DNC: Why Voters Don’t Trust McCain

To: POLITICAL EDITORS

Contact: Luis Miranda of the DNC, +1-202-863-8148

WASHINGTON, Feb. 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Following is a release from the Democratic National Committee:

John McCain offered up a slew of contradictions on Iraq, the religious right, and even ethanol as part of his win at all costs strategy for courting Republican primary voters over the weekend. The strategy may backfire, though, as voters across the political spectrum can see right through it.

Having missed the Senate vote on his own plan to escalate the war in Iraq, McCain used a campaign stop in South Carolina on President’s Day to put the focus instead on former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld for his “mismanagement” of the Iraq War, saying Rumsfeld “will go down in history as one of the worst secretaries of defense.” [The State, 2/20/07]

McCain, however, has consistently supported the Bush administration’s failed strategy in Iraq. As his senior political adviser made clear less than a year ago, Senator McCain’s position is “stay-the-course, no matter what.” [Bloomberg News, 4/20/06] And when Rumsfeld resigned, McCain offered praise, saying, “he deserves Americans’ respect and gratitude for his many years of public service.” [AP, 11/9/06] In fact, McCain spoke of Rumsfeld’s “magnificent” leadership in 2003, later dubbed himself a “great admirer” of the secretary of defense, and refused to call for Rumsfeld’s resignation, saying just last year that the president “has the right…to appoint his team” and that the president has “confidence” in Rumsfeld. [Hannity and Colmes, 4/10/2003; "Buchanan & Press," MSNBC, 11/6/2003; Ventura County Star, 12/16/2004; East Valley Tribune (AZ), 4/15/2006]

The spin was no less intense in Iowa on Saturday, where McCain told a crowd in Davenport that “he believes ethanol will play an important part in the nation’s energy strategy.” During his 2000 campaign when he skipped Iowa, however, McCain emphatically spoke out against ethanol, claiming it “does nothing to reduce fuel consumption, nothing to increase our energy independence, nothing to improve air quality.” [Quad-City Times, 2/18/07; Fox News, 6/15/99; Houston Chronicle, 2/11/00; Associated Press, 1/3/00; Congressional Quarterly, 5/9/03; The Oregonian, 11/22/03; Fortune, 11/13/06; Des Moines GOP Primary Debate, 12/13/99; Des Moines Register, 12/19/99]

In perhaps the toughest sell of the weekend for him, McCain also spent part of his day on Monday in Orlando reaching out to religious broadcasters he once dubbed “agents of intolerance” who exerted an “evil influence” on the Republican Party. Now the establishment candidate, though, McCain earned a reception hosted by the Rev. Jerry Falwell at the national convention. [politico.com, 2/12/07; Kansas City Star, 5/28/05]

“If John McCain didn’t spend time on the tea cup ride while in Orlando, he should have,” said Democratic National Committee spokesman Luis Miranda. “That might have given him a credible explanation for the dizzying contradictions coming out of his campaign right now. It’s clear McCain’s not offering a vision for America’s future, he’s offering a do-anything-to-win campaign for the Republican primary, showing voters across the political spectrum why they can’t trust him.”

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Paid for and authorized by the Democratic National Committee, http://www.democrats.org. This communication is not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.

Contact: Luis Miranda, 202-863-8148

SOURCE Democratic National Committee

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