Free Republic

Social conservatives tolerated John McCain as the party's nominee, but never trusted him, and he now appears to be facing a serious primary from the right in Arizona next year. Chris Simcox, the founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and a prominent figure in the anti-immigration movement, is announcing today he's resigned from the group to run in the 2010 Senate primary. From a forthcoming release: "John McCain has failed miserably in his duty to secure this nation's borders and protect the people of Arizona from the escalating violence and lawlessness," Simcox said. "He has fought real efforts over...

Of all the claims in support of John McCain's bid for the White House, perhaps none is quite as grand as this. As he arrived in London today, the publishers of his new book insisted the Republican senator's family was descended from the Scottish king, Robert the Bruce. For a veteran war hero staking his presidential campaign on military credentials, an ancestral link to a warrior who overcame the English to reclaim Scottish independence in 1314 has obvious appeal. But according to experts, the story may be no more than that. Asked by the Guardian to investigate McCain's past, genealogists...

After being forced to respond to three separate incidents in recent weeks of conservatives alluding to Barack Obama's middle name, John McCain's campaign manager today sent a memo to top supporters urging them to stick to the campaign's preferred message -- and to avoid taking gratuitous shots at their Democratic rivals. "We expect that all supporters, surrogates and staff will hold themselves to similarly high standards when they are representing the campaign. To help guide you, please find talking points below."

... If there's a single thread that runs through the e-mails I receive from peevish Republicans, it's that none of the current candidates possesses the conservative purity of Ronald Reagan. One could almost get the idea that Dutch was betrayed by Pontius Pilate and crucified on Calvary. But that wasn't exactly the case. The fact of the matter is that Gov. Reagan gave Gov. Jerry Brown a run for his money – or should I say our money? – when it came to raising taxes here in California. But, in spite of the additional revenue, he was responsible in large...

WARNING TO CONSERVATIVES!!! When the AP quotes Open Borders moll Tamar Jacoby, Arlen Specter, RINO/Bushie/McCainite Charlie Black as saying McCain is "looking strong" or good on immigration" and no conservatives or anti-Invasion advocates or experts are quoted in the [following] story, you know the fix is in! McCain is on a major media effort to try to make conservatives like him enough to vote for him and he knows he's in deep trouble. So he's going to try to pull the wool over our eyes by saying he's going to get tough on the Border--if elected. What he WON'T discuss...

Arizona senator says GOP rhetoric 'not helpful' WASHINGTON - Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said Thursday he did not believe Democratic candidate John Kerry, a friend and Senate colleague, was weak on defense or would compromise national security if elected president. “This kind of rhetoric, I think, is not helpful in educating and helping the American people make a choice,” McCain said on “The Early Show” on CBS. “You know, it’s the most bitter and partisan campaign that I’ve ever observed. I think it’s because both parties are going to their bases rather than going to the middle. I regret it.”...

Ted Nugent: McCain has two battles he must win Sunday, February 17, 2008 Now that Mitt Romney has thrown in the towel and endorsed him, the Republican nominee for president will almost certainly be Sen. John McCain. Attempting residency at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. is surely tough enough without turning your friends into enemies. There are plenty of enemies on the other side who wear different political stripes altogether. McCain faces a distrustful, dissatisfied, frustrated, and in some cases, downright angry conservative base. Conservatives are not happy with McCain. He has not always carried the conservative torch on immigration, taxes, First...

McCain a 'True Conservative,' Bush Says Feb 10 09:36 AM US/Eastern WASHINGTON (AP) - John McCain is a "true conservative," President Bush says, although the presumptive Republican presidential nominee may have to work harder to convince other conservatives that he is one of their own. McCain "is very strong on national defense," Bush said in an interview taped for airing on "Fox News Sunday." "He is tough fiscally. He believes the tax cuts ought to be permanent. He is pro-life. His principles are sound and solid as far as I'm concerned." But when asked about criticism of McCain by conservative...

WASHINGTON (AP) — John McCain faces a dilemma on immigration as he works to persuade conservatives he's tough enough on the issue without erasing his historic appeal to Hispanic voters. Once a crusader for offering the nation's roughly 12 million undocumented immigrants a way to get legal status, McCain now says his first priority is fortifying U.S. borders. The metamorphosis reflects McCain's intensifying effort to consolidate his support among conservatives, who deride the Arizona senator's past proposals on immigration as offering amnesty to lawbreakers, and bitterly resent his work with Democrats, including Sen. Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, on the issue....

<p>For the second time in as many days, Sen. John McCain was forced to rebuke members of his own party for over-the-top attacks on Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama.</p>

John McCain couldn't handle the outstanding rebel-rousing introduction by Cincinnati conservative talk show host, Bill Cunningham the other day--a man the McCain Campaign had hired to introduce the Senator. Instead, Wussie McCain immediately "apologized" profusely to Obama for Cunningham's using Obama's full name over and over during the intro. This shows how "p.c." and how "wussie" John McCain is when it comes to worrying about how the left is going to perceive him. Instead of concentrating on gaining base support which he sorely needs and can't win without, he's playing to the left and saying to conservatives, "S**w you! I...

Senator John McRINO aka John McCain is seeking the conservative base to unite with him. Many of us haven't forgotten that he never united with us. Whether it be on his kneepads courting Ted Kennedy or spearheading the ramming of amnesty down our throats, we haven't forgotten. This election offers little or no choice. In the words of Billy Preston "Nothing from Nothing Leaves Nothing."

WASHINGTON - President Bush predicted Monday that voters will replace him with a Republican president who will "keep up the fight" in Iraq. "I'm confident we'll hold the White House in 2008," Bush told donors at the Republican Governors Association annual dinner, which raised a record $10.6 million for GOP gubernatorial candidates. "And I don't want the next Republican president to be lonely," Bush said. "And that is why we got to take the House, retake the Senate, and make sure our states are governed by Republican governors." The pep talk came in the midst of a presidential campaign that...

Feb 25 2008 MEMO TO CONSERVATIVES: THE FIGHT IS JUST BEGINNING by Richard A. Viguerie   The time has come for conservatives to move on, to shift priorities, and to work to elect conservatives at all levels now and in the years to come.     For too long, conservatives have done most of the work necessary to elect Republican candidates, but, once elected, most of those Republicans have ignored conservatives’ concerns or have opposed conservatives outright.   These Republicans have taunted us: “What are you going to do? Vote for the liberal Democrats? Calm down and grow up, and keep...

John McCain Praises Pro-illegal ProtestsSen. John McCain is praising the recent wave of pro-illegal immigration demonstrations, saying that if the protesters hang tough they will succeed in forcing Congress to liberalize immigration laws. "If such demonstrations continue, I think we will have a bill for the President to sign soon," the Arizona Republican told a New York City gathering on Friday sponsored by the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform. "The more debate, the more demonstrations, the more likely we will prevail," McCain added, in quotes picked up by the New York Daily News. The Irish group backs the McCain-Kennedy bill...

John McCain, the all-but presumptive Republican nominee, told conservative activists this afternoon that he cannot win the presidency without "dedicated conservatives." "I know I have a responsibility to unite the party," he said. He acknowledegd that he has had differences with many conservatives but said he hopes they will see that he has the record of a true conservative. "I am proud to be a conservative," McCain said. ... McCain spoke to the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington just hours after Mitt Romney used the same venue to announce he is suspending his presidential bid...

McCain spends the day before Super Tuesday in Romney's backyard, a poke in the eye that had more symbolic than strategic value.Feb. 5, 2008 | BOSTON -- There was no particularly good reason for John McCain to spend the morning before Super Tuesday here. Boston has been Mitt Romney's home for more than 30 years; he was governor for four of them. Polls show the state is probably out of McCain's reach. And with more than 20 states voting Tuesday -- some of them up for grabs -- hanging out on Romney's home turf would seem like a waste of...

Little more than three months after the anti-gun incumbent Mike DeWine lost the support of his conservative base and was tossed out of office, the Associated Press is reporting that Republican Senator John McCain has decided DeWine is the perfect man to lead his Presidential campaign in Ohio. They make quite a pair. McCain, who has favored outlawing inexpensive handguns (dubbed Saturday night specials by the anti-gun media), favored mandating safety locks on certain guns, and who once rallied Senate Republicans behind a Democratic measure requiring background checks at gun shows, is already on extremely shaky ground with skeptical gun...

With his presidential hopes tied to an administration whose Iraq policy he supports but cannot control, John McCain for the first time blamed Vice President Cheney for what McCain calls the "witch's brew" of a "terribly mishandled" war in which U.S. forces are on the verge of defeat. McCain also for the first time opened the door to the possibility of a U.S. troop pullback to the borders of Iraq should the president's planned troop surge fail. Although McCain had once lavished praise on the vice president, he said in an interview in his Senate office: "The president listened too...

With his presidential hopes tied to an administration whose Iraq policy he supports but cannot control, John McCain for the first time blamed Vice President Cheney for what McCain calls the "witch's brew" of a "terribly mishandled" war in which U.S. forces are on the verge of defeat. McCain also for the first time opened the door to the possibility of a U.S. troop pullback to the borders of Iraq should the president's planned troop surge fail. Although McCain had once lavished praise on the vice president, he said in an interview in his Senate office: "The president listened too...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 11 (UPI) -- A former Republican worker in Washington claims former Rep. Mark Foley tried to gain entrance to the pages' dormitory while drunk, ABC News reports. The network said the testimony will be given to the House ethics committee on Thursday by Kirk Fordham, Foley's former chief of staff. A source said Fordham will testify he was told by House clerk Jeff Trandahl that Foley had been stopped by security staff a few years ago, and that Fordham said he notified the office of House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill. Foley resigned when reports emerged he had been...

Senator John McCain (R - Az.) “Senator Chafee is one of the most fiscally responsible members of the U.S. Senate,” said U.S. Senator John McCain. “He wants to cut excess government spending, and he is willing to make the tough decisions to eliminate the federal deficit. Senator Chafee has been a leader on environmental issues, he’s working to raise fuel efficiency standards and make America energy independent, and he’s an honest advocate for his state. He is an important member of the Senate and we need him to keep representing the people of Rhode Island in Washington.” ------------------------------------------------ Senator Elizabeth...

WASHINGTON — Conservative activists are heaping criticism on Sen. John McCain for fighting President Bush over proposed rules for the interrogation of terrorism suspects, a dispute that has reopened long-standing divisions between the maverick Republican lawmaker and his party's establishment. The attack from the right, which coalesced over the weekend, could undercut McCain's effort to woo Bush backers and other party regulars for an anticipated 2008 presidential bid. His position on terrorism prisoners has fueled critics' skepticism about McCain's conservative credentials. "This very definitely is going to put a chilling effect on the tremendous strides he has made in the...

In the early 1960's, Johnny Carson hosted an afternoon TV show called "Who Do You Trust?'' The title was grammatically incorrect, but I will use it anyway to pose a question regarding the current fuss over the Geneva Conventions: When it comes to George Bush and John McCain, who -- or whom -- do you trust? This is about as dumb a question as the Groucho Marx standard from "You Bet Your Life," yet another old TV show: Who's buried in Grant's Tomb? The contest, after all, is between a president who has repeatedly broken faith with the American people...

"For Senator McCain, This Is Personal" -Snip- Look, folks, there is no question here that this is being seen as a political opportunity. Somebody raised the possibility last week, and I want to put it out there again because I did last week, too, but put it out there that there are those who are theorizing -- you know people in politics, analysts and pollsters and so forth who sit around and, you know, like global warming experts, try to predict the future and analyze why certain people are doing certain things. And there's a segment of the political analyst...

Richard Miniter has an interesting article at Opinion Journal today, explaining that among the things that moved House Armed Services Chairman Duncan Hunter toward the president's proposal on military commissions and away from the McCain/Graham/Warner proposal which is more modeled on the Uniform Code of Military Justice is the outrage that the UCMJ would require us to give Miranda warnings at the moment of battlefield capture for an al Qaeda terrorist. This really demonstrates how irresponsible the passage and signing of the 2005 McCain Amendment was. I note in fairness that I believe Sen. Graham — who I have criticized...

McCain’s Dubious High Ground John McCain and his band of Republican rebels defying President Bush on the issue of interrogation have a strange attachment to confused argumentation. By Rich Lowry For people supposedly occupying the moral high ground, John McCain and his band of Republican rebels defying President Bush on the issue of interrogation have a strange attachment to confused argumentation. They maintain that the United States can’t define more precisely its obligations for the treatment of unlawful combatants under the vague language of Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions to allow the tough interrogations of terrorists, as Bush...

MCCAIN STATEMENT ON WAR IN IRAQ For Immediate Release Friday, Aug 25, 2006 Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator John McCain released the following statement on the war in Iraq: “I agreed with the President’s difficult decision to go to war in Iraq. I remain fully supportive of his determination not to leave Iraq until the freely elected government of that country and its armed forces are able to defend their country from foreign and domestic enemies intent on thwarting the will of the Iraqi people to create a civil society in which the rights and security of all Iraqis...

John McCain has been President Bush's indispensable political ally on the war in Iraq. So what was the Arizona senator and top-shelf 2008 presidential contender up to yesterday in Ohio when he unloaded on the Bush Administration's handling of the war in a speech that, with a few tweaks, could have been delivered by an anti-war Democrat? "I think one of the biggest mistakes we made was underestimating the size of the task and the sacrifices that would be required," McCain said. "Stuff happens, mission accomplished, last throes, a few dead-enders," he went on, citing some of the, ah, less-than-accurate...

Senator McCain's unusually blunt attack on the Bush administration yesterday, including a claim that President Bush and other top officials led Americans to believe that the Iraq war would be "some kind of day at the beach," is fueling suspicions that the Arizona senator and potential 2008 presidential candidate is seeking to straddle rival foreign policy camps in the Republican Party.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Republican U.S. Sen. John McCain, who has been a staunch defender of the war in Iraq, said Tuesday that the sacrifices required were underestimated and Americans were misled into believing the conflict would be "some kind of day at the beach." McCain, who has said the U.S. military should have gone into Iraq despite questions raised later about intelligence, said Americans feel frustrated because they had no idea of the toll the war would take. "I think one of the biggest mistakes we made was underestimating the size of the task and the sacrifices that would be...

Americans need to have a national discussion about immigration issues, but first they have to refine their vocabulary on the topic, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said Thursday in Scottsdale. “I’ve seen kind of an ugly side to this debate,” he told about 300 people at the Mayor and City Council Breakfast meeting. In particular, McCain is troubled by the use of the terms “illegal alien” and “amnesty.” “Illegal alien” suggests that the 11 million to 12 million border crossers in the United States came from another planet, he said. He prefers the term “illegal immigrant.” “These are human beings, who...

1. Democrats Campaign to Lock up Latino Vote 2. McCain Denies Rightward Shift 3. China and Saudi Arabia Forge Stronger Ties 4. Weld and D'Amato Put Spin on Their Feud 5. Club for Growth Endorses Ken Blackwell 6. Al Gore Gets Campaign Manager 7. We Heard: Mel Martinez, Laura Bush Bio 1. Democrats Campaign to Lock up Latino Vote Democratic strategists are seeking to turn the Hispanic community's discontent over immigration policy into an opportunity to win over Latino voters. The activists believe the recent pro-immigration rallies - which are a reaction to the Senate's failure to pass a guest-worker...

ST. PAUL - A Republican state representative who worked for Tim Pawlenty's 2002 gubernatorial campaign has purchased the online domain name "mccain-pawlenty.com," with his eyes trained not on Pawlenty's re-election bid this year but on 2008. Rep. Pat Garofalo, R-Farmington, said he plunked down the $12 on his own, to foil Internet "squatters" who buy up domain names that may be valuable in the future. "I wasn't asked to do it, I wasn't told to do it," he said Friday. But it comes in a week where Pawlenty and Sen. John McCain, the Arizona Republican who's a leading 2008 presidential...

<p>They are two of America's free, unregulated voices of political activism but a gathering storm of Washington regulation threatens to stifle them forever.</p> <p>Grass-roots activists and Internet bloggers, who largely escaped the restrictions of the 2002 McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform act, are the targets of a looming, two-pronged government assault which aims to lasso and corral the last wild mustangs on the political range.</p>

The political landscape may be shifting in ways that would make it easier for Sen. John McCain of Arizona to win the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. He's among several potential candidates courting Southern and Midwest Republicans this weekend in Memphis, Tenn., in the first chance that party insiders have had to look at several would-be nominees in one place. Conventional wisdom — that McCain could win the general election but not the Republican nomination because conservatives oppose him — may be changing. A convergence of three new forces could be reshaping the landscape just as Republicans begin deciding who will...

DAVOS, Switzerland -- Interrogation methods at the U.S. prison camp in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, are still a concern, Sen. John McCain said Friday, calling on authorities to process the cases of prisoners held for as long as four years without charge. Some 500 men accused of links to Afghanistan's ousted Taliban regime or the al-Qaida terror network continue to be held at the prison camp. Only a handful of the prisoners have been charged. ''What I was concerned about and continue to be concerned about is interrogation methods,'' McCain said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum. ''What is...

Some on the morning talk shows suggested that McCain is the natural successor to Bush for his committment to the war, and that Bush will "pass the baton" to him. My question is: if Bush endorses McCain will you think aboout voting for him? Personally I don't care for McCain for a number of reasons, but if I think he will continue W's legacy, I might reconsider. What do you think?

With the war in Iraq, higher energy costs and breakneck government spending, the GOP faces a tough round of congressional elections in 2006 unless things change, two key Republican senators warned during a campaign appearance. "I think if this were not an odd-numbered year, we would have great difficulties," said U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona. McCain and fellow-Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina were interviewed by The Associated Press when they stopped here Sunday night to campaign for Republican state Attorney General Henry McMaster. "But we can recover," McCain said. "Reagan recovered. Clinton recovered. We can recover."...

It was only one year ago that Newsweek ran its post-mortem on the 2004 Presidential election, culling more than a year’s worth of reporting that the magazine had pledged to keep secret until the final votes were cast. Thanks to that pledge of secrecy, both candidates offered Newsweek reporters unprecedented access to their campaigns, allowing them to observe, record, and witness the event for the history books. The resulting narrative was well worth their effort. The most remarkable section, however, was the validation of a long-standing rumor of the 2004 campaign: Senator John Kerry did, in fact, offer Senator John...

Senator John McCain on Thursday called for an immediate increase of 10,000 troops in Iraq, and said the “stakes are higher than they were in Vietnam” for US foreign policy. Conceding that there was an “undeniable sense that things are slipping” in Iraq, Mr McCain said “we need a renewed effort to win the home front. Without it we will lose this war as soundly as if we had lost on the battlefield...We must get Iraq right, as American stakes in the conflict are enormous”. Senator John Kerry has laid out an alternative strategy that would enable the US to...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Anyone doubting the effects of human activity on global climate change should talk to the people it affects in Alaska and the Yukon, U.S. Sen. John McCain said Wednesday.

McCain-Kennedy Amnesty Bill Opens the Border by James R. Edwards, Jr. Posted Jul 12, 2005> At a time of sustained, mass immigration, a glut of unskilled foreign workers, unrelenting illegal immigration and fiscal overload, Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., propose to flood America with more of the same. Their recently introduced legislation, S. 1033, creates two supposedly temporary work visas. Those programs are vehicles to legalize all 10-12 million illegal aliens. The H5A visa is for unskilled foreigners who can’t get here on any other unskilled work visas, such as H2A for agricultural work. The 3-year H5A...

McCain: I 'Absolutely' Want to Be President Sen. John McCain says he "absolutely” wants to be president – but hasn’t yet decided if he’ll run in 2008. In a wide-ranging interview in the June edition of Men's Journal magazine, the Arizona Republican also reveals: John Kerry "discussed” the possibility of McCain running as his vice presidential candidate. U.S. troops could be in Iraq for another 50 years. Colin Powell will never run for office. Dan Rather was definitely fired over the Rathergate flap. In the interview, McCain – who has had prostate surgery and treatment for melanoma – said his...

Gen. Richard B. Myers yesterday condemned as "absolutely irresponsible" an Amnesty International report that compared prisoner treatment at Guantanamo Bay to the Soviet gulag, adding that 100 out of 68,000 detainees held in the war against terrorism were abused. Amnesty International also suggested that foreign governments investigate senior U.S. officials involved in "torture scandals" and arrest and question Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, former CIA Director William Tenet, and Vice President Dick Cheney. "I think it's irresponsible. I think it's absolutely irresponsible," Gen. Myers told "Fox News Sunday." We've had 100 cases of substantiated abuse and there are 100 individuals...

McCain Urging Accord on Bolton and Secret Documents By DOUGLAS JEHL and CARL HULSE WASHINGTON, May 27 - One of John R. Bolton's leading Republican backers, Senator John McCain of Arizona, signaled his support on Friday for a compromise in which the White House might allow Senate leaders access to highly classified documents in return for a final vote early next month on Mr. Bolton's nomination as United Nations ambassador. The conciliatory signal from Mr. McCain came as Senate leaders traded blame over who was responsible for the miscalculation that led to Mr. Bolton's nomination being blocked Thursday. But the...

In spite of McCain's alleged disagreement with the sodomite group Log Cabin Republicans, he was happy to meet with their leadership and accept their $40,000 contribution to his campaign. McCain's spinmeister Dan Schnur spins it this way, "Like any other other prospective donor, a member of the Log Cabin club would probably donate to him on issues that were important to them." But is that really what is going on? The gay agenda has never been campaign finance reform, banning abortion, a balanced budget, state's rights, a firm hand in foreign affairs, a strong military (though they probably like the...

Arizona Senator John McCain wasn't just speaking for himself last week when he rejected the proposed Federal Marriage Amendment. Senator McCain has received money in the current campaign cycle from the Republican Unity Coalition (RUC), a powerful homosexual advocacy organization. McCain accepted $1,000 for the political action committee of the Republican Unity Coalition. During his address to the Senate last week, McCain touted the official RUC position on the Federal Marriage amendment...

WASHINGTON (Hollywood Reporter) - Lawmakers' pique over the networks' incredible shrinking news hole is prompting legislation that will both shorten the time broadcasters have between license renewals and require full commission review of 5% of all licenses. The legislation was introduced by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on Tuesday after the release of a report by the Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California found evening TV newscasts contained little coverage of local political campaigns last year. It also would require broadcasters to post on their Internet sites information detailing their commitment to local public-affairs programming, and it calls...

WASHINGTON — Sen. John McCain isn't running for president — yet. The wildly popular Republican senator yesterday said it's entirely too early to know if he'll run for the White House in 2008 — although "I do not foreclose the option." McCain, who would be 71 years old during a 2008 presidential run, said, "The best thing I can do is help the president with his agenda." McCain ticked off winning the war on terror and bringing the budget under control as the top issues — both Bush administration priorities that would polish McCain's already-dazzling national image should he...