Why do so many at DU hold John McCain in such high regard?

[Sandpiper]

Seriously, I'd like to know. He's as much a Bush apologist as the rest of the wingnuts.

[T Roosevelt]

1. That's a good question

He's carrying *'s water as much as the rest of them, and he has the least reason too (remember South Carolina). Unless he pulls a fast one at the convention, he's as bad as any of them.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

2. i agree with you

i mean hes better than bush, but not really

[LuLu550]

3. I have to agree

while he does speak his mind and occasionally bucks the tide, he is going to campaign for the Shrub...so why is any Dem talking about him being VP????

[Daisey Mae]

4. Can not understand it myself.....

He is 100% Repuke...

[cheezus]

5. Because he's a pain in Bush's ass

that's all. I know, we should know better.

[displacedtexan]

6. He's sort of the repuke version of John Glenn.

People like him because of his demeanor. Also, we know that only popular repukes can bring W down... and even that doesn't seem to be working these days.

[stepnw1f]

7. He's a Tool

[kiahzero]

8. Because he has integrity

Some of us value that attribute, and therefore hold those who have it in higher regard than those who do not.

[many a good man]

11. Not any more

How can he carry Bush*s water after all the crap we've been through.

Granted, he has more than the typical Repuke, but not even enough to make him human...

[July]

67. If he's human,

I hope he feels remorse for making fun of Chelsea Clinton's looks when she was a little girl.

[Kahuna]

22. If he had integrity he would be drafting impeachment papers.

He has "some" integrity. But no more than the average Joe.

[Syncronaut Seven]

26. Integrity, intelligence, +He actually SERVED in Viet Nam.

It's a hell of a tight rope to walk. Do you refuse to participate on "principles"? Or do you play the game well enough to affect change from the inside.

I think that McCain hates these pukes as much as we do, maybe more.

[sangha]

37. Integrity?

You mean taking money from corrupt S&L owners demonstrates integrity?

Endorsing Bush* is a sign of integrity?

[Carolina]

42. say what

that bastard made nasty comments about a 12 year Chelsea Clinton!

Integrity my ass. He's a repuke who occasionally bucks the tide to get attention. IF he had any real integrity, he'd have done a Jeffords.

Instead he's turned into a Bush whore.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

69. Only infrequently...particularly if he can win points politically.

[KoKo]

9. Some are "operatives" who want to push his name to us, over and over

and over. As a "distraction/diversion." IMHO.

[many a good man]

10. The more you know the more there is not to like

He's a maverick within the Repuke party, the kind of sensible conservative we'd like to see as the loyal opposition as opposed to the nutjobs running their party now. He's sensible, i.e. moderate, on issues such as campaign finance reform, the environment, etc.

But like you said, he'll follow up a harsh criticism of the Bushchenies with a boot-licking sign of support the next week. And now he's campaigning FOR the bastard, even despite what Bush* did to him in the primaries in 2000. Like Colin Powell, he's lost what little respect I ever had for him...

[vern]

12. bombs away

yeah, except he wants to bomb the crap out of the rest of the world.

he sure towed the bush line on sunday.

[Stevendsmith]

15. Well said

You covered all the points (and more) that I would have made.

[asjr]

16. McCain could hold two dummies on his knees because

he talks out of both sides of his mouth. I do not trust that man.

[vern]

17. more bombs

just because he named his bus the straight talking express, or whatever that gibberish was, doesn't mean that's what he is.

out in the world they call that marketing.

[Kahuna]

23. Riiiiight. "Straight talker?" I don't think so.

:puke:

[freetobegay]

13. I don't!

eom

[waldenx]

14. same reason they like Clark

their standards are so low and their desperation so pathetic that they will take a PNAC-lite over Bush.
Im sick of people telling me to lower my standards.

[Name removed]

19. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Rowdyboy]

39. What a trashy, incorrect comparison...

Sad that some people are so hate-filled as to attempt to hijack this thread to throw shit at the next Vice President of the United States.

[maddezmom]

40. as someone said earlier

WTF, why the need to bash Clark...are you voting Kerry in November?

Proud Wes Clark Democrat who will be voting for Kerry in November.

[Carolina]

44. whose standards, whose desperation

:shrug: What the hell are you talking about.

Seems your standards, like your comment, are the only thing questionable here.

[SayitAintSo]

45. Because he is an independent thinker ( a puke rarity) and will

break ranks with Bush on principle - his principles. You may not agree with his position, but at least you know it's his deliberate thought Vs some ditto head BS. Also if you know ANYTHING about his time as a POW, spitting in the VC face, refusing to be let go early because of his fathers status - you HAVE to respect the man, regardless of your particular belief. Read a little ... you'd get it.

[BootinUp]

51. Totally uncalled for

Which candidate has raised the most money for Kerry? answer=Clark

Which major (top 3) candidate had the most liberal positions? answer=Clark

Whaich post in this thread, is totally unsubstantiated? answer=yours.

Sorry if the truth hurts ya, really I am.

[Crunchy Frog]

58. The irrational Clark haters

must be feeling very threatened right now. They must be convinced that Kerry is going to choose Clark as a running mate. I sincerely hope that they are right about that, although I guess it will mean that their loyalty as Democrats, (if they ever had it) will be sorely tested.

By the way, I wish the Clark attackers would at least bother to get their facts straight. Of all the candidates, I believe that Clark was the only one who even spoke about PNAC and openly opposed their agenda. Compared with Clark, most of the other candidates were PNAC lite.

[Scoopie]

54. Um... erm...

Let's see here.
Who was the first candidate to CONNECT the Bush Administration to the PNAC?
Oh, yeah... it was Gen. Wesley K. Clark.

You're full of it - but I'm not quite sure what "it" is.
Lower your standards my arse.
Geesch.

[Leilani]

56. Are you another military hater

like so many here?

Is that why you have to put Wes Clark, an honorable man down?

[Crunchy Frog]

59. If they're a military hater

I guess should be hating Kerry as well. For that matter, they should probably love Bush and his administration. Virtually all of them avoided ever seeing any military service, certainly any combat activity, and they have done more than anyone else in history to hurt our country's military.

[IranianDemocrat]

61. Most ridiculous comment of the night.

'Grats.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

70. You picked the wrong guy to trash.

[TimMooring]

18. No way

I have no problem with John McCain's character. It's his positions. The talk of him being on the dem ticket is some wiseguy's take on anyone but bush. i believe we can win with candidates from within the party. There's lots of good strategic choices like John Edwards.

[vern]

20. his character?

he took money from a savings and loan in the S&L scandal back in the early 90's...dirty money.

[TimMooring]

34. I didn't know that

He has the wrong position on nearly every issue that I care about. He's consistent in his support for bush but not on any number of bushes policies. The same applies to cheney - at least on the gay marriage issue. Kerry cannot let the flipflop label stick to him and I hope he'll point out the inconsistencies on their side - forcefully.

[charlie]

35. Keating Five

4 Democrats and McCain. He was utterly embarassed to have been caught out as the lone Repub in that affair.

[Kahuna]

21. Because he spoke out against the religious right is my guess...

For that one act, some people hold him as some kind of super hero. :eyes:

[Padraig18]

24. Beats the shit outta me. He's a shill for Bush, just like the rest.

:shrug:

[Waverley_Hills_Hiker]

25. Because hes real

Yeah, hes a Republican and true-blue conervative.

But theres ths realness thing going on with him.

And he doesnt appear to be a fundy homophobe like Bush, nor does he suck up to that crowd.

[charlie]

32. He only benefits from the contrast

to the sump his party has become. During the Reagan years, he was regarded as a rightwing knuckledragger, now he looks tame (like Bob Dole, who seems almost harmless, charming even. But ol' Bob's presence on the Ford ticket was a sop to the party's right back in the day. He was known as the Hatchet Man then).

[PfcHammer]

27. he could hand *, and most rethugs, their ass in a bar brawl n/t

[Crunchy Frog]

60. Well, he certainly didn't manage to do that

during the 2000 primaries did he? I think some people have developed exagerated notions about McCain's political strength and prowess.

[samsingh]

28. we want to be hopeful

we let ourselves be fooled by him.

[Dees]

29. John "Name, Rank, S/N & Date of Birth only" McCain

No use for him.

[formactv]

30. I heard him this morning on NPR

did he get a lobotomy?

[robbedvoter]

31. Cus the media calls him a "maverick" and only highlights

the rare occasions when he disagrees with W - his voting record is of course 10 times worse than Lieberman's, but the media loves him, and so do people who don't pay attention.
See : Powell

[Tatiana]

33. I certainly don't.

Certainly he's not as bad as, say, Bill Frist or Rick Santorum, but when push comes to shove, he's right in Bush's corner and Bush knows he can count on McCain to fall in line.

[In Sha Allah]

36. Birds of a feather.

The reason so many Democrats love John McCain is because so many of them identify with moderate Republicans. The situation is so bad that if Kerry did name McCain as Veep the Democrats would hail Kerry as a genius and dutifully vote for McCain 2012.

Before anybody flames me, look at this:

Briefing on Complaint Filed with IRS Against Commission on Presidential Debates

On C-span's website:

http://www.c-span.org/Search/basic.asp?BasicQueryText=open+debates&SortBy=date

Watch the damn video, and then try flaming me.

Better yet, instead of flaming me, FIX YOUR PARTY!

[boobooday]

38. He's somewhat reasonable

Compared to Bush.

http://www.wgoeshome.com

[BillZBubb]

41. If you had to rate Repugs, McCain would rank near the top.

But, he's still a Repug and wrong on virtually every issue.

He has more integrity than most Repugs. The Keating Five was no big deal and McCain and the FOUR Democrats took a bum rap for something all politicians were doing at the time. As a former POW, he's demonstrated his courage and patriotism. He's loyal within reasonable bounds, so he sticks with a Repug party that he knows has serious problems. He'll support the party's nominee, although he knows the guy is not up to the job. But even then, he'll still come out and contradict Bush* ads attacking Kerry's commitment to our defense. All in all, he has some admirable qualities.

Compared to virtually any national Democrat, though, he's not even in the running.

[charlie]

47. Bum rap?

Lincoln Savings was the grand champ of S&L meltdowns, incurring losses in the billions, and Keating left a huge wake of elderly retirees with their retirement eggs busted. Those five assholes were accomplices to the wreckage he caused, and us taxpayers paid for the cleanup.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

43. I don't understand the appeal at all

But I think that our celebrity culture has people so brainwashed that they "like" or "dislike" candidates solely on the basis of their TV images.

McCain comes across well on TV, so the less critical viewers "love" him.

The people who look at his actual positions usually do not.

[Zinfandel]

65. I don't either, for any republican pig.

[Count Dracula]

46. He doesn't get any appeal from me...

that's for damn sure. I wouldn't give that man even the time of day.

[DemLikr]

48. Beats me. When it really counts, McCain shills for Bush...

...and it's even more deranged than in most cases because of the way he was abused by the Bushites in the Republican 2000 primaries.

[mellowinman]

49. Many of us admire true Conservatism.

We don't agree with it, but we admire it. America needs the balance. I wouldn't want a "liberal America." We need checks and balances in this country, to keep each side from going too far.

I'm a liberal, but far lefties scare me just as much as the neocons.

I like McCain. I'd never vote for him, but I like him.

He's a guy you can disagree with, not a guy you have to hate.

(like BUSH)

Trust me, we NEED true Conservatives.

They're getting harder and harder to find.

[chaska]

50. The enemy of my enemy is my friend....

or so we make the mistake of believing, sometimes.

[robbedvoter]

52. Even if he constantly kisses your enemy's ass?

Whenever pulls his lips off for air, cheers in the audience!

[tabasco]

53. Damn good question. He's a repug moran.

He lost his backbone a long time ago.

[Leilani]

55. Cindy McCain had a stroke today

& is in the hospital.

When does the hate & vitriol end?

I am sure the Freepers are happy tonight; now you all can be also.

[mouse7]

57. Agree. Today isn't the day to pile on McCain.

There may be some legit points in this discussion, but today is not the day to be making them. Let his wife get out of intensive care before dumping on him.

[Sandpiper]

64. My Sympathies to McCain and I hope his wife recovers

But after his recent whitewash for Bush on Meet The Press, now is as appropriate a time as ever to criticize him.

[revcarol]

62. I don't.

Much to generous with my tax money to defense contractors.

And LOVES war, if it's a republican war.

[Kanary]

63. Can you say "DLC"? There's your "apologists"

We're supposed to go in the other direction

Kanary

[lojasmo]

66. Look, he's a repuke.....

But he's fairly honest. I admire him for that. It's rare enough, even among democratic politicians.

I'd say he's more honest about his intentions then most democratic politicians are. At least he has the balls to say that he votes the way he does because he supports his president in a time of crisis, or because he's a repug. Doesn't make up stories to explain his vote for the war, etc....There is no "boo hoo, the pResident tricked me"

Well, that's why I respect him....at least as much as I respect MOST politicians, certain exceptions aside.

Flame on.

[Loonman]

68. Because I agree with most of what he says

Not all that he says.

[OneTwentyoNine]

71. Had the GUTS to take on Boeing and the Pentagon.....

Like it or not his still a Repug and will carry water for Bush but...he sure as hell was on Boeing for that bail out BS tanker deal.

It was shady as shit from the get go with them hiring a former Pentagon person who knew what Airbus bid. The fact that the tankers aren't even what OUR military wants,they would be built to Italy specs because Boeing could crank those out RIGHT NOW.

I don't like all that McCain does but he's the ONLY one who stood up to the BS waste of billions in taxpayer money.

David