McCain Walks A Fine Line On Bush Policy

Washington Post: GOP Candidate Tried To Shape Image Abroad And At Home During Trip To Mideast, Europe

(Washingtonpost.com)  This story was written Michael D. Shear.

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Standing along the edge of the Gaza Strip and flanked by a hero of the Israeli military, Sen. John McCain last week invoked the tough rhetoric of President Bush, warning of Iranian influence in the Middle East and cautioning against negotiations with terrorists.

A day later, standing outside London's 10 Downing Street, McCain found himself arguing against his president as he eagerly recounted for reporters his lengthy conversation with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown about the need for worldwide action to prevent global warming.

Throughout a week-long trip that took him to more than a dozen meetings with leaders in five countries, McCain walked a fine line on Iraq and other issues as the all-but-certain Republican nominee confronted perhaps the central dilemma of his presidential campaign -- the question of what role Bush and the legacy of the past seven years will play in his campaign for the White House.

At home, the answer may determine how well McCain succeeds in keeping his Republican base happy while also attracting the independents and Democrats he will need to win in November. And, win or lose, it will shape his image abroad, where a debate is already raging over whether a McCain presidency would be a de facto third term for the embattled incumbent.

In every city, foreign leaders and journalists attempted to reconcile what they deemed the two sides to McCain: his bellicose rhetoric on Iran and North Korea -- which is more aggressive than Bush's -- and his desire to heal the rift with Europe's leaders by closing the Guantanamo Bay prison, ending what he regards to be the use of torture by American forces and reducing pollution.

Europeans "see him as a trusted hand, knowledgeable," said Philip Gordon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who has advised Democratic candidate Barack Obama on foreign policy. "But I think they are a bit worried about him."

Gordon said many Europeans were stunned when U.S. voters reelected Bush in 2004 despite the deteriorating situation in the Middle East. "If we now, after all this, elect someone who agrees with the Iraq policy and is perhaps more hawkish on Iran, they will be surprised," he said.

McCain repeatedly insisted last week that his government-funded trip was not a campaign stunt aimed at voters. Rather, he said, it was a fact-finding mission similar to trips abroad taken regularly by members of Congress in both parties.

"I'm here assessing the situation," McCain barked at an Israeli reporter in the border town of Sderot near Gaza, after flying over Israel with Defense Minister Ehud Barak. "It would not be frankly appropriate for me to talk about what I would do as president."

But the trip was by no means exclusively an information-gathering exercise for McCain.

He paused for a fundraiser with about 100 wealthy American expatriates living in London, who gathered at the ancestral home of Princess Diana and dined on duck salad and ice cream flambe. (His aides said the campaign reimbursed the government $3,000 for travel because of the political nature of the fundraiser.) McCain also gave numerous interviews to U.S. television network correspondents who followed him across the continent and to local newspapers in each country, which touted exclusives on their front pages. And he was hardly treated like a member of Congress by world leaders now eyeing him as a potential equal.

In Paris, French President Nicolas Sarkozy led McCain into the Elysee Palace past a throng of cameras, where the pair sipped cappuccino around a large table set with grapes. In Israel, he walked past Chagall stained-glass windows to meet with President Shimon Peres at his ceremonial home. In London, protocol dictated the absence of a red carpet at 10 Downing, but there was a photo op in the White Drawing Room.

McCain's political advisers say those images were a valuable reminder to voters of a key asset. "This trip has shown the world Senator McCain's foreign policy credentials and highlighted the depth of his knowledge on international affairs," Rick Davis, his campaign manager, wrote in a memo to supporters.

But there were missteps as well. By incorrectly saying that Iran was training al-Qaeda insurgents rather than Shiite extremists, McCain sparked days of headlines questioning that depth of knowledge he so often boasts of on the campaign trail.

And at the Western Wall in Israel, overzealous photographers sparked a near-riot with police officers, overshadowing McCain's visit to the holy site.

"Was it a good trip? Yeah, it was good" was how one of McCain's senior advisers summed up the journey as the senator from Arizona headed to London for a few days of downtime with his wife, Cindy. "The impression that came back to the American people was someone who was deeply comfortable there in a way that showed he's ready to be president."

McCain's partners on the trip were his two closest allies in the Senate, Joseph I. Lieberman (Conn.), who now describes his political affiliation as "independent Democrat," and Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.). In an interview as he traveled by train between Paris and London, Graham said McCain's long-held position on Iraq demonstrates his independence from Bush. While embracing Bush's "surge" policy in Iraq, McCain has never shied from saying that the administration bungled the planning and preparation for the conflict.

"When he thought it was going badly, he was pushing back against the administration. When he thought the policy was going right, he was right with him," Graham said. "The idea that John is an extension of another politician will fail miserably."

Democrats are already trying to morph McCain into Bush, counting on the president's sagging poll numbers and the unpopular war in Iraq to drag McCain down, especially among independents.

In a biting Internet ad that seems a foreshadowing of attacks to come, the Democratic National Committee mocked McCain as nothing more than a clone of Bush. "Why is this man so happy?" the ad asks, showing a picture of a laughing Bush. "Because he found someone to promise a Third Bush Term."

Democrats also hammered McCain for turning a policy trip into a political one and called on him to reimburse the government for the tens of thousands of dollars it would have cost to charter a plane for the exercise. At a news conference at the Elysee Palace, one reporter asked whether the trip had been a "taxpayer rip-off."

All three senators became indignant. "I'm proud to have taken this trip," McCain declared. "I'm proud to have built up the relationships I have with the president of France and with other leaders."

Lieberman called McCain's willingness to travel the world "one of his great attributes." And Graham noted that McCain had been to Iraq eight times since the war began. "We know the differences between Iraq this year and Iraq last year. These trips have been unbelievably valuable," he said.

And yet, throughout the week there were telltale signs of the presidential campaign.

At the Western Wall, a gray-haired man in the flowing garb of a rabbi repeatedly stood on a stool and yelled: "Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. John McCain, the next president of the United States of America."

And when McCain's motorcade pulled up in front of the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum in Jerusalem, a lone American tourist yelled out, "Mac is back!"

[clovisbuford]

First Tenant: We apologize to all Americans for losing our way, forsaking our principles, and behaving like liberals. Please forgive us.

Second Tenant: (your call) and 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10"tuffone3
Tax breaks for the wealthiest americans whil moving more of the burden onto the middle class , spirraling upward medical copsts while they cut cosy deals with the paharmaceuticals , government corruption on a grand scale ala Abramoff.Awar under false pretenses that seems to benefit primarily their larget politicalk contributors ,KBR halliburton , etc.Burgeoning financial scandal while the CEOS get paid 100 of millions of dollars as they dessert a sinking ship , 4$ a gallon gas for your oil co, buddies, Seems like the usual republican policies to me . Republicans believe government is ineffective and evil and every time they are elected to office they do their best to prove it .Republicans in their contract with america took power in 1994 , there were 1400 earmarks taht year . Republicnas barely lost the house and senate in 2006 , there were 14,000 earmarks that year , the deficit has doubled since 2000 . To paraphrase GW "heck of a job republicans" . The proof is in their actual governance , its no "if they get in power" we see how republicans managed it ,it is an unmitigated disaster on every front you can think of.its not a hypothetical "iam going to scare you so you vote my way"

[clovisbuford]

For Hillarygrl34 a few facts On January 14,2004 the Institute of Medicine (IOM), a Congressionally chartered but independent organization created in 1970 "to serve as adviser to the nation to improve health," released a report and fact sheets asking the president and Congress to act so that everyone living in the U.S. has health insurance by 2010. The report assembles facts we all can use to make the case that the current system must and can be changed. For example:
Lack of health insurance causes 18,000 unnecessary deaths every year in the U.S. Currently, 43,000,000 Americans are uninsured.
* The cost of the employee''s share of health insurance increased 350% (in constant dollars) from 1977 to 1998, while the median income only increased 17%.
* Four out of five uninsured Americans are members of working families. A quarter of U.S. workers are not offered health insurance at all by their employer. If they buy their own policy it usually costs much more than the same insurance purchased by a group, especially if they have a chronic health condition. If they do not have insurance and get sick, they usually have to pay much more for the same medical services, since insurance companies can negotiate discounts with doctors, hospitals, pharmacies, and others.

[iceman_1960]

"McCAIN LEADS OBAMA BY 9% - BIGGEST LEAD EVER"
- Posted by Hillarygrl34 at 09:00 AM : Mar 25, 2008
------------------

hahaha

"Kerry leads Bush in new poll

Bush"s approval numbers dip
Tuesday, February 3, 2004

(CNN) -- Sen. John Kerry, the front-runner among Democrats vying for their party"s presidential nomination, leads President Bush [53%-46%] in a head-to-head matchup, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Monday.

Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina and retired Gen. Wesley Clark also emerge as formidable opponents, according to hypothetical matchups in the poll, which found a decline in Bush''s approval numbers."

http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/02/02/elec04.poll.prez/index.html

[iceman_1960]

"Democrats Trusted More on Top Issue of Economy

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

When it comes to the economy, nearly half of voters (49%) trust the democrats more than Republicans. Thirty-eight percent (38%) trust the GOP%u2019s more. This advantage could have an impact on the general election, given the high level of concern over the economy. Consumer and investor confidence, as measured in the Rasmussen Consumer Index, have been at their lowest levels in seven years recently.

On the second most important issue, government ethics and corruption, the Democrats have a sixteen-point advantage over the Republicans."

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/mood_of_america/trust_on_issues/trust_on_issues

[taotxzen]

McCain''s Iraq Fantasia

Posted by Joe Klein, TIME.com

John McCain continues to fight a different war in Iraq than...the U.S. military. It is a simple war of good v. evil, us v. Al Qaeda. There are aspects of truth to what he says--we''ve had good success this past year in the fight against the local branch of Al Qaeda, which the military calls Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). But we''ve had that success mostly because Iraq''s Sunni population turned on the terrorists and sent them packing.

Which brings us to today''s edition. The political news was: McCain takes a roundhouse swing at Obama; Obama counterpunches elegantly. But what caught my Iraq-obsessed eye was this statement from McCain:
"And my friends, if we left, they (al-Qaida) wouldn''t be establishing a base," McCain said Wednesday. "They''d be taking a country, and I''m not going to allow that to happen, my friends. I will not surrender. I will not surrender to al-Qaida."

(cont)

[taotxzen]

(cont)

They''''d be taking a country? Last time I checked, Iraq has a Shi''''ite majority. McCain thinks the Shi''''ites--the Mahdi Army, the Badr Corps (and yes, the Iranians)--would allow a small group of Sunni extremists to take over? In fact, as noted above, the vast majority of indigenous Iraqi Sunnis aren''''t too thrilled about the AQI presence in their country, either. (The usual caveats apply: AQI is barbaric, dastardly and intent on violating the Qu''''ran by engaging in the annihilation of innocents. We can''''t get rid of them fast enough.)

The sadness here is that McCain knows better. He knows the complexities of the world, and the region. But I suspect he''''s overplaying his Iraq hand in order to win favor with the wingnuts in his party. That is extremely unfortunate: As McCain should know better than anyone, it is extremely dishonorable for politicians to play bloody-shirt games when the nation is at war.

[taotxzen]

McCain = pandering to special interests [even on his campaign bus]
Obama = no pandering to special interests

McCain = influence, corruption & division
Obama = dialogue, inclusion & change

McCain = popular votes received in primaries in OH [636,256], TX [709,477] & WI [224,226]
Obama = popular votes received in primaries in OH [979,025], TX [1,358,785] & WI [646,007]

McCain = no plan for health care
Obama = affordable coverage for all

McCain = no plan for the economy
Obama = middle class tax cuts, war-spending cuts and targeted domestic investment

McCain = 100 years in Iraq
Obama = immediate, enlightened redeployment

McCain = tax dollars go to military, special interests & war
Obama = tax dollars go to health, education, rebuilding military & infrastructure

McCain = continue with Bushs tax breaks for the wealthy
Obama = ensure tax cuts for the working middle class

McCain = What, NAFTA rewards slave labor? Oh well, get over it, Michigan!!
Obama = renegotiate NAFTA to include enforceable labor and environmental standards.

McCain = "Bomb, bomb, bomb . . . bomb, bomb Iran."
Obama = diplomacy, reason and sanity . . . not war, death & destruction [see above].

McCain = viewed internationally as an extension of Bush, Cheney and the disgraced neocons
Obama = a natural born diplomat

McCain = lame duck from the start
Obama = living history

McCain = last-ditch candidate of the terminally corrupted neocons
Obama = the future

Posted by danstoned

HUGE!

McCain, 4 More Years

[sleepyric]

he''s not walking a fine line....he''s "flip-flopping". Remember that phrase??? One of the republicans favorites!

[mcvet]

Thats right Democrats. Get your hate out now cause you really will have someone to hate later. All the polls show that John McCain is trusted by the American people more than the Racist Obama and Hitlery. Maybe this new "Change for America" the Democrats are promising is not the Socilist Dictatorship you Democraps think.


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Posted by demslie at 06:30 AM : Mar 25, 2008
+ report abuse

LOL You sound awlful desperate there Swastika Breath. LOL Sparky the ONLY poll you should be concerned about and the only one McCain has to run on it the one that says that 65% of American''s want a change in direction. Sieg Heil Bush

[demslie]

Thats right Democrats. Get your hate out now cause you really will have someone to hate later. All the polls show that John McCain is trusted by the American people more than the Racist Obama and Hitlery. Maybe this new "Change for America" the Democrats are promising is not the Socilist Dictatorship you Democraps think.

[missingamerica]

lollll...gee, is it a good thing or a bad thing that the story''s accompanying picture likely portrays t future: Lieberman doing the thinking in the role of McCain''s Cheney?

Seems fitting - yet another person whose loyalties are strictly to himself and his goals, and everything else - large or small - be damned.

[flywithwing]

I have read this aticle earlier on a mature dating stie called seniorwoo.com***** there is no need to surprise .this is just a game for politico

[brianbwb-2009]

"YEAH!, the ''''EVIL DOMINATED'''' Part of the world. Isn''''t it TIME?.....or do you LOVE living in it? Does the ''''Evil'''' INSPIRE you?" Posted by dumbshun

This is almost funny, we lie, invade, kidnap, and torture people who are innocent of any of the charges Bush made against them, and illegally occupy a sovereign country, but "dumbshun" doesn''t consider that to be "evil".

They do whatever they must to resist, "dumbshun" calls them "evil"...

Only when "they" do it, eh dumb?

[liberty4you]

Also, China had primed the Middle East and Iraq for their natural reserves.

[liberty4you]

The British "our good friends" gave the Downing Street Memo to the United States.

The British Foreign Secretary, Jack Frost, took this intelligence from a California university student''s
PH.d desertion.

Mr. Frost later apologized for drumming up intelligence to invade Iraq which later turned out
to be the infamous "Niger Memo" in which Joe Wilson
flatly denied as accurate.

After the State of the Union address in 2004, Bush''s famous "16 words" became the Iraqi War excuse.

"British Intelligence" led America to War. Also the Italians, and other Euros backed them up. Then they allowed the US to land their cargo and terrorist prisoners on their turf.

Now who is in Basra and who is going in? British Petroleum. BP gasoline stations.

[greatdrivew]

When and why did McCain become the neocon Dark Prince?

What the hello was he thinking? He could have retired with dignity.

[liberty4you]

"Watch the Frontline show "Bush''''s War" currently on PBS to see all of the blatant lies put forth by the Bush Administration, and supported by McCain."

I''ve been waiting for this show for some time now.

PBS'' Frontline is the only real "news" America.

[miles1967-2009]

Watch the Frontline show "Bush''s War" currently on PBS to see all of the blatant lies put forth by the Bush Administration, and supported by McCain.

McCain does not have the judgment and patience to lead America. He is an ill-informed, myopic, close-minded man who is easily swayed by the bigoted religious right. Check out the result of his BRILLIANT support of the "Surge", not to mention the fatally wrong idea to go to war with Iraq in the first place, and not actually go after the 9/11 terrorists. Check the facts at the below link and comment:

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/18722376/the_myth_of_the_surge

[liberty4you]

"Europeans "see him as a trusted hand, knowledgeable," said Philip Gordon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution"

Perhaps McCain should go work for the Europeans who
have lobbyist advocating for EADS and Airbus over American jobs.

I suggest that Americans unvote McCain in November. If the Europeans want to dance, we''ll dance.

[nearl4511]

It stikes me that this is the funniest photo I have seen in a long time.

It''s the kind that you can write any number of humorous captions to.

"John, I think you''ve messed your drawers."

"I know Joe, but I''m not quite finished."

Yeah I know not good, but make up your own.