fred to jump in, largely because he has said all along that he would only get in if he thought the field wasn't capable of winning. With Mitt and McCain playing in the sand and Rudy being closer to Hillary on abortion rights, we need a strong conservative to take the reigns of this party.
more like a Stargate-type Naquada torpedo with an advanced targetting scanner.
Michael- has the thought ever crossed your mind that it is better for the conservative cause for there to be a President Giuliani than a President Clinton?
And if that is the case- is it better for conservative causes to have a President Clinton who would beat Thompson?
If this is the case- you have to vote Rudy because there is no way Thompson will win in 08.
For the paleocons- have you realized that in the '00 and '04 elections we came a few thousand votes away from losing?!! And you honestly think ANOTHER SOUTHERN GOOD OLE BOY is going to win for a third time when the country has moved to the left in the last 8 years?!!
United States Air Force
http://airforcepundit.blogspot.com
will do more damange to the Republican party than McCain has, or can. At least McCain votes the right way 80% of the time. And since he will do that much damage to the Republican party, another Clinton in the Whitehouse is less damaging to the republic than him, because while she will be able to make policy changes that will damage the country, she won't be able to damage the Republican party, which is still the last best chance for conservatives to retake our country before it goes the way of Rome.
In theory, of course a Giuliani is better. In practice - would it be? Would he have the ability to move forward with ANY conservative principles? Pretty much the *only* significant contribution that W has made to the conservative cause is his court appointments. Do you think ANY Republican, Rudy, Fred or other, will be able to accomplish this with a Dem-controlled Senate? Doubtful.
While it would be nice to have a Republican in the White House, I'm not convinced it'll make much difference at all in moving the conservative cause forward. As long as we don't own one side of Capitol Hill, we're gonna be spinning our tires.
Not to discount the court thing - that's a HUGE accomplishment for Bush, as we've seen several times already. That is George W Bush's legacy - John Roberts and Sam Alito. It will be a long legacy that will have profound impact on this nation for decades to come. Thank God he was able to accomplish that. I don't see any Republican president nominating an even marginally conservative justice any time soon.
Repeat after me: it's all about the courts.
You honestly think that Fred can't beat Hillary "Robototron" Clinton? Compare the election successes of "Southern good ole boys" with East Coast types. Reagan may not have been a Southerner (and neither am I), but he had the same plain-spoken style.
If either Rudy or Mitt get the nomination, they'll revert back to their "moderate" roots in the general election (and in office) so fast you'd think they were replaced with an identical twin, alienating the base and disencouraging voter turnout amonst the very types who got Bush elected.
the people who supported him before will continue to deny its an amnesty, and the rest of us will continue to announce we will not, under any circumstances, vote for him.
McCain's chance to be President has passed. Watch his numbers fall like a rock. What worries me is what he's going to do when he loses the primary, again.
His consistent support of amnesty is what did him in, I know it was for me. Despite my reservations about his prior indiscretions, such as campaign-finance reform, I was able to overlook them for a Republican with a pretty solid conservative record who was a foreign policy hawk and a tireless supporter of fiscal restraint. It also didn't hurt that he looked unbeatable in a general election.
Maybe I'm a one issue voter, but I honestly feel that if the flood of illegal immigrants is not solved, America will morph into a balkanized, third-world country. I understand a major candidate can't advocate rounding up illegals and having mass deportations, but I just cannot support a candidate that enthusiastically supports a blanket amnesty.
If Giuliani does not come out against this amnesty bill, them I'm jumping ship to Fred Thompson.
"Back in the thirties we were told we must collectivize the nation because the people were so poor. Now we are told we must collectivize the nation because the people are so rich. "
William F. Buckley, Jr.
that there are that many people who were out an out restrictionist who were McCain fans anyway. McCain's support of comprehensive immigration reform ( or amnesty if you wish to call it that) is no big secret. So I tend to doubt that there are that many people who were McCain people who were so against this immigration reform that it is a deal breaker - they wouldn't have been for McCain in the first place. As for you, I do not remember you ever being on McCain's side you were always with Rudy.
Rudy has always been pro-amnesty; his views are almost indistinguishable from Bush, Hillary or McCain: http://www.nysun.com/article/53613
He even went so far as to sue the federal government to protect the "sanctuary city" policy in NYC: http://www.ibisnetwork.com/giuliani/text/imm124.html
Even if he were to come out against this or any other kind of amnest bill, I sure as hell wouldn't believe him- it's unlikely he will anyways, since it would be seen as a flip-flop. That he's been silent on the issue should speak volumes.
I now can't remember where I saw it floated -- perhaps here even -- but I read speculation that Rudy has to hold fire on the bill (which he probably supports, in reality, anyway) lest he upset the Governator's likely endorsement.
Read what he said- the best he could come up with was to nitpick the ID and record keeping provisions; not against the meat of the bill that we object to- "namely the amnesty first, enforcement maybe" nature of it.
John McCain is a American hero. He is an inspiration to us all. He is what everyone wants there kid to look to etc....
John McCain is a hero, but if he goes down, he's going to do his best to take at least one candidate down with him. He's like the Captain of a sinking warship. He knows he's sinking, but he's gonna take as many with him as he can.
Another thing, if I hear one more "Rudy is the only candidate who can beat Hillary" argument one more time, I'll lose it. We have 4 candidates either leading H or within the statistical margin of error. First off, polls right now are essentially useless. Second, Rudy's going to have trouble carrying his own state, much less the south. If God forbid, Edwards somehow gets the nom, we're dead in the water with Rudy come general election time because he'll have to defend the red states before he can attack in the blue ones.
I'll agree with that. He is far, far from an inspiration since he got out of the Navy. And if my Marine Corps son started to emulate John McCain, I show him that his old man can still kick the snot out of him.
McCain the hero has become McCain the self-absorbed politician. There's nothing admirable about that.
____
CongressCritter™: Never have so few felt like they were owed so much by so many for so little.
with you on a lot of issues does not mean he is self-absorbed. If you are going to start throwing mud on the man's character than you better have something to back it up with. And I don't mean CFR, Torture, Taxes, Gang of 14, stem cell research, global warming, or amnesty. These are simply issues of which he is to the left of you on.
You have just attacked the character of a man who has staked his political future on the United States winning, a man who has been one of the strongest defenders of this war. I am totally good with attacking our candidates on the issues, but there better be a very good reason when you attack their character!
"supporting" the President out of one side of his mouth and whining about everything to do with the war out of the other side. Always in front of a camera.
Legislation aside, G14 was nothing more than an exercise in self absorption. McCain put Senate "comity" and his relationship with his friends on the other side of the aisle ahead of getting up or down votes on qualified judicial nominees. Your opinion aside, that is simply pathetic.
His most recent outburst at John Cornyn is another stellar example.
As I said, McCain is an American hero. I appreciate what he did in Vietnam and I think he acquitted himself with great honor as a POW. I also really appreciate him as a father, given that his son graduated from MCRD San Diego last fall and is now an enlisted US Marine.
On the other hand, his career in Congress is less than stellar. It's better than John Murtha's or John Kerry's, but it's still a model of self absorption and attempts at self-redemption.
____
CongressCritter™: Never have so few felt like they were owed so much by so many for so little.
exactly go so well, so I do not see why protesting it is self-absorbed. As for the Gang of 14, it is entirely possible that he believed that the filibuster could be a useful tool to keep for the senators to use keep radical justices off the court from both the right and the left. I wouldn't agree with him but that doesn't mean that he is self-absorbed. The fillibuster is a long held senate tradition. Besides, I don't know what the other six senators would have done if McCain wouldn't have signed on, for all I know they may have been willing to sign on to a deal that would have been even worse. As far as losing his temper, that's wrong and may show a moment of self-absorbtion, and I am open to the arguement that it shows that he is unqualified for public office, but I still refuse to judge him as being a self-absorbed person. You seem to think that if a person takes certain position that you disagree with, it can only be out of self interest; I think that says more about you than McCain.
you are entitled to your opinion.
____
CongressCritter™: Never have so few felt like they were owed so much by so many for so little.
On something as important as abortion gives you an idea of his character. He also blows up on a pretty regular basis when he doesn't get his way or it looks like he might not get his way. He also feels the need to stifle anyone who doesn't agree with him (gotta get his lousy bill rammed through the Senate before it can get caught up in any "extracurricular politics..." Someome might even decide to exercise their "so-called" free speech rights.) That all points to his character.
---
Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself. - Milton Friedman
The fact that nothing ever seems to be his fault. When he didn't get the nomination in 2000 it wasn't his fault. It had nothing to do with him as a candidate or his awful strategy of sacrificing the base for independents and democrats in open primary states. It was someone else's dirty tricks!
You can also add to the list the fact that he gets pouty and tries to exact revenge for any perceived slights (like the aforementioned dirty tricks). Working with the Democrats in an attempt to sink W's tax cuts is an example of this attempt at pay back. I believe his non-support of Medicare Part D was the same deal. That was the right position to take in that case, but I don't believe that's why McCain took it.
---
Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself. - Milton Friedman
I can't wait to see this guy get swamped in a landslide by Hillary.
McCain supporters may be the only ones left *in* the party.
A masterstroke of campaign strategy!