Right-Wingers Irked At McCain's 'Calm Down' Request

Even before John McCain faced a skeptical conservative audience at the Conservative Political Action Conference Wednesday, he further irritated many by telling conservatives to "calm down" and instead unite behind him.

McCain was directing his comments at critical talk show hosts like Rush Limbaugh. But conservative activists at CPAC and elsewhere in Washington took offense, though speaking on background in hopes McCain will change their minds with his address to the 6,000-strong conference.

"Calm down?" barked one key activist. "So I'm the child and he's the adult? So it's calm down from the guy who swears at anybody who walks by him, except Democrats of course. You know what happens when you tell your wife to calm down, right? It just gets worse."

McCain's critics also took offense at his suggesting that the two sides can find areas to agree on.

"When's the last time he found an area to agree on with us?" said the activist. Despite the GOP front-runner's plans to cool heated feelings between his campaign and conservatives today, there were indications that many right-wingers had no plans to let up. Another official said that McCain is suffering the brunt of frustration conservatives feel toward President Bush, who they say let them down by swelling the budget and not doing enough to pack the courts with conservatives.

"I don't think that we are going to lighten up on McCain. In fact, it's going to be a fun summer and fall beating him up. We don't want another Bush," said the conservative strategist, who often gives advice to congressional Republican leaders. "And then we can have even more fun once Hillary [Clinton] is elected."

By Paul Bedard