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Attacking the president
What’s really behind McCain’s criticism of President Bush, a fellow Republican
Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008 | 2:08 a.m.
In a sign of desperation, struggling Republican presidential candidate John McCain has begun to attack Republican President Bush. The Arizona senator, who trails in the polls, now says the unpopular Bush presidency has been an abysmal failure at home and abroad. That is quite a turnaround for this Bush loyalist.
In one of the most astonishing episodes of his campaign, McCain tore into Bush policies in an interview last week with The Washington Times.
McCain criticized Bush for his “spending, the conduct of the war in Iraq for years, growth in the size of government, larger than any time since the Great Society, laying a $10 trillion debt on future generations of America, owing $500 billion to China, obviously, failure to both enforce and modernize the (financial) regulatory agencies that were designed for the 1930s and certainly not for the 21st century, failure to address the issue of climate change seriously.”
What the senator failed to mention was that he has voted with the Bush administration 90 percent of the time since the president first took office in 2001, a point repeatedly made by Democratic opponent Barack Obama. No matter how fast McCain tries to run from Bush, he cannot escape the president’s considerable shadow.
Who can blame Obama for taking the lazy softballs McCain is now lobbing and smashing them out of the ballpark?
“Let me tell you, John McCain attacking George Bush for his out-of-hand economic policies is like Dick Cheney attacking George Bush for his go-it-alone foreign policy,” Obama told thousands of Las Vegans at Bonanza High School on Saturday. “It’s like Tonto attacking the Lone Ranger.”
The maverick act wore thin a long time ago, as did the name-calling and the vicious attacks on Obama’s character. It’s a shame McCain hasn’t stuck to the issues and run a campaign based on ideas. The American people deserved better.
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"...the unpopular Bush presidency has been an abysmal failure at home and abroad."
Okay, that settles it. I'm going to become a fortune teller!
What short memories. John McCain has never been party before country. McCain criticized the passing of the Bush tax cuts because they weren't matched with spending cuts. McCain always fought for a responsible budget. John McCain criticized Bush's Iraq policy until he got the Secretary of Defense replaced and a real strategy enacted. John McCain criticized bad actors on both sides of the aisle and that's what both parties fear if he is elected. John McCain will hold all responsible to their office.
"John McCain will hold all responsible to their office."
How would you say he has held Bush accountable? You know, for the WMD lies and all. Just go with that. I mean there is so much more, but just answer that one question. How has John McCain held Bush accountable for lying to the world about the Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq?
"John McCain has never been party before country. "
That is correct. John McCain has been self before party before country.
Lest you forget that McCain was a cheerleader for the invasion of Iraq, and made numerous public statements about how quick and easy our involvment would be.
Lest you forget that just a few short years after decrying the Bush tax cuts, they are now the cornerstone of McCain's economic plan.
Lest you forget how McCain was going to run a "respectful" campaign on the "issues."
Lest you forget how McCain flip-flopped on his own immigration legislation, his own campaign finance legislation, the offshore drilling moratorium, windfall-profit tax, warrantless wiretapping, privatizing Social Security, the estate tax, the use of torture, indefinite detention of terror suspects, normalizing relations with Cuba, diplomacy with Hamas, diplomacy with Syria, waterboarding, the DREAM act, Roe v. Wade, gay marriage, Bush's tax cuts, ethanol, and the Confederate flag.
It seems the Neocons around here have a terribly short-term memory.
I remember Hussein signing a pledge to only take public finance monies.
Hmmmmmm.....I guess we should start keeping track of his broken campaign promises.
Which one of these when he break first or fail to do first?
In four years, I expect Yucca to be shut down.
In four years, I expect the USA not to be running annual deficits not higher than George Bush's (not higher than $500 billion).
In four years, I expect that will be a major reduction in the USA dependence on foreign oil.
In four years, I expect significant savings in the cost of health care cost.
In four years, I expect Obama's health care give away not to cost the taxpayers an arm and a leg.
In four years, I expect Obama to have appointed judges who are pro-gun rights.
In four years, I expect Obama to have greatly improve the financial position of the middle class.
In four years, I expect that the world will just love, love, love us and Iran will have stop building its nuclear weapons program when they have coffee and donuts with Obama and just drop their program.
Why even defend one man against the other - they're both rotten.
I bet the first promise to be broken is the tax cut for everyone making less than $250k/yr. We're already hearing the numbers $200k and even $150k.
I earn about $70k/yr and I expect my taxes to go up within 2yrs at most to pay for any programs Obama pushes thru his rubber stamp Congress if he wins.
Honestly, how can anyone expect a tax cut from Democrats when they will have the ability to ram anything they want down our throats?