Free Republic

Near the top of my “people I could do without hearing from or about” is Meghan McCain, the twentysomething daughter of Sen. John McCain. She is out plugging her book, which I don’t intend to read. If her interview with ABC is any guide, a good deal of the book is devoted to trashing Sarah Palin. She proclaims, based on her wealth of political experience and long years in office, that Palin’s selection was on the ”line between genius and insanity.” That’s a fairly rotten thing to say about one’s father. After all, Palin was his choice. Her gripe seems...

The self-selected leader of the hip, young, “progressive” wing of the Republican Party sat down with George Stephanopoulos this morning to share some details from her new book, Dirty Sexy Politics. Video after the jump. Among Meggie Mac’s shocking revelations: I campaigned by myself. I mean, I like shook hands, I went to different headquarters, and I loved it! It was so much fun. After reading an excerpt from Dirty Sexy Politics, it seems clear that writing the book is something else she did all by herself. A few short selections: On freedom: Freedom is addictive. Once you’ve tasted it,...

John McCain shocked voters and pundits alike by picking Sarah Palin as a running mate in 2008, and McCain's daughter reveals the choice caused plenty of behind-the-scenes drama too. In her new book "Dirty Sexy Politics," Meghan McCain says Palin brought "stress, drama, complications, panic and loads of uncertainty" to the campaign. "She was not just an overnight success or even a political Cinderella story," McCain writes in an excerpt obtained by ABC News. "She was a sudden, freakishly huge, full-fledged phenomenon. It seemed too much. And it seemed too easy." Speaking out about the former Alaska Gov. for the...

PHOENIX (AP) — John McCain's daughter says in a new book released Tuesday that Sarah Palin brought drama, stress and uncertainty to her father's failed bid for the presidency in 2008, but she doesn't blame the vice presidential nominee for losing the race. (snip) In her book, released by Hyperion, Meghan McCain shows an itch to adopt her father's persona as a "maverick" delivering "straight talk."She calls religious conservatives the "intolerant far right," evoking her father's famous remark a decade ago that GOP religious leaders were "agents of intolerance." The elder McCain has since backed off from those statements. (snip)...

It's McCain vs. McCain. As Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) makes the rounds on television, standing up for the Arizona immigration law that has sparked protests and outrage nationwide, his daughter calls it "a license to discriminate." "Let me say up-front that I do not support the bill that was signed by Governor Jan Brewer," Meghan McCain wrote in her Daily Beast blog on Wednesday. "I believe it gives the state police a license to discriminate, and also, in many ways, violates the civil rights of Arizona residents." Sen. McCain, however, feels the law will not become corrupted, as his daughter...

Last month I was out shopping with my mother in Phoenix, when a man came up to her and yelled, “Your husband needs to be more conservative!” before storming off. Believe it or not, nothing like this has ever really happened to me before. Sure, there have been times when I’ve been at rallies or speeches and people have made rude comments—that comes with the territory when you are in a public family—but this particular incident felt really shocking and disappointing. It was a direct slap in the face—a sign of how high the level of rancor has gotten that...

Almost instantly after becoming the Tea Party’s next great hope, the Kentucky Senate nominee imploded on the national stage. Meghan McCain on why Paul is a cautionary tale for Republicans.I’ve been intrigued by Ron Paul and his so-called revolution ever since the Texas renegade began making waves on the presidential trail in 2008—and his supporters began crashing nearly every major Republican event since he dropped out of that race. I can’t help but interpret the congressman’s cult-like, libertarian-leaning following as yet another indicator of a growing resentment of all people incumbent and in power in Washington. So, almost by default,...

Republican presidential candidate John McCain's daughter Meghan is just 23-years-old, but she's had her own political evolution. "I almost registered as a Democrat to be rebellious, but I registered as an Independent instead," she tells Glamour in its September issue. "Then my dad bragged about it, so it backfired." Meghan, a self-described "total daddy's girl," registered as a Republican as a Father's Day gift last month. Though she's been crossing the country by bus to help the campaign, she takes issue with parts of the GOP platform. "I don't relate to the hard right," she admits. "I think it's time...

The Daily Beast has gotten a preview of the cover of Meghan McCain's upcoming book, "Dirty Sexy Politics." That's it at right -- although the final version won't have a red Daily Beast logo in the corner. McCain, a blogger and columnist for The Daily Beast, is a lifelong Republican and the daughter of former Republican Presidential candidate John McCain. McCain's publisher, Hyperion, describes her as "extremely mediagenic," which is a euphemism for -- what, exactly? She's a pretty blonde? That if she Tweets a picture of herself in pajamas some people will get hot and bothered? Could they mean...

Meghan McCain watches the controversial new series Huge, about a fat camp for teenagers, and finds it to be provocative, funny, and important. There has been a lot of buzz recently about the new ABC Family show Huge, garnering it some mixed reviews and feedback. For those of you unfamiliar with Huge, the second episode of which aired Monday night, it is about characters at weight-loss camp, and stars Hairspray’s Nikki Blonsky and Hayley Hasselhoff (daughter of David). The show was created by Savannah Dooley and her mother, Winnie Holzman, of My So-Called Life fame. I should start by saying...

By today’s standards, Carly Fiorina and Meg Whitman’s recent scandals—over a hair joke and a three-year-old workplace incident—were pretty tame. But because both are women and Republicans, a media firestorm was inevitable.I love women in politics. Even if our political ideology diverges, I respect any woman who goes into what is still, depressingly, a man’s world. Any woman willing to put up with the inevitable sexism that correlates with seeking political office deserves to be admired on some level, because she is helping to continue to break that glass ceiling. And if a woman running for office and I have...

The president may say he’s “furious” about the spill, but he sure doesn’t show it—and he’s managed to hang out with Paul McCartney and Kelly Clarkson in the meantime. Would the media have let Bush off so easy?BY MEGHAN MCCAINI want, just for a second, to pretend that there is a Republican president in office right now. It doesn’t matter which Republican—George W. Bush, my father, Mitt Romney. Any Republican.As we push Day 50 of this oil spill, I find myself questioning why it has taken so long for the mainstream media, aside from James Carville and Chris Matthews, to...

(snip) Her mission? To “redefine” Republicanism, to make room in the party for diverse viewpoints and ideological differences. “I’m saying make room for all Republicans,” she said. “Not tomorrow. Today….We evolve or we die.” (snip) For someone who grew up in a house with elephant wallpaper in the bathroom, McCain took a circuitous route to Republicanism, registering as an independent voter at age 18 and even voting for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004. But “sometimes love sneaks up on you in weird ways,” McCain explained, noting that her experience on the campaign trail changed her mind, leading her...

Meghan Goes to College Malcolm A. Kline, March 30, 2010 We have devoted ample space to the paucity of Republicans welcomed in academia. What is almost as instructive is a look at the representatives of the Grand Old Party who are embraced in academe. Consider Meghan McCain’s recent appearance at George Washington University. “Meghan McCain voiced her support for marriage equality in a speech at the Jack Morton Auditorium Thursday night, calling the gay rights movement ‘this generation’s civil rights movement’ and urging like-minded ‘progressive Republicans’ to start speaking out,” Madeleine Morgenstern reported in the GW Hatchet Online on March...

Republican Sen. John McCain's daughter Meghan is speaking out against Arizona's new immigration law, taking a different stance than her father. In a column published at The Daily Beast, Meghan McCain, who often tries to position herself a spokesperson of sorts for young Republicans, called the new law "seriously flawed" and "essentially a license to pull someone over for being Hispanic." The new law compels police officers to question a person about his or her immigration status if there is "reasonable suspicion" that person may be in the country illegally. It would also make it a crime under state law...

My home state’s new immigration law may be seriously flawed, but it’s trying to solve a serious problem. Although I live in New York City, I still consider Arizona, where I was born and raised, to be my home. So for the past week, when it seems that my entire state came under fire from the national media because of its controversial new immigration law, I’ve found myself very protective of Arizonans, as I try to reconcile not only the politics but the emotions behind that law. Let me say upfront that I do not support the bill that was...

Seeing my father reunited with Sarah Palin this weekend reminded voters of what might have been and presented an energizing glimpse of the future of conservative politics. My father formally kicked off his Senate reelection seat this weekend, and once again Sarah Palin was by his side. Although I did make it home, unfortunately I couldn’t get back in time for the rally in Tucson because of a previously scheduled speech in Washington. Soon after I landed, I was immediately swept back into to the 2008 campaign fever, which for the most part feels like a lifetime ago. Fresh off...

Meghan McCain spoke to students at the George Washington University on Thursday as Young America’s Foundation protesters criticized her stance on gay marriage and counter-protesters showed their support for the daughter of Arizona Senator and former presidential candidate John McCain. Meghan McCain, who calls herself a “progressive Republican,” implored Republicans to “stop being so stubborn and closed-minded.” Throughout the night, McCain was critical of right-wing pundits, telling the audience, “I’m not Ann Coulter, I’m not Glenn Beck … I’m not trying to get my own show on Fox … I’m adamantly against hate-mongering.”There is “no place for the nasty Laura...

Sen. John McCain's daughter Meghan McCain, who has crafted an image for herself as a voice for young Republicans, took on Sarah Palin and the Tea Party movement on ABC's "The View" on Monday. --snip-- McCain also took a shot at the Tea Party convention, where Palin was the keynote speaker last weekend. The convention also featured former Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.), who said in his speech, "People who could not spell the word vote or say it in English put a committed socialist ideologue in the White House -- name is Barack Hussein Obama." Tancredo added, "Thank God John...

Meghan McCain’s scheduled GW appearance is the latest to fall victim to “Snowmageddon.” McCain’s speech at the Jack Morton Auditorium Tuesday night has been postponed due to the “blizzard-like conditions” predicted this week for the D.C. area, one of the event’s sponsors said Monday night. The event will be rescheduled later this semester, according to a press release from the Graduate School of Political Management Student Association. It did not offer details about honoring tickets already distributed for Feb. 9th. McCain is the daughter of former Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain. Her appearance sparked controversy last month when the...