Thaw In GOP Deep Freeze?

Spring is here, and the ice is breaking. Gov. George W. Bush took the first step Tuesday in trying to thaw relations between himself and his primary opponent, Sen. John McCain.

Bush told reporters Tuesday afternoon that he'd called McCain in the morning. Bush was in Virginia for a campaign event, and called McCain from his car. "It was the appropriate time" to call, Bush believes.

The governor said the conversation was "very cordial," and lasted a few minutes. Did the pair discuss the primary campaign or the controversial ads that they ran attacking each other? "The past is the past. It's time to move forward," Bush told reporters.

A spokesman for McCain said the phone call was "an icebreaker," and added that the two discussed the "reform agenda," but not any specific aspects of it.

McCain apparently restated his intention to keep his delegates, and said he'd fight any convention challenges of those delegates.

Despite this potentially feisty topic, another McCain spokeswoman agreed with Bush that the chat was a "cordial" one.

Bush said he and McCain will have a meeting at some point, but it's not clear when. While they didn't discuss Vice President Al Gore or campaign strategy, Bush expects they will.

The chill between Bush and McCain descended during a hard-fought primary battle. When McCain bowed to the inevitable and dropped out of the race, he declined to endorse Bush, and kept his delegates.

While McCain vacationed in the South Pacific, Bush gave an interview to the New York Times wherein he icily dismissed McCain's efforts and said that he had learned nothing from his opponent, who attracted thousands of new voters to the Republican primaries. Soon after, Bush started backtracking and offered conciliatory comments. But phoning McCain was his first concrete effort to establish a warmer relationship with the Arizona senator.