McCain's no maverick, but a bitter partisan

I really wish someone could find the 2000 version of John McCain, because that man is long gone. He became a far right-wing conservative after getting cheated, lied about and bullied by the Bush campaign following the 2000 South Carolina GOP primary. It really is a shame.

Anyway, as McCain's appearance on Good Morning America Monday morning clearly shows, he's pretty out of touch with what's going on in the country, specifically with regard to health care. I have a major bone of contention with McCain's assertion that the Democrats "went against the will of the American people" (an assertion that just about every GOPer is parroting over and over and over again, putting a fresh topping on the old, unfortunate adage "keep on telling a lie over and over 'til they start to believe it"). More on the polls in a minute.

Yesterday, McCain ratcheted up the rhetoric, saying There will be no cooperation for the rest of the year. They [Democrats] have poisoned the well in what they've done and how they've done it." (From The Washington Post) Wow, that's pretty astounding from a so-called "Maverick" who in the past has made some pretty historic and honorable legislation from working with Democrats to get stuff done. If the people of Arizona are stupid enough to send this guy back to the Senate for six more years, then they deserve whatever they get. What a disgrace. Why not just retire then, "Mav"? Clearly the people of Arizona deserve something better than this crybaby.

Happily, David Axelrod, President Obama's Senior White House Advisor, wasted no time in issuing a tart response: "You know, that's okay on the sandlot, but it's not okay when you're trying to govern a country and move a country forward. It's a disappointing attitude." That about sums it all up.

If McCain was my Senator, even if this tirade was about a bill I disapproved of, I'd like to think I could rise above partisan politics and tell him that this sort of language is totally unacceptable coming from someone who is sent to Washington to do the people's work, and to quit pissing and moaning when he doesn't get his way, or win a presidential election. (Most except the most ardent McCain supporters would probably agree that he's become a bitter, cranky old codger since he lost to Obama last year. Give up the dream John, give up the dream. Spare yourself some dignity in defeat - if you need some instructions, see Kerry, John and Gore, Al - two people who behaved with truckloads more dignity than you are and who had a whole lot more to be angry about. In short, grow up - it's not all about you.)

Following Axelrod's comments, Brooke Buchanan, McCain's spokeswoman, shot back, "Senator John McCain will always stand on the side of the American people. Get used to it, Mr. Axelrod, that's what strong, independent members do - you'd know what if you had ever worked for one."

It just kept getting better and better. I guess when we need to hear from McCain now, we can rely on his pit bull spokeswoman for comment, or we can go to his Website to look for a press release, since he won't be cooperating with the Democratically controlled Congress.

Following all that, Jim Manley, spokesman for Harry Reid (D-NV), the Senate Majority Leader and a man who I don't have much admiration or respect for, scored some points with me yesterday with this acidic rebuke: "For someone who campaigned on 'country first' and claims to take great pride in bipartisanship, it's absolutely bizarre for Senator McCain to tell the American people he is going to take his ball and go home until the next election. He must be living in a parallel universe because the fact is, with very few exceptions, we've gotten very little cooperation from Senate Republicans in recent years."

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I firmly believe that once all of the right-wing propaganda clears from the GOP smokescreen machine, the American people aren't going to want this law repealed. Amended and tweaked? Without question, but that's already happening; the $750 fine for not having insurance has already been reduced to... ZERO. That was a good start.

Back to polling on the health care bill...

As I've already written, I take serious umbrage with Republicans saying, over and over, words to the effect that the Democrats "defied the will of the American people." Polls do not bear this out (at least the legitimate ones.) From Gallup, via The New York Times yesterday and MSNBC, on Monday, both obviously following Sunday night's passage of the health care bill:


Whoops! This is "defying the will of the American people"? In two words, that's unadulterated bullshit. These poll numbers should tilt further and further toward favoring this bill as the facts become clear to the American people. But, in order for that to happen, Obama and Democratic leaders have to do a much better job of articulating their messages - Repubes have always been better at getting phrases and terms that "stick" with the public; time for Democrats to do the same. I don't like it that America is largely a soundbite electorate, but that's the culture now, and Democrats need to get with it.