Did McCain Lie in 2001, Or is He Lying Now?
John McCain is fighting a claim by Arianna Huffington that McCain admitted he did not vote for Bush in 2000. Instead of using that as a sign of his good judgement, McCain’s people are calling Huffington a liar. Other witnesses to McCain’s statement are coming forward. Good question — Did McCain also call Bush “dumb as a post?”
This week’s big scandal for McCain centers around the claim by Arianna Huffington that McCain did not vote for President Bush in 2000. For most of us, that would be a badge of honor, a sign we had marvelously good judgement. But John McCain’s people are claiming Arianna is making it up. She’s making it up that at a party they both attended at Candice Bergen’s house in 2001 McCain, all full of himself, criticized George Bush quite publicly and then stated, loudly, that he did not vote for Bush. Yes, McCain’s people look at that detailed scenario and say it simply didn’t happen.
Indeed, according to the New York Times, McCain’s people are quite dismissive of Ms. Huffington. Here’s their words from the New York Times, along with the accounts of two others who heard McCain at the Bergen Dinner say he did not vote for George Bush:
The McCain campaign swiftly quashed the account and said Ms. Huffington had a book to promote and would make anything up.
“She’s a flake and a poser and an attention-seeking diva,” Mark Salter, one of Mr. McCain’s closest aides, told The Washington Post.
Now two other guests at the same dinner, given by the actress Candice Bergen, at her home in Beverly Hills, say they heard much the same thing as Ms. Huffington. Both of them, the former “West Wing” actors Bradley Whitford and Richard Schiff, were asked by Ms. Huffington to speak to The New York Times. Mr. Whitford said he would be supporting the Democratic nominee and had donated to Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama; Mr. Schiff is supporting Mr. Obama.
Mr. Whitford, who played Josh Lyman, the deputy White House chief of staff on the NBC series, said in a telephone interview on Thursday that he was sitting across from Mr. McCain and next to Ms. Huffington at the small dinner and that he was startled to hear the senator sharply criticize Mr. Bush. The senator has long blamed the Bush campaign for smear tactics against his family in the 2000 South Carolina primary, but by the end of the campaign Mr. McCain was publicly supporting his rival.
“McCain was just sort of going off on how much he disliked Bush and the horrible things that the Bush campaign had done to his family in South Carolina, and his exasperation with Bush about his ridiculous tax cuts and he really wanted to talk to him about it, but he said the guy doesn’t have the concentration, and you talk for 10 minutes and then the guy wants to talk about baseball,” Mr. Whitford said.
Another guest then asked Mr. McCain, Mr. Whitford recalled, whether he had voted for Mr. Bush. “And he put his finger in front of his mouth and mouthed, ‘No way,’ ” Mr. Whitford said.
Mr. Schiff, who played Toby Ziegler, the White House communications director on “The West Wing,” said he was listening to Mr. McCain from the other of the two tables in the room.
“Someone asked, ‘What do you think of Bush?’ ” Mr. Schiff recalled. “My recollection, and I have to qualify this, because I’m not 100 percent sure he used this word, but my recollection is that McCain said that Bush was dangerous and he didn’t trust him. Then this person said, ‘Why did you support him?’ And McCain said, ‘It was my obligation as a Republican to support the Republican candidate.’ And the person said, ‘Did you vote for him?’ And McCain said, ‘No.’ ”
Now, Mr. McCain couldn’t bring himself to outright call Ariana Huffington a liar, not even in an interview with Bill O’Reilly. (But John McCain sure is denying the story!) So I’m thinking he’s not going to bring himself to calling the other attendees of that dinner liars. I’m here to say, though, that John McCain evidently lied, either in 2001 at the dinner at Candice Bergen’s house, or he is lying right now. Frankly, given that he doesn’t want to piss off the supporters of George Bush (as few as they are they are still a base he can ill afford to piss off), it makes more sense that John McCain, MC Straighttalker himself, is lying now.
Here’s the kicker. Nearly every day someone new is coming out of the woodwork with something derogatory about President Bush that John McCain told them. Here’s Al Meyeroff, who is claiming John McCain told him in 1999 that George Bush is “dumb as a stump.” Again, if McCain said it, he could hold that up to the world as an example of his good judgement. But he needs the Republican base that still loves George Bush, so he’ll deny Meyeroff’s claims, though McCain, who pretends to be a straight talker, will leave it to his campaign people to call Meyeroff a liar.
“Shades of Lying in Politics” could be a learned Ph.D. dissertation.
This is so great….a “he said she said” in 2001..and you idiot liberals think this is worth talking about
Kevin B. — how do you judge someone’s honesty? You take a look at their statements either from the past or present and see how they stack up against their actions.
If McCain were truly an honest, straight-talkin’, maverick — which the media has dubbed him — then his past statements, votes on legislation, ect wouldn’t be a problem that he continually has to send surrogates out to deny or defend or deflect with “that’s nonsense”.
He is a guy that has been subsidized in EVERY ASPECT by the government his whole life and won’t answer a simple question about why he has had no problem with his government subsidized healthcare (which he received from prior to his birth, alll through his childhood — his father was an admiral so was getting military dependent healthcare — when he joined the navy he was getting it under his own name– and continues to receive it now, both because he was disabled during his capture and is a veteran AND as a congressman and senator — In short he has spent his ENTIRE LIFE receiving government subsidized (socialist) healthcare — but it would be bad for the rest of us.
Not only won’t he answer the question, he has claimed that it’s an unfair question.
he isnt lying. He really cant remember. He has a severe memory problem that makes me question his fitness for public service. The man can’t remember what he said 2 days ago
This is liberal left-wing kook lunacy. I mean, like who cares. This isn’t a scandal, but a nothing, except reflective of the groups that think it’s something.
Saying he didn’t vote for Bush would have actually helped him in the polls.
But by denying he said what he apparently said, he simply reinforced that he’s John McCain, the king of flip floppers, who will say or do anything.
Lmao, and this is the mighty St. John McCain we’re all supposed to be terrified of? This guy is 72, and he’s not ready for prime time. This guy is will be lucky to crack 45%.
Oh, I’m a good old Rebel, now that’s just what I am,
For this “Fair Land of Freedom” I do not give a damn!
I’m glad I fit against it, I only wish we’d won,
And I don’t want no pardon for anything I done.
I hates the Constitution, this Great Republic, too,
I hates the Freedman’s Buro in uniforms of blue,
I hates the nasty eagle with all his brag and fuss,
The lying, thieving Yankees, I hates ‘em wuss and wuss!
I hates the Yankee nation and everything they do,
I hates the Declaration of Independence, too,
I hates the “Glorious Union” , ’tis dripping with our blood,
I hates their striped banner, I fit it all I could.
I followed old Marse Robert for four years, near about,
Got wounded in three places, and starved at P’int Lookout;
I cotched the “roomatism” a’campin’ in the snow,
But I killed a chance o’ Yankees, and I’d like to kill some mo’.
Three hundred thousand Yankees is stiff in Southern dust!
We got three hundred thousand before they conquered us.
They died of Southern fever and Southern steel and shot,
I wish they was three million instead of what we got.
I can’t take up my musket and fight ‘em now no more,
But I ain’t a’gonna love ‘em, now that is sarten sure;
And I don’t want no pardon for what I was and am,
I won’t be reconstructed, and I do not care a damn!
I won’t be reconstructed! I’m better now than them,
And for a carpetbagger, I do not give a damn.
So I’m off for the frontier, soon as I can go,
I’ll prepare me a weapon and start for Mexico.
sorry, gonna take a nap
russian pissed me off
why do women want to change men?
This is just one of McCain’s many lies.
apparently republicans and joe lieberman can’t understand why ppl might not like their country invaded? that’s stupid taken to the extreme
lieberman just said he wants mccain to be pres
he needs to stop callin himself a dem
and if anyone has heard from kate, i’d like to know if she’s ok
lawsonroofing@gmail.com
The simplest answer is of course that McCain was lying then AND is lying now.
E in MD has successfully answered the question! As your prize you get to vote against John McCain in the Fall.
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E in MD has successfully answered the question! As your prize you get to vote against John McCain in the Fall.
Comment by Steven Reynolds — May 12, 2008 @ 1:16 pm
Then I’ll have to change my name to ‘E in Sweden’
McCain doing what he was told to do.
Just like Romney was told to drop out of the raise to become running mate of McCain.
Cheney and Romney and the LDS Church leaders have met on numerous occassions to raise money.
Bush is coming to Utah on the 28th to raise money for McCain.
He’s not stupid Bush knows that dumb Democrats won’t let him hold another term so he has McCain do it for him with the backing of Romney and the millions of dollars from the LDS Church.
No matter whether the Dems choose Hillary or Obama they’ll loose against conservative McCain/Romney ticket, and they promised to stay the course.