DNC nails McCain on Bush and port deal

[ProSense]

Candidate Senator McCain Plays Presidential Politics With Port Deal

Posted by Tim Tagaris on February 22, 2006 at 01:42 PM

Everyone's favorite "maverick," Senator John McCain, has transformed his "straight talk express" into the only fully-funded first reponse operation paid for by the current Bush Adminstration.

Bush and McCain have begun to build a political alliance for 2008. As public opinion on the war continued to drop, Bush highlighted McCain's "strong support" for the war in Iraq in December of 2005. In turn, Bush loyalists "have talked (McCain) up in private chats with Republican strategists and have even tried to steer people to the Arizonan's effort.” In addition, McCain has used Bush's direct mail list of major political donors to raise funds for his PAC. (Oval Office press conference, 12/15/05; CBS News Poll Summary, 12/28/05; U.S. News and World Report, 2/20/06; Chicago Sun Times, 2/19/06)

Indeed, it was candidate Senator McCain coming to the aid of President Bush first in regards to the impending national disaster that would be handing the keys to six major U.S. ports over to a foreign country, the United Arab Emirates.

We all need to take a moment and not rush to judgment on this matter without knowing all the facts. The President's leadership has earned our trust in the war on terror, and surely his administration deserves the presumption that they would not sell our security short...let's make a judgment when we possess all the pertinent facts.

Judgement has been reached, we have all the pertinent facts -- starting with the fact that this would be the the "first-ever sale involving U.S. port operations to a foreign, state-owned company." Senator Menendez said it best, "I don't think any foreign government company should be running our ports, managing, leasing, owning, operating. It just raises too many red flags."

http://www.democrats.org/a/2006/02/candidate_senat.php

[DesertRat]

1. Great post

Hope that now everyone realizes that McCain is a complete sellout.

[Raster]

12. what does the b.f.e.e. have on mccain? Dead girl, live boy?

[DesertRat]

16. That's a good question

Maybe some ambitious reporter will find out!

[Kurovski]

20. Every time I see that picture of Bush and McCain,

I study it anew to see if it's photoshopped. The mind boggles at the unreality of the tableau.


McCain is a natural when it comes to being poster-child for the Stockholm Syndrome.

[babylonsister]

2. Maverick, my backside. More like toady. nt

[Kahuna]

3. Kewl! I'm so happy to see this. McCain must be exposed for the

pandering bush flunky stooge that he is.

[Larkspur]

4. Thank Goddess Howard Dean runs the DNC

If it was Lieberman, he'd be rushing to kiss McCain's behind.

[Nothing Without Hope]

18. Nah, Joementum's still in line for kissing Bush's behind.

He and McCain are back there fighting over it.

Now THERE's an image I'd rather not have. :scared:

[Kurovski]

21. Kissing Bush's ass? Ol' Droopy Dog Joe

just went ahead and crawled straight up George's ass. He feels quite at home there, thankyouverymuch!

So you see, it's an inside job now.

[Nothing Without Hope]

22. "inside job" - ROFL!!! n/t

[DeaconBlues]

5. about time the Democratic party stopped dancing lightly around McCain

He is a right-wing pig, and there is a very good chance that he will be the Republican nominee in 2008. He needs to be exposed NOW.

[NanceGreggs]

6. McCain has used Bush's direct mail list of major political donors...

Wonder if they also gave him the list of southern voters they called during the 2000 primary -- you know, the ones the Repubs told McCain's adopted daughter was actually his half-black illegitimate child?

Just wonderin' ...

[BlakeB]

7. McCain scares me...

Cause I feel like he can beat any Democrat we put up against him in the 08 election... certainly Hillary Clinton.

[jenmito]

8. How 'bout Wesley Clark? n/t

[Kolesar]

9. Mccain has endorsed Ken Blackwell for Ohio gov 06

He has thrown in with the election-manipulator hoping to use Blackwell when he runs for Pres in 2008

[Vickers]

10. "The President's leadership has earned our trust"

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

Wee Cowboy has the leadership qualities of a roadkill possum.

[jenmito]

11. At least HE'S a REPUB.!...

Lieberman said something similar and he's supposedly a DEM.!

[mzmolly]

13. Sheesh, I hear ya! What a ridiculous assertion by McCain.

:crazy:

[nicknameless]

14. Maverick smaverick. He's as corrupt as any other rethug.

Are you paying attention, Mother Jones Mag.? :eyes:

[Disturbed]

15. John McCain, Hypocrite

John McCain, Hypocrite
by Doug Ireland

John McCain, the media's darling, has found a clever way around his own campaign finance reform law to take big corporate bucks in furtherance of his political ambitions while carrying water for the corporate mammoth providing the dough. But the national press is ignoring the story.


The Associated Press first ran the story of John McCain's odorous but lucrative Senatorial service to the communications giant Cablevision on the afternoon of March 7. But, while some local papers in McCain's home state (like the East Valley Tribune) have run the story, nothing has as yet made it into the print editions of the New York Times, the L.A. Times, the Washington Post, or any of the half-dozen other big city dailies I checked (although, if one searches the hundreds of AP stories available on the Post's website on its Politics page by clicking on "Latest Wire Reports," one can find it there--but how many readers would bother to do that?) One notable exception: the Kansas City Star.


Here's what the AP's investigation found:


McCain repeatedly intervened on behalf of a policy Cablevision favored -- one which "congressional and private studies conclude could make cable more expensive" -- while his chief political adviser, Rick Davis (who's masterminding McCain's probable '08 presidential rerun) solicited $200,000 in contributions from Cablevision to an institute that promotes McCain and pays Davis a $110,000 annual salary.


The Reform Institute was set up to promote McCain and his issues--especially campaign finance reform, embodied in the famous McCain-Feingold law. This Institute is "a tax-exempt group that touts McCain's views and has showcased him at events since his unsuccessful 2000 presidential campaign," and it "often uses the senator's name in press releases and fund-raising letters and includes him at press conferences," the AP says. And, of course, it provides a cushy sinecure with no heavy lifting for McCain's main man, Davis, as he prepares the pontificating Senator's next presidential run. Cablevision's contributions account for a whopping 15% of the Institute's budget.


http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0309-35.htm

[nicknameless]

19. Yeesh! I didn't know about that.

So he's worse than I thought. Thanks for posting the article.

[Nothing Without Hope]

17. I believe McCain will be the 2008 GOP presidential nominee. The media

have been promoting his image as Mr. Clean, Manly, and Great Leader for months:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1818584

I also recommend this article, called "John McCain, hypocrite":
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0309-35.htm

Here's an early thread just after statement on CNN that McCain supports Bush's ports deal:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x484601
thread title (2-21-06 GD): Surprise! McCain all for the sales of our ports to UAE
Comment/excerpt: IThe poster says: “In a statement released moments ago, he says Bush has earned our trust in the war on terror and that there is too much heat and not enough light on this subject.” No links yet, presumably they’ll be added to the thread when they become available. No surprise, since McCain has been courting Bush financial backers (see Reply #25) and they want the Dubai deal.

[Kurovski]

23. A good meme to be culled from the Common Dreams article...

"John McCain worked hard to raise your cable TEEVEE bill!!!"

That oughta take care of any presidential aspirations.