McCain Repeats He Won't Be Discussing Rev. Wright on the Trail
PHOENIX -- John McCain said today that Hispanic voters are tailor-made for the Republican message and he also vowed not to make Rev. Jeremiah Wright an issue in his campaign, though he added he won't be the referee for others who choose to.
"I have said that in my own campaign we will not be discussing it," he said referring to Barack Obama's pastor, Rev. Wright. "But it will be a discussion Senator Obama will have with the American people.
McCain did say, however, that he thought Wright's comments were "outrageous".
He added that he will ask all Republicans to run respectful campaigns but he won't referee which ads should be released by others, referring to various state races that have used the Obama/Wright issue in ads.
"There are many Democratic organizations that are attacking me in a broad variety of ways, I have not seen Senator Obama or Senator Clinton repudiate those attacks."
McCain also announced the Spanish section of his website in celebration of Cinco de Mayo.
"Everything about our Hispanic voters is tailor-made for the Republican message. I am confident that I will do very well. I'll have to work at it," he said.
McCain admitted that the tenor of the immigration debate may have hurt the image of the Republican party among Hispanics but he boasted getting 70 percent of the Hispanic vote in his re-election, claiming he understands issues in the community.
"Most Hispanics want our borders secure," he said. "They also worry about the people who are here illegally, their treatment, their conditions, the exploitation of people who don't have any of protections of our citizens."