Bush: McCain "Will Not Flinch"

President Rallies GOP Faithful At Fundraising Dinner

(AP)  Seeking to energize party loyalists, President Bush on Wednesday gave his most extended public support to Sen. John McCain, his former foe for the White House. The president said McCain is the only candidate in the race who can face tough decisions and "will not flinch."

In a full-throated fundraising appearance for Republicans, Mr. Bush never mentioned the name of McCain's opponent in the presidential race, Democratic Sen. Barack Obama. But his critiques of Obama and Democratic leaders in Congress were clear as he turned their themes of "change" and "hope" against them.

Mr. Bush presided over an annual dinner at the cavernous Washington Convention Center, the last such fundraiser of his presidency. This one raised $21.5 million for Republican House and Senate candidates, an amount that easily topped last year's total but fell short of figures raised in earlier years.

The ostensible goal was to help the Republican Party win back Congress. In the House, where every seat is up for election this year, the Democrats hold an edge of 37 seats. In the Senate, where one-third of seats are on the ballot, the split is 49-49, with two independents who caucus with the Democrats.

Yet Mr. Bush put much of his energy in rallying support for McCain, mentioning his name time and again. McCain, the longtime Arizona senator, ran against Mr. Bush in 2000 but lost in the Republican primary. He eventually backed both of Bush's presidential bids and is getting the president's support in return.

"In trying times, America needs a president who has been tested and will not flinch," Mr. Bush told an audience of roughly 3,400 people.

"We need a president who has the experience and judgment to do what is right, even when it is not easy," Mr. Bush said. "We need a president who knows what it takes to defeat our enemies. And this year, there is only one man who has shown those qualities of leadership, and that man is John McCain."

Mr. Bush and McCain rarely appear in public together — the senator was campaigning in Missouri and Illinois on Wednesday — and Mr. Bush's speeches on his behalf tend to come at GOP fundraisers that are closed to the media.

Mr. Bush took the chance to sharply criticize a Supreme Court ruling that allows detainees in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to challenge their indefinite imprisonment in U.S. civilian courts. Obama applauded the decision, while McCain derided it as one of the worst decisions in the country's history.

"With this decision, hardened terrorists — hardened foreign terrorists — now enjoy certain legal rights previously reserved for American citizens," Mr. Bush said. "This is precisely the kind of judicial activism that frustrates the American people."

He said the best way to change that practice is to put Republicans in charge of the Senate and McCain at the helm of the White House.

Matthew Miller, a spokesman for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said "all the campaign cash in the world won't fool voters into re-electing Republican senators who have overwhelmingly backed George Bush's failed agenda."

The president said that when the public starts to pay attention to the 2008 election this fall, they will rally behind Republican candidates because of their positions on taxes, national security and the "culture of life." He criticized Democrats for maintaining a defeatist attitude in the unpopular war in Iraq.

"The other side talks a lot about hope, and that sums up their Iraq policy pretty well," Mr. Bush said. "They want to retreat from Iraq and hope nothing bad happens. Wishful thinking is no way to fight a war."

Mr. Bush's approval ratings remain near record lows. His overall public approval stands at 29 percent, according to an AP-Ipsos poll conducted June 12-16. The approval rating for Congress is even lower, 23 percent.

From the event, $13.5 million will go to the National Republican Senatorial Committee and $8 million to the National Republican Congressional Committee.

[demwatcher]

"obama8years, unfortunately the perception is that Bush lied (and I also believe that Bush lied). And once that perception is out there, facts and fine-pointed arguments are pretty much worthless. Telling the truth shouldn''''t involve any political spin. And Bush has spun the "facts" so much that the "facts" become blurry from the spinning. Even if technically Bush didn''''t lie, Bush is not perceived as a person who will give you the plain truth.

Posted by ixoye_02 at 08:34 PM : Jun 19, 2008"

And you are enough of a brainwashed, Liberal dumbarse to believe the LIES told by the Liberal media.

You follow the Leftist plot that if you tell a lie enough times, people will believe it is the truth.

You would not accept that President Bush did not lie even if your wasted life depended on it.

[tbweb]

Bush: McCain "Will Not Flinch"

And thats part of the problem, and why he is called McSame and McBush!

[jedi080808]

When Bush said Sadaam was seeking uranium in Africa he knew he was lying and so did the CIA. The CIA removed the lies from his speech and Steven hadley put the lies back in.

It isn''''t just liberals saying that Bush lied. Scott McClellan, Joe Wilson, Paul Oneill, George Tenant,and the British government(the Downing Street memo) have all confirmed information that proves that he lied.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by realpatriot1

Thats just not true. Especially the memo part. If you actually read it, there is nothing in it that implicates a lie. Unless you can find a stain on a purple dress, Bush will never be impeached like idiot Bill

[realpatriot1]

Obama8years,

When Bush said Sadaam was seeking uranium in Africa he knew he was lying and so did the CIA. The CIA removed the lies from his speech and Steven hadley put the lies back in.

It isn''t just liberals saying that Bush lied. Scott McClellan, Joe Wilson, Paul Oneill, George Tenant,and the British government(the Downing Street memo) have all confirmed information that proves that he lied.

[realpatriot1]

Obama8years,

Without more refining capacity more oil won''t result in more gas.

I''d like to see you source your contention about us having more oil than Saudi Arabia.

We defiitely have millions of gallons sitting in the strategic petroleum reserve and Bush doesn''t want to touch that. The tremendous amount of oil being used in Iraq is a significant factor and a culmination of the war would result in a major economic dividend on many levels.

There are ways to address our energy needs that don''t destroy the planet for future generations.

[sgtrds-e4]

Of course he won''t "flinch", he''s practically deaf, dumb and blind!

[notbuynit]

McShame never flinched while he kissed Bush''s ***!

[imarltool2u]

he can''t flinch because he''s a geriatic case and his brain is mush.

Vote Obama for 8 years in 2008. Give me a pap.

[ixoye_02]

obama8years, unfortunately the perception is that Bush lied (and I also believe that Bush lied). And once that perception is out there, facts and fine-pointed arguments are pretty much worthless. Telling the truth shouldn''t involve any political spin. And Bush has spun the "facts" so much that the "facts" become blurry from the spinning. Even if technically Bush didn''t lie, Bush is not perceived as a person who will give you the plain truth.

[obama8years]

THE CHOICE IS CLEAR:
OBAMA IS AGAINST DRILLING IN AMERICA

MCCAIN IS FOR DRILLING

AMerica is going to be pretty pissed when they find out that we are sitting on more oil than Saudia Arabia and Obama does not want to Drill. Bad Move Obama.

[obama8years]

THIS IS GOT TO **** YOU LIBERALS OFF, ONE OF YOUR TOP LIBERAL EDITORS SAYS "GEORGE BUSH DID NOT LIE" , I have been telling you knuckleheads all along. Lying is not the same as making the wrong decisions.

James Kirchick, assistant editor of The New Republic, has come under NewsBusters scrutiny for his bias before, of course. Our job is, we all know, to document and analyze that bias. But while we naturally focus on when the media get it wrong, we should have the maturity to point out when those who we criticize get it right. Here is a case when a member of the media that we usually criticize did, indeed, get it right and this time it might get him in Dutch with his lefty pals in the nutroots. After all, the surest way to get the nutroots upset at you is to say Bush did not lie about the war. But that is exactly what Kirchick just did and he did an admirable job chronicling it, too.

In an editorial in the L.A. Times on the 16th, Kirchick said that "Bush never lied to us about Iraq" and then went on to substantiate his claim in a style that runs contrary to the Media and nutroots meme that "Bush lied and people died."

[whitepicks2]

Flip, flop, and flinch gives gramps the cramps.

[ixoye_02]

After that ringing endorsement from Bush for McCain, I am certainly NOT voting for McCain. My roots are republican but my heart is currently independent. And I favor Obama.
Bush is a good reason not to vote republican this time...not to mention the other reasons, i.e. Iraq, Cheney, war profiteering, DeLay, Foley, Craig, Abramoff...the list goes on. The Dems have their problems too, but I expected alot more integrity from the republicans. And now I''ve seen that all the talk of republican moral standing and integrity was just "white-wash". Since Bush is the current leader of the republicans, why continue the damage to America and vote for more republicans? Besides, gay marriage and abortion lie at the bottom of my list of important issues to our country. And these republicans repeatedly bring up the least important items for debate. Enough is enough!!!

[zerato-2009]

You guys crack me up. Those are some good mccain jokes. I was wondering whether a politician can flinch while flipping or flopping. I hope we never find out.

[kenbomc]

Keep supporting your twin -Bush

[aldon61]

He might not "flinch", by he sure will "twitch".

[taddles3]

Just in the past two weeks:

* McCain supported the drilling moratorium; now he%u2019s against it.

* McCain strongly opposes a windfall-tax on oil company profits. Three weeks earlier, he was perfectly comfortable with the idea.

* McCain thought Bush%u2019s warrantless-wiretap program circumvented the law; now he believes the opposite.

* McCain defended %u201Cprivatizing%u201D Social Security. Now he says he%u2019s against privatization (though he actually still supports it.)

* McCain wanted to change the Republican Party platform to protect abortion rights in cases of rape and incest. Now he doesn%u2019t.

* McCain thought the estate tax was perfectly fair. Now he believes the opposite.

* He opposed indefinite detention of terrorist suspects. When the Supreme Court reached the same conclusion, he called it %u201Cone of the worst decisions in the history of this country.%u201D

* McCain said he would %u201Cnot impose a litmus test on any nominee.%u201D He used to promise the opposite.

Taken from : http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/15924.html

[taddles3]

"I think I''''d like to meet Mr. Bush one day. Seems like an alright guy to me.

Posted by Hwy71So at 02:38 PM : Jun 19, 2008"


I would too, kind of the way I''d like to meet a deer on the highway.

[shingles1]

He may not flinch, but he certainly does flop around a lot.

Here''s a fun list of 48+ flip flops that Mr. Straight Talky Maverick Pants has made:

http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/15924.html

[taddles3]

"The president said McCain is the only candidate in the race who can face tough decisions and "will not flinch." "


Hard to "flinch" when you are not "aware".