Straight Talk from McCainI'm embarrassed to admit that I missed the opportunity to participate in a blogger conference call with Senator John McCain because of email problems (I have about 1400 unanswered emails from the last week or so due to extreme time constraints on some business transactions), and have not sifted through all the V1agra and C1alis offers.
Granite Grok says:
Having had a chance now to meet and engage in firsthand conversations with Senator McCain is certainly eroding some of the distrust I've long held for him, politically. There's no question you know that you're speaking with a genuine American hero and icon. I stand in awe and appreciation for what he sacrificed for our Country some thirty years ago. What is even more compelling in the present, however, is that he is so much more than just that. I find myself warming up to the notion of a President McCain, if it turns out that way. I'm convinced he'd do right by America. Beyond that, given the present state of mind of Americans, it's my belief he is on the short list of Republicans that actually stands a chance at winning in '08 at all...
David All Group has
a partial transcript:
:26 Skip Murphy from GraniteGrok… Question about Iran.
:27 McCain: I hope that our pro-Israel friends understand. This is a radical group of very dangerous people. If they required nuclear weapons they would handle them recklessly. They’ve gotta understand that their actions…
:29 Murphy follow-up: Does sending somebody in to talk, will that really help?
:29 McCain: First of all, it wouldn’t be a negotiation. It would be a message from me as POTUS telling them what would happen. I would do it quietly. Don’t get me wrong… I’m not saying we’re going to war, I’m saying that we will not allow Iran to destroy Israel.
James Joyner of
Outside the Beltway:
Overall, McCain seemed very chipper and actually extended the call a couple of times when the facilitator, Patrick Hynes, was trying to get him off to other appointments. He clearly enjoys bandying with people, including many who opposed him. Indeed, this is the first conference call with a major politician I’ve been on where people from the other party were invited to participate. He’s got a weird sense of humor, calling some people “jerks” and the like, but he made a good impression on the group, I think.
Let's remember that McCain charmed the pants off the media in 2000; if he can do the same to the bloggers over the next year, we could be looking at our 44th president:
Labels: John McCain
