Posted on 02/17/2010 6:21:39 AM PST by rabscuttle385
The conversation ranged widely.
Topics included job creation, helping Main Street and not Wall Street, overcoming congressional gridlock and reminding residents that he's still the same maverick politician he has been for nearly 24 years.
U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., was in Flagstaff Tuesday on the heels of former U.S. Rep. J.D. Hayworth's announcement to run against McCain in the Republican primary in August. He sat down with the Arizona Daily Sun editorial board before giving remarks at the Coconino County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Radisson Woodlands Hotel.
During the 75-minute question-and-answer session, he reiterated that his positions haven't changed:
He's still a fiscal conservative who opposes "earmarks" or allocations to pet projects that don't go through a competitive process.
He still believes in the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the country's dependence on foreign oil, but that it will require nuclear power to help accomplish it.
He still believes in immigration reform, but it has to include tighter border security up front.
NO BANK TOO BIG TO FAIL
McCain started by saying that Arizona's economy is hurting the worst it has in its history. Jobs are scarce. The housing market is in a tailspin.
While in Flagstaff recently, McCain said he was approached by a local appliance store owner who said that after years of having a good credit line with his bank, the bank took it away.
"Our economy may be recovering in some sense," McCain said. "But you can't convince Main Street of that."
Although he voted for the TARP bank bailout package -- primarily because he thought it would help the housing industry -- McCain said giving money to prop up big banks too big to fail was a mistake.
Instead of lending out the money, the banks used it to shore up their capital reserves while continuing to make large profits and pay big bonuses.
"A lot of people are mad as hell about it, and I don't blame them," McCain said.
Homes went into foreclosure when all it would have taken was a program like the one the federal government instituted during the Great Depression designed to keep people in their homes and pay mortgages they could afford until their financial situations improved.
And stimulus money sent to the states wasn't to create jobs, but rather to save jobs. The biggest job generators -- small business -- would have been able to help the economy with tax credits and decreases in taxes.
BLAME DEMS FOR GRIDLOCK
Editorial board members wanted to know what McCain, as a senior member of the Senate, could do to break the gridlock crippling Congress on major issues like health care.
Acknowledging that major issues are not going to be resolved in the short term, McCain said that the Democratic majority have made "disgraceful" deals involving earmark projects and favorable treatment in the health care reform bill that have been deal-breakers.
Face-to-face negotiations where concessions are made to reach consensus no longer happen, McCain said. As a result, he added, 60 percent of the American public recently polled want Congress to start over on health care reform.
McCain said he is a proponent of reducing greenhouse gas emissions through the use of more nuclear power and recycling nuclear fuel, but the Democrats don't want to discuss the issue. And the multibillion-dollar Yucca Mountain nuclear storage facility has been closed down because of the influence of Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nevada.
IMMIGRATION REFORM
To keep drug violence in Mexico from spilling into Arizona, McCain stressed the United States must secure its borders.
By doing so, the flow of illegal immigrants coming into the country would slow. He added that one "silver lining" to the recession is that the scarcity of jobs has led to many undocumented immigrants going back to their country of origin.
McCain said that a legal, temporary worker program, where people from other countries can come to the U.S. and work for a year before returning home, needs to be developed. And comprehensive immigration reform needs to be addressed by Congress.
Other matters discussed:
-- On reinstating a draft: McCain said that because the military in the U.S. is all volunteer, highly professional, highly equipped and trained, reinstituting a draft of short-term service wouldn't be a good fit.
-- Rio de Flag flood-control project: McCain said he is attempting to have the project formally authorized by the Army Corps of Engineers, thus guaranteeing funding until it is completed rather than the uncertainty of annual earmarked appropriations.
-- International issues: McCain said he supports the offensive currently under way in Afghanistan to rid the entrenched Taliban fighters. He acknowledged casualties will likely be high initially, but the country can't be allowed to serve as a base for attacks against the U.S.
McCain heads to Yuma today to speak at another Lincoln Day Dinner.
Larry Hendricks can be reached at 556-2262 or lhendricks@azdailysun.com.
Rubbish. Answer the point and be realistic.
Bill Bennett is once again supporting McLame in the primary. He claims he doesn’t get involved at the primary level, but he’s making an exception because McLame is so much better than JD. He supported McLame in the presidential primary, too. Bennett, the neo-con, has never impressed me all that much.
Ten percent reported unemployment, 16 percent actual unemployment, and this doofus thinks we need a guest worker program? We should be revoking H1-B and H2-B visas at this point, not expanding immigration meant solely to fill jobs with foreign workers.
I would wager that mcnasty actually voted for the kenyan. I hope JD smokes his leftist arse!
LLS
“Ten percent reported unemployment, 16 percent actual unemployment, and this doofus thinks we need a guest worker program? We should be revoking H1-B and H2-B visas at this point”
Amen!
“She’s not campaigning for him, she just endorsed the man whose running mate she was on the last presidential ticket.”
Might want to check you facts.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/01/mccain-palin-will-campaign-tog.html
If she does much of this, she will definitely damage herself and her political future.
“Sen. John McCain announced Wednesday”
yeah let’s see if that actually happens.
I guess we can engage in a little speculation, now that Juan has secured Sarah’s support in his reelection bid. Who will Juan support in the Republican presidental primaries which will begin about a year from now???
Could this be a hint?
Is loyalty a two way street, or just a one way street for all those who view loyalty as a perfectly acceptable explanation for Sarah’s endorsement of Juan? (Of course, I’m assuming Juan doesn’t decide to take another shot himself.)
“likely a rally, according to McCain spokeswoman Brooke Buchanan”
clearly Mcnasty trying to back Sarah into a corner. No one has heard a peep from her about this. Get a clue.
Yeah let's. These planned events are being mentioned often, and have been mentioned by Sarah. Are you saying Sarah might not keep her word?
Go JD defeat the Rino!
“Are you saying Sarah might not keep her word?”
You’re no different from the media. Screw them if ‘A’, & screw them equally if ‘B’.
Hey Sarah McPalin, how’s that support of progressive fascist John McCain going for you? */end sarcasm
Two-faced politicians expose themselves to We The People as being out for themselves and their political careers first; their country comes second.
We The People “must” insist that those we support as our representatives in government have to state publicly and do what is right for the country and our future as a free people. The MSM can go to Hades if they don’t like the truth and if they don’t want to promote what is right for our country and our freedom.
Lol, so you are predicting that Sarah will not show for the McCain fund raiser in Phoenix, or any other events for McCain?
A) She IS campaigning for him.
B) No matter what Palin does, she's attacked by the MSM. Such is the hatred the Left has for her.
C) "Bucketloads of ammunition" against Palin? So what? Palin is not running for anything. Now I'll say it in caps: PALIN IS NOT RUNNING FOR ANYTHING! But McCain is! And I refuse to excuse or rationalize away the reasons for anyone who supports his candidacy. McCain must go!
“Two-faced politicians expose themselves to We The People as being out for themselves and their political careers first; their country comes second.”
Precisely what Palin is doing.
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