Mighty Intellect
Posts: 1,923 
Location: in town
Location: in town
April 7th, 2008, 01:31 PM
McCain makes upbeat Iraq speech
John McCain, the Republicans' choice for president, has said the US can succeed in Iraq, but warned against any hasty withdrawal of US troops.
Mr McCain said: "We are no longer staring into the abyss of defeat."
From June 2007 until Mr McCain's most recent visit to Iraq last month, violence in the country fell by 90%, and deaths of civilians and coalition forces fell by 70%, he said.
"Our goal is an Iraq that no longer needs American troops," he said. "And I believe we can achieve that goal, perhaps sooner than many imagine."
On Tuesday, all three leading presidential hopefuls will be in Washington to question Gen Petraeus on US strategy in Iraq.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7334926.stm
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
It seems to me the violence in Iraq is still pretty bad with high death tolls. But... he ought to know!
It is tomorrow that General Petraeus will give a report to The Senate's Armed Services Committee and privately to Pres. Bush.
Here is a photo of two good buddies
Nancy will be 87 this July!!!
McCain makes upbeat Iraq speech
John McCain, the Republicans' choice for president, has said the US can succeed in Iraq, but warned against any hasty withdrawal of US troops.
Mr McCain said: "We are no longer staring into the abyss of defeat."
From June 2007 until Mr McCain's most recent visit to Iraq last month, violence in the country fell by 90%, and deaths of civilians and coalition forces fell by 70%, he said.
"Our goal is an Iraq that no longer needs American troops," he said. "And I believe we can achieve that goal, perhaps sooner than many imagine."
On Tuesday, all three leading presidential hopefuls will be in Washington to question Gen Petraeus on US strategy in Iraq.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7334926.stm
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
It seems to me the violence in Iraq is still pretty bad with high death tolls. But... he ought to know!
It is tomorrow that General Petraeus will give a report to The Senate's Armed Services Committee and privately to Pres. Bush.
Here is a photo of two good buddies
Nancy will be 87 this July!!!
World Police
Posts: 4,488
Videos: 1
Location: toranna
Videos: 1
Location: toranna
April 7th, 2008, 02:17 PM
Well, at least McCain is letting people know what you can expect from the Republican end of the presidential campaign, unlike the Democrats who can't even figure out will lead the party.
Well, at least McCain is letting people know what you can expect from the Republican end of the presidential campaign, unlike the Democrats who can't even figure out will lead the party.
Jerk Extraordinaire
Posts: 2,950
Location: Atlantic Canada
Location: Atlantic Canada
April 7th, 2008, 02:22 PM
Just because something is better for a short while doesn't make it "Working" ~ As case in point of what has just been occuring in the last two weeks alone (Violence spiking back up)
It makes no difference if something is occuring less or occuring more.... "Is it still going on or did it stop?" are what should be focused on. With this type of war is doesn't matter if you stop 30% or 90% of the previously known violence. All it takes is one situation or event to make it all collapse again and then you're back to trying to tally your %'s to make it sound good or bad.
Is there violence and insurgency still in Iraq?
Yes.
How do you remove this problem?
Add more soldiers.
To what end?
So they can buy the government more time to pass laws and revamp their system of government without having to deal with instability (Throw some US bodies into the fire to keep the Iraqi puppets warm.... buy them some time.)
That may slow down the insurgency, but that does not solve the problem as to why there is an insurgency to begin with.
All I hear from all the pres hopefuls is nothing..... not one real plan to resolving the problems in Iraq except to stay there longer or to withdraw... neither are a ligit solution to the problem. Why?
Just because something is better for a short while doesn't make it "Working" ~ As case in point of what has just been occuring in the last two weeks alone (Violence spiking back up)
It makes no difference if something is occuring less or occuring more.... "Is it still going on or did it stop?" are what should be focused on. With this type of war is doesn't matter if you stop 30% or 90% of the previously known violence. All it takes is one situation or event to make it all collapse again and then you're back to trying to tally your %'s to make it sound good or bad.
Is there violence and insurgency still in Iraq?
Yes.
How do you remove this problem?
Add more soldiers.
To what end?
So they can buy the government more time to pass laws and revamp their system of government without having to deal with instability (Throw some US bodies into the fire to keep the Iraqi puppets warm.... buy them some time.)
That may slow down the insurgency, but that does not solve the problem as to why there is an insurgency to begin with.
All I hear from all the pres hopefuls is nothing..... not one real plan to resolving the problems in Iraq except to stay there longer or to withdraw... neither are a ligit solution to the problem. Why?
Mighty Intellect
Posts: 1,923
Location: in town
Location: in town
April 7th, 2008, 03:28 PM
I think that the real decision can only be made once the new President has seen the classified material relating to the war.
Quoting DurkaDurka
Both democratic contenders are stating they will start with troop withdrawal after they are in office.
Well, at least McCain is letting people know what you can expect from the Republican end of the presidential campaign, unlike the Democrats who can't even figure out will lead the party.
I think that the real decision can only be made once the new President has seen the classified material relating to the war.
World Police
Posts: 4,488
Videos: 1
Location: toranna
Videos: 1
Location: toranna
April 7th, 2008, 03:35 PM
Quoting dancing-loon
Politicians have a habit of contradicting them selves. Hillary, who voted for the war seems to be doing all sorts of back pedaling about as of late.
Both democratic contenders are stating they will start with troop withdrawal after they are in office.
I think that the real decision can only be made once the new President has seen the classified material relating to the war.
I think that the real decision can only be made once the new President has seen the classified material relating to the war.
Mighty Intellect
Posts: 1,923
Location: in town
Location: in town
April 7th, 2008, 03:51 PM
Hi, Praxius;
I read your post and it prompted me to ask a question: How much longer will the Iraq war last?
It's an article worth reading: http://www.heraldnet.com/article/200...WS02/948538887
Hi, Praxius;
I read your post and it prompted me to ask a question: How much longer will the Iraq war last?
Quote:
The questions are, "How much can Iraq endure? How much stamina do Americans have for a war with no end in sight?"
Most likely, the war will go on for years, say many commanders and military analysts. In fact, it's possible to consider this just the midpoint. The U.S. combat role in Iraq could have another half decade ahead -- or maybe more, depending on the resilience of the insurgency and the political will in the U.S. to maintain the fight.
Iraq, experts say, is no longer a young war. Nor it is entering an endgame. It may still be in sturdy middle age.
"Four years, optimistically" before the Pentagon can begin a significant troop withdrawal from Iraq, predicted Eric Rosenbach, executive director of the Center for International Affairs at Harvard's Kennedy School, "and more like seven or eight years" until Iraqi forces can handle the bulk of their own security.
Iraq, experts say, is no longer a young war. Nor it is entering an endgame. It may still be in sturdy middle age.
"Four years, optimistically" before the Pentagon can begin a significant troop withdrawal from Iraq, predicted Eric Rosenbach, executive director of the Center for International Affairs at Harvard's Kennedy School, "and more like seven or eight years" until Iraqi forces can handle the bulk of their own security.
It's an article worth reading: http://www.heraldnet.com/article/200...WS02/948538887
Mighty Intellect
Posts: 1,923
Location: in town
Location: in town
April 7th, 2008, 03:57 PM
On a humorous note: Women are allowed to change their minds!!
(in case you didn't know!)
Quoting DurkaDurka
I think that is o.k. because the situation is quite different now, and she also may have more insight and understanding now. I don't hold her change of mind against her.
Politicians have a habit of contradicting them selves. Hillary, who voted for the war seems to be doing all sorts of back pedaling about as of late.
On a humorous note: Women are allowed to change their minds!!
(in case you didn't know!)
Bright Spark
Posts: 316
Location: California
Location: California
April 7th, 2008, 08:49 PM
At least we have some talk and it sounds like this man islistening where the current admionistaration is just telling us what they have done post action. No input, no questions and no remorse for some very big past mistakes. Most impotant to me the Bush Cheney team has no immediate family serving there and McCain does. While I am leery I am listening and watching. The one thing to remember about a politician. You can always tell when they are lying. Just watch their lips. Everytime they move they are lying. The jury is still out on McCain in my book. Actions will speak louder than words.
At least we have some talk and it sounds like this man islistening where the current admionistaration is just telling us what they have done post action. No input, no questions and no remorse for some very big past mistakes. Most impotant to me the Bush Cheney team has no immediate family serving there and McCain does. While I am leery I am listening and watching. The one thing to remember about a politician. You can always tell when they are lying. Just watch their lips. Everytime they move they are lying. The jury is still out on McCain in my book. Actions will speak louder than words.
Mighty Intellect
Posts: 1,923
Location: in town
Location: in town
April 7th, 2008, 11:59 PM
Quoting normbc9
You can always tell ....
At least we have some talk and it sounds like this man is listening where the current administration is just telling us what they have done post action. No input, no questions and no remorse for some very big past mistakes. Most impotant to me the Bush Cheney team has no immediate family serving there and McCain does. While I am leery I am listening and watching. The one thing to remember about a politician. You can always tell when they are lying. Just watch their lips. Every time they move they are lying. The jury is still out on McCain in my book. Actions will speak louder than words.
Knows No Bounds
Posts: 2,969
Location: USA
Location: USA
April 10th, 2008, 02:13 PM
Quoting dancing-loon
That is the same promise that the Democrats made before the November elections. They sure showed GW!
Both democratic contenders are stating they will start with troop withdrawal after they are in office.
I think that the real decision can only be made once the new President has seen the classified material relating to the war.
I think that the real decision can only be made once the new President has seen the classified material relating to the war.
jimmoyer
Posts: 4,911
Location: Winchester Virginia
Location: Winchester Virginia
April 10th, 2008, 02:20 PM
The Great McCain Story You've Probably Forgotten
What an old anecdote about Mo Udall in the hospital reveals about McCain's character.
Back in 1996 and 1997, before John McCain was a presidential candidate or object of media fascination, Michael Lewis followed the Arizona senator around as he campaigned for Bob Dole and worked to reform campaign-finance laws. Lewis' pieces for the New Republic and the New York Times Magazine portrayed McCain as a passionate, cantankerous, astonishingly honest political character who frequently acted in ways that brought him no political gain. In the recent back-and-forth over whether McCain is a regular politician or a true outlier, we remembered a wonderful moment from Lewis' 1997 New York Times Magazine profile of McCain, "The Subversive." The passage below comes at the very end of Lewis' article.
By 7:30 we were on the road, and McCain was reminiscing about his early political career. When he was elected to the House in 1982, he said, he was "a freshman right-wing Nazi." But his visceral hostility toward Democrats generally was quickly tempered by his tendency to see people as individuals and judge them that way. He was taken in hand by Morris Udall, the Arizona congressman who was the liberal conscience of the Congress and a leading voice for reform. (Most famously—and disastrously for his own career—Udall took aim at the seniority system that kept young talent in its place at the end of the dais. "The longer you're here, the more you'll like it," he used to joke to incoming freshmen.)
"Mo reached out to me in 50 different ways," McCain recalled. "Right from the start, he'd say: 'I'm going to hold a press conference out in Phoenix. Why don't you join me?' All these journalists would show up to hear what Mo had to say. In the middle of it all, Mo would point to me and say, 'I'd like to hear John's views.' Well, hell, I didn't have any views. But I got up and learned and was introduced to the state." Four years later, when McCain ran for and won Barry Goldwater's Senate seat, he said he felt his greatest debt of gratitude not to Goldwater—who had shunned him—but to Udall. "There's no way Mo could have been more wonderful," he says, "and there was no reason for him to be that way."
For the past few years, Udall has lain ill with Parkinson's disease in a veterans hospital in Northeast Washington, which is where we were heading. Every few weeks, McCain drives over to pay his respects. These days the trip is a ceremony, like going to church, only less pleasant. Udall is seldom conscious, and even then he shows no sign of recognition. McCain brings with him a stack of newspaper clips on Udall's favorite subjects: local politics in Arizona, environmental legislation, Native American land disputes, subjects in which McCain initially had no particular interest himself. Now, when the Republican senator from Arizona takes the floor on behalf of Native Americans, or when he writes an op-ed piece arguing that the Republican Party embrace environmentalism, or when the polls show once again that he is Arizona's most popular politician, he remains aware of his debt to Arizona's most influential Democrat.
One wall of Udall's hospital room was cluttered with photos of his family back in Arizona; another bore a single photograph of Udall during his season with the Denver Nuggets, dribbling a basketball. Aside from a congressional seal glued to a door jamb, there was no indication what the man in the bed had done for his living. Beneath a torn gray blanket on a narrow hospital cot, Udall lay twisted and disfigured. No matter how many times McCain tapped him on the shoulder and called his name, his eyes remained shut.
A nurse entered and seemed surprised to find anyone there, and it wasn't long before I found out why: Almost no one visits anymore. In his time, which was not very long ago, Mo Udall was one of the most-sought-after men in the Democratic Party. Yet as he dies in a veterans hospital a few miles from the Capitol, he is visited regularly only by a single old political friend, John McCain. "He's not going to wake up this time," McCain said.
On the way out of the parking lot, McCain recalled what it was like to be a nobody called upon by a somebody. As he did, his voice acquired the same warmth that colored Russell Feingold's speech when he described the first call from John McCain. "When you called Feingold … " I started to ask him. But before I could, he interrupted. "Yeah," he says, "I thought of Mo." And then, for maybe the third time that morning, McCain spoke of how it affected him when Udall took him in hand. It was a simple act of affection and admiration, and for that reason it meant all the more to McCain. It was one man saying to another, We disagree in politics but not in life. It was one man saying to another, party political differences cut only so deep. Having made that step, they found much to agree upon and many useful ways to work together. This is the reason McCain keeps coming to see Udall even after Udall has lost his last shred of political influence. The politics were never all that important.
Michael Lewis' most recent book is The Blind Side.
The Great McCain Story You've Probably Forgotten
What an old anecdote about Mo Udall in the hospital reveals about McCain's character.
Back in 1996 and 1997, before John McCain was a presidential candidate or object of media fascination, Michael Lewis followed the Arizona senator around as he campaigned for Bob Dole and worked to reform campaign-finance laws. Lewis' pieces for the New Republic and the New York Times Magazine portrayed McCain as a passionate, cantankerous, astonishingly honest political character who frequently acted in ways that brought him no political gain. In the recent back-and-forth over whether McCain is a regular politician or a true outlier, we remembered a wonderful moment from Lewis' 1997 New York Times Magazine profile of McCain, "The Subversive." The passage below comes at the very end of Lewis' article.
By 7:30 we were on the road, and McCain was reminiscing about his early political career. When he was elected to the House in 1982, he said, he was "a freshman right-wing Nazi." But his visceral hostility toward Democrats generally was quickly tempered by his tendency to see people as individuals and judge them that way. He was taken in hand by Morris Udall, the Arizona congressman who was the liberal conscience of the Congress and a leading voice for reform. (Most famously—and disastrously for his own career—Udall took aim at the seniority system that kept young talent in its place at the end of the dais. "The longer you're here, the more you'll like it," he used to joke to incoming freshmen.)
"Mo reached out to me in 50 different ways," McCain recalled. "Right from the start, he'd say: 'I'm going to hold a press conference out in Phoenix. Why don't you join me?' All these journalists would show up to hear what Mo had to say. In the middle of it all, Mo would point to me and say, 'I'd like to hear John's views.' Well, hell, I didn't have any views. But I got up and learned and was introduced to the state." Four years later, when McCain ran for and won Barry Goldwater's Senate seat, he said he felt his greatest debt of gratitude not to Goldwater—who had shunned him—but to Udall. "There's no way Mo could have been more wonderful," he says, "and there was no reason for him to be that way."
For the past few years, Udall has lain ill with Parkinson's disease in a veterans hospital in Northeast Washington, which is where we were heading. Every few weeks, McCain drives over to pay his respects. These days the trip is a ceremony, like going to church, only less pleasant. Udall is seldom conscious, and even then he shows no sign of recognition. McCain brings with him a stack of newspaper clips on Udall's favorite subjects: local politics in Arizona, environmental legislation, Native American land disputes, subjects in which McCain initially had no particular interest himself. Now, when the Republican senator from Arizona takes the floor on behalf of Native Americans, or when he writes an op-ed piece arguing that the Republican Party embrace environmentalism, or when the polls show once again that he is Arizona's most popular politician, he remains aware of his debt to Arizona's most influential Democrat.
One wall of Udall's hospital room was cluttered with photos of his family back in Arizona; another bore a single photograph of Udall during his season with the Denver Nuggets, dribbling a basketball. Aside from a congressional seal glued to a door jamb, there was no indication what the man in the bed had done for his living. Beneath a torn gray blanket on a narrow hospital cot, Udall lay twisted and disfigured. No matter how many times McCain tapped him on the shoulder and called his name, his eyes remained shut.
A nurse entered and seemed surprised to find anyone there, and it wasn't long before I found out why: Almost no one visits anymore. In his time, which was not very long ago, Mo Udall was one of the most-sought-after men in the Democratic Party. Yet as he dies in a veterans hospital a few miles from the Capitol, he is visited regularly only by a single old political friend, John McCain. "He's not going to wake up this time," McCain said.
On the way out of the parking lot, McCain recalled what it was like to be a nobody called upon by a somebody. As he did, his voice acquired the same warmth that colored Russell Feingold's speech when he described the first call from John McCain. "When you called Feingold … " I started to ask him. But before I could, he interrupted. "Yeah," he says, "I thought of Mo." And then, for maybe the third time that morning, McCain spoke of how it affected him when Udall took him in hand. It was a simple act of affection and admiration, and for that reason it meant all the more to McCain. It was one man saying to another, We disagree in politics but not in life. It was one man saying to another, party political differences cut only so deep. Having made that step, they found much to agree upon and many useful ways to work together. This is the reason McCain keeps coming to see Udall even after Udall has lost his last shred of political influence. The politics were never all that important.
Michael Lewis' most recent book is The Blind Side.
Newbie
Posts: 11
April 16th, 2008, 03:34 PM
.Here's my statement..............Mr. McCain will be the next president of the U.S.........
Here's my loaded question.........Why would Condalisa Rice want to be V.P. When she can be president in 3-5 years.??
...HMMMMMMM....!.
Food for thought...
Thanks for reading....
B.GreenFish66
.Here's my statement..............Mr. McCain will be the next president of the U.S.........
Here's my loaded question.........Why would Condalisa Rice want to be V.P. When she can be president in 3-5 years.??
...HMMMMMMM....!.Food for thought...
Thanks for reading....
B.GreenFish66
Hawkings former plumber
Posts: 8,775
Videos: 1
Location: RR1 Distopia 666 Discordia Drive Apt 911
Videos: 1
Location: RR1 Distopia 666 Discordia Drive Apt 911
April 16th, 2008, 03:51 PM
quoteing you, Praxius
"It makes no difference if something is occuring less or occuring more...."
I believe you had a bug up you a while ago because I was not making sense (alegedly), it now seems possible that the problem was not on my end (note I said possible).
Why do they say ,faster baby faster, if it makes no difference?
Quoting Praxius
You're one of the few remaining people who refer to legal patriotic freedom fighters as insurgents.
Just because something is better for a short while doesn't make it "Working" ~ As case in point of what has just been occuring in the last two weeks alone (Violence spiking back up)
It makes no difference if something is occuring less or occuring more.... "Is it still going on or did it stop?" are what should be focused on. With this type of war is doesn't matter if you stop 30% or 90% of the previously known violence. All it takes is one situation or event to make it all collapse again and then you're back to trying to tally your %'s to make it sound good or bad.
Is there violence and insurgency still in Iraq?
Yes.
How do you remove this problem?
Add more soldiers.
To what end?
So they can buy the government more time to pass laws and revamp their system of government without having to deal with instability (Throw some US bodies into the fire to keep the Iraqi puppets warm.... buy them some time.)
That may slow down the insurgency, but that does not solve the problem as to why there is an insurgency to begin with.
All I hear from all the pres hopefuls is nothing..... not one real plan to resolving the problems in Iraq except to stay there longer or to withdraw... neither are a ligit solution to the problem. Why?
It makes no difference if something is occuring less or occuring more.... "Is it still going on or did it stop?" are what should be focused on. With this type of war is doesn't matter if you stop 30% or 90% of the previously known violence. All it takes is one situation or event to make it all collapse again and then you're back to trying to tally your %'s to make it sound good or bad.
Is there violence and insurgency still in Iraq?
Yes.
How do you remove this problem?
Add more soldiers.
To what end?
So they can buy the government more time to pass laws and revamp their system of government without having to deal with instability (Throw some US bodies into the fire to keep the Iraqi puppets warm.... buy them some time.)
That may slow down the insurgency, but that does not solve the problem as to why there is an insurgency to begin with.
All I hear from all the pres hopefuls is nothing..... not one real plan to resolving the problems in Iraq except to stay there longer or to withdraw... neither are a ligit solution to the problem. Why?
quoteing you, Praxius
"It makes no difference if something is occuring less or occuring more...."
I believe you had a bug up you a while ago because I was not making sense (alegedly), it now seems possible that the problem was not on my end (note I said possible).
Why do they say ,faster baby faster, if it makes no difference?
Hawkings former plumber
Posts: 8,775
Videos: 1
Location: RR1 Distopia 666 Discordia Drive Apt 911
Videos: 1
Location: RR1 Distopia 666 Discordia Drive Apt 911
April 16th, 2008, 04:04 PM
That's a readers digest BS tear jerking fable for the terminally sentimentally stupid Jim. How you could possible present this crap as characteristic behavior of a certified psycopath like McInsane speaks poorly of your luck picking friends. Why don't you grow up and act as mature as your IQ. You got burned nay incinerated by Bush your choice remember, this would indicate to me that you should get new political advisors or get out of politics all together. It's just very sad that someone with your gifts wastes them. That said he's a better (slightly) choice than Oblowme or Clinstone.
Quoting jimmoyer
The Great McCain Story You've Probably Forgotten
What an old anecdote about Mo Udall in the hospital reveals about McCain's character.
Back in 1996 and 1997, before John McCain was a presidential candidate or object of media fascination, Michael Lewis followed the Arizona senator around as he campaigned for Bob Dole and worked to reform campaign-finance laws. Lewis' pieces for the New Republic and the New York Times Magazine portrayed McCain as a passionate, cantankerous, astonishingly honest political character who frequently acted in ways that brought him no political gain. In the recent back-and-forth over whether McCain is a regular politician or a true outlier, we remembered a wonderful moment from Lewis' 1997 New York Times Magazine profile of McCain, "The Subversive." The passage below comes at the very end of Lewis' article.
By 7:30 we were on the road, and McCain was reminiscing about his early political career. When he was elected to the House in 1982, he said, he was "a freshman right-wing Nazi." But his visceral hostility toward Democrats generally was quickly tempered by his tendency to see people as individuals and judge them that way. He was taken in hand by Morris Udall, the Arizona congressman who was the liberal conscience of the Congress and a leading voice for reform. (Most famously—and disastrously for his own career—Udall took aim at the seniority system that kept young talent in its place at the end of the dais. "The longer you're here, the more you'll like it," he used to joke to incoming freshmen.)
"Mo reached out to me in 50 different ways," McCain recalled. "Right from the start, he'd say: 'I'm going to hold a press conference out in Phoenix. Why don't you join me?' All these journalists would show up to hear what Mo had to say. In the middle of it all, Mo would point to me and say, 'I'd like to hear John's views.' Well, hell, I didn't have any views. But I got up and learned and was introduced to the state." Four years later, when McCain ran for and won Barry Goldwater's Senate seat, he said he felt his greatest debt of gratitude not to Goldwater—who had shunned him—but to Udall. "There's no way Mo could have been more wonderful," he says, "and there was no reason for him to be that way."
For the past few years, Udall has lain ill with Parkinson's disease in a veterans hospital in Northeast Washington, which is where we were heading. Every few weeks, McCain drives over to pay his respects. These days the trip is a ceremony, like going to church, only less pleasant. Udall is seldom conscious, and even then he shows no sign of recognition. McCain brings with him a stack of newspaper clips on Udall's favorite subjects: local politics in Arizona, environmental legislation, Native American land disputes, subjects in which McCain initially had no particular interest himself. Now, when the Republican senator from Arizona takes the floor on behalf of Native Americans, or when he writes an op-ed piece arguing that the Republican Party embrace environmentalism, or when the polls show once again that he is Arizona's most popular politician, he remains aware of his debt to Arizona's most influential Democrat.
One wall of Udall's hospital room was cluttered with photos of his family back in Arizona; another bore a single photograph of Udall during his season with the Denver Nuggets, dribbling a basketball. Aside from a congressional seal glued to a door jamb, there was no indication what the man in the bed had done for his living. Beneath a torn gray blanket on a narrow hospital cot, Udall lay twisted and disfigured. No matter how many times McCain tapped him on the shoulder and called his name, his eyes remained shut.
A nurse entered and seemed surprised to find anyone there, and it wasn't long before I found out why: Almost no one visits anymore. In his time, which was not very long ago, Mo Udall was one of the most-sought-after men in the Democratic Party. Yet as he dies in a veterans hospital a few miles from the Capitol, he is visited regularly only by a single old political friend, John McCain. "He's not going to wake up this time," McCain said.
On the way out of the parking lot, McCain recalled what it was like to be a nobody called upon by a somebody. As he did, his voice acquired the same warmth that colored Russell Feingold's speech when he described the first call from John McCain. "When you called Feingold … " I started to ask him. But before I could, he interrupted. "Yeah," he says, "I thought of Mo." And then, for maybe the third time that morning, McCain spoke of how it affected him when Udall took him in hand. It was a simple act of affection and admiration, and for that reason it meant all the more to McCain. It was one man saying to another, We disagree in politics but not in life. It was one man saying to another, party political differences cut only so deep. Having made that step, they found much to agree upon and many useful ways to work together. This is the reason McCain keeps coming to see Udall even after Udall has lost his last shred of political influence. The politics were never all that important.
Michael Lewis' most recent book is The Blind Side.
What an old anecdote about Mo Udall in the hospital reveals about McCain's character.
Back in 1996 and 1997, before John McCain was a presidential candidate or object of media fascination, Michael Lewis followed the Arizona senator around as he campaigned for Bob Dole and worked to reform campaign-finance laws. Lewis' pieces for the New Republic and the New York Times Magazine portrayed McCain as a passionate, cantankerous, astonishingly honest political character who frequently acted in ways that brought him no political gain. In the recent back-and-forth over whether McCain is a regular politician or a true outlier, we remembered a wonderful moment from Lewis' 1997 New York Times Magazine profile of McCain, "The Subversive." The passage below comes at the very end of Lewis' article.
By 7:30 we were on the road, and McCain was reminiscing about his early political career. When he was elected to the House in 1982, he said, he was "a freshman right-wing Nazi." But his visceral hostility toward Democrats generally was quickly tempered by his tendency to see people as individuals and judge them that way. He was taken in hand by Morris Udall, the Arizona congressman who was the liberal conscience of the Congress and a leading voice for reform. (Most famously—and disastrously for his own career—Udall took aim at the seniority system that kept young talent in its place at the end of the dais. "The longer you're here, the more you'll like it," he used to joke to incoming freshmen.)
"Mo reached out to me in 50 different ways," McCain recalled. "Right from the start, he'd say: 'I'm going to hold a press conference out in Phoenix. Why don't you join me?' All these journalists would show up to hear what Mo had to say. In the middle of it all, Mo would point to me and say, 'I'd like to hear John's views.' Well, hell, I didn't have any views. But I got up and learned and was introduced to the state." Four years later, when McCain ran for and won Barry Goldwater's Senate seat, he said he felt his greatest debt of gratitude not to Goldwater—who had shunned him—but to Udall. "There's no way Mo could have been more wonderful," he says, "and there was no reason for him to be that way."
For the past few years, Udall has lain ill with Parkinson's disease in a veterans hospital in Northeast Washington, which is where we were heading. Every few weeks, McCain drives over to pay his respects. These days the trip is a ceremony, like going to church, only less pleasant. Udall is seldom conscious, and even then he shows no sign of recognition. McCain brings with him a stack of newspaper clips on Udall's favorite subjects: local politics in Arizona, environmental legislation, Native American land disputes, subjects in which McCain initially had no particular interest himself. Now, when the Republican senator from Arizona takes the floor on behalf of Native Americans, or when he writes an op-ed piece arguing that the Republican Party embrace environmentalism, or when the polls show once again that he is Arizona's most popular politician, he remains aware of his debt to Arizona's most influential Democrat.
One wall of Udall's hospital room was cluttered with photos of his family back in Arizona; another bore a single photograph of Udall during his season with the Denver Nuggets, dribbling a basketball. Aside from a congressional seal glued to a door jamb, there was no indication what the man in the bed had done for his living. Beneath a torn gray blanket on a narrow hospital cot, Udall lay twisted and disfigured. No matter how many times McCain tapped him on the shoulder and called his name, his eyes remained shut.
A nurse entered and seemed surprised to find anyone there, and it wasn't long before I found out why: Almost no one visits anymore. In his time, which was not very long ago, Mo Udall was one of the most-sought-after men in the Democratic Party. Yet as he dies in a veterans hospital a few miles from the Capitol, he is visited regularly only by a single old political friend, John McCain. "He's not going to wake up this time," McCain said.
On the way out of the parking lot, McCain recalled what it was like to be a nobody called upon by a somebody. As he did, his voice acquired the same warmth that colored Russell Feingold's speech when he described the first call from John McCain. "When you called Feingold … " I started to ask him. But before I could, he interrupted. "Yeah," he says, "I thought of Mo." And then, for maybe the third time that morning, McCain spoke of how it affected him when Udall took him in hand. It was a simple act of affection and admiration, and for that reason it meant all the more to McCain. It was one man saying to another, We disagree in politics but not in life. It was one man saying to another, party political differences cut only so deep. Having made that step, they found much to agree upon and many useful ways to work together. This is the reason McCain keeps coming to see Udall even after Udall has lost his last shred of political influence. The politics were never all that important.
Michael Lewis' most recent book is The Blind Side.
That's a readers digest BS tear jerking fable for the terminally sentimentally stupid Jim. How you could possible present this crap as characteristic behavior of a certified psycopath like McInsane speaks poorly of your luck picking friends. Why don't you grow up and act as mature as your IQ. You got burned nay incinerated by Bush your choice remember, this would indicate to me that you should get new political advisors or get out of politics all together. It's just very sad that someone with your gifts wastes them. That said he's a better (slightly) choice than Oblowme or Clinstone.
Mighty Intellect
Posts: 1,923
Location: in town
Location: in town
April 16th, 2008, 04:05 PM
Greenfish, I've thought the same about McCain.
The two Democrats are finishing each other off! Whoever will emerge as the nominee will be burdened with the tiredness of the electorate.
Condi president after McCain? If she has such ambitions, it could become reality easily! But heaven forbid... another 8 years of the Neo-Republican gang?
Maybe the two women will compete after McCain's tenure. That would be fun!!!
Greenfish, I've thought the same about McCain.
The two Democrats are finishing each other off! Whoever will emerge as the nominee will be burdened with the tiredness of the electorate.
Condi president after McCain? If she has such ambitions, it could become reality easily! But heaven forbid... another 8 years of the Neo-Republican gang?
Maybe the two women will compete after McCain's tenure. That would be fun!!!
Time Out
Posts: 203
Location: Canada - Golden Triangle
Location: Canada - Golden Triangle
April 16th, 2008, 04:16 PM
You'll find a lot of info and mis-info and dis-info here but what the hay isn't that our way.
You'll be read and then lectured and pushed to support your opinion and that will come quickly but it will be done with dignity and respect.
Been there and done that.
Yet it's the best site I've been to, so enjoy because it's not personal.
I could start off the initiation but I'm sure that I'm down the line somewhere.
But don't worry because if you are an active member and post regularly you'll get the hang of things.
"There are never dumb questions , only dumb answers."
Best Regards and Good Luck,
Johai
Quoting GreenFish66
Welcome B.GreenFish66,
.Here's my statement..............Mr. McCain will be the next president of the U.S.........
Here's my loaded question.........Why would Condalisa Rice want to be V.P. When she can be president in 3-5 years.??...HMMMMMMM....!.
Food for thought...
Thanks for reading....
B.GreenFish66
Here's my loaded question.........Why would Condalisa Rice want to be V.P. When she can be president in 3-5 years.??
...HMMMMMMM....!.Food for thought...
Thanks for reading....
B.GreenFish66
You'll find a lot of info and mis-info and dis-info here but what the hay isn't that our way.
You'll be read and then lectured and pushed to support your opinion and that will come quickly but it will be done with dignity and respect.
Been there and done that.
Yet it's the best site I've been to, so enjoy because it's not personal.
I could start off the initiation but I'm sure that I'm down the line somewhere.
But don't worry because if you are an active member and post regularly you'll get the hang of things.
"There are never dumb questions , only dumb answers."
Best Regards and Good Luck,
Johai
Hawkings former plumber
Posts: 8,775
Videos: 1
Location: RR1 Distopia 666 Discordia Drive Apt 911
Videos: 1
Location: RR1 Distopia 666 Discordia Drive Apt 911
April 16th, 2008, 04:21 PM
Quoting johai
We have dumb questions too, Ill show you sometime or you could thumb through my excellent past posts brimming with dumbness of all kinds. Never apologize for being dumb, I don't, it's my right as a poster here at Triple C.
Welcome B.GreenFish66,
You'll find a lot of info and mis-info and dis-info here but what the hay isn't that our way.
You'll be read and then lectured and pushed to support your opinion and that will come quickly but it will be done with dignity and respect.
Been there and done that.
Yet it's the best site I've been to, so enjoy because it's not personal.
I could start off the initiation but I'm sure that I'm down the line somewhere.
But don't worry because if you are an active member and post regularly you'll get the hang of things.
"There are never dumb questions , only dumb answers."
Best Regards and Good Luck,
Johai
You'll find a lot of info and mis-info and dis-info here but what the hay isn't that our way.
You'll be read and then lectured and pushed to support your opinion and that will come quickly but it will be done with dignity and respect.
Been there and done that.
Yet it's the best site I've been to, so enjoy because it's not personal.
I could start off the initiation but I'm sure that I'm down the line somewhere.
But don't worry because if you are an active member and post regularly you'll get the hang of things.
"There are never dumb questions , only dumb answers."
Best Regards and Good Luck,
Johai
