McCain, not Romney, the REAL flip-flopper
Paul Campos in his recent article The media’s love affair with McCain does an excellent analysis of the media’s infatuation with McCain and comes up with these surprising conclusions:
Consider this typical endorsement from the Orlando Sentinel: While McCain “has stuck to his principles at the risk of sinking his campaign,” Mitt Romney “has abandoned positions that would have alienated his party’s conservative base.” (Indeed, I checked a computer database and discovered that, in the national media, Romney is at least six times more likely to be described as a flip-flopper than McCain.)
He then goes on to show how this “does not merely ignore but actually inverts the truth” and argues that “no presidential candidate in either party has flip-flopped as egregiously as McCain on such a wide range of issues.
Here’s just a small sample of Sen. Straight Talk’s recent series of remarkable conversions to politically convenient stances:
– On abortion rights, McCain has done a 180-degree turn, from favoring only the most minor restrictions and opposing the overturning of Roe v. Wade, to supporting an almost total ban, while advocating that the Supreme Court reverse Roe immediately.
– McCain has transformed himself from a deficit hawk who mocked supply-side economics into someone who sounds like he’s drunk deeply from the wackiest vats of supply-side Kool-Aid, to the point where he now claims raising taxes decreases revenues (a claim so wildly in conflict with the facts — for example, federal tax revenues almost doubled in real terms after the Clinton tax increases — that it’s either a shameless lie or a product of astounding ignorance).
– In regard to ethanol subsidies, McCain has gone from treating them as the worst sort of pork to becoming a strong supporter of a program despised by economists, but beloved of Iowa farmers and the good people at Archer Daniels Midland.
– Six years ago, McCain sternly condemned Jerry Falwell as “an agent of intolerance.” Eighteen months ago, he gave the commencement address at Falwell’s university, while openly embracing one of the most noxious figures of the religious right.
These are just a few examples from a far longer list. On topics ranging from immigration, to campaign finance reform, to gay marriage, to accepting support from various sleazy characters he previously shunned, McCain has either completely reversed his views or seriously equivocated regarding what they are this week.
As a reason for such distortions he concludes with this dead-on analysis:
“…this is accounted for by lazy autopilot journalism, which stops people from bothering to check whether the story line they’ve repeated for years still has any relationship to reality.
January 23rd, 2008 at 4:32 pm
As voters we have to look beyond the popular rhetoric. Look at the issues. Romney is not a Flip Flopper. He has explained his position on abortion. He changed his mind just like any one would do when new information is brought to light.
Many people who live comments on this blog have changed their minds about who they will support for President. Ronald Reagan changed his mind on abortion.
The flip flop is rhetoric that will discourage people to seriously look at a candidate. We can not let the next President be decided by the media.
January 23rd, 2008 at 10:55 pm
Here’s a little dose of humor. I was on the Town Hall website and saw this comment and gave me a good chuckle or two. Enjoy!
GOP in PA - hold on a minute. Romney flopped on all those issues? WELL, I have news for you. You’ve been in fantasy land too long. Seems while Romney flipped to a conservative, McCain FLIPPED to being a LIBERAL! Romney, you say, flopped to a conservative (of which you are so ashamed and can’t believe someone would convert to a Conservative viewpoint, NO, never!)… Jbut UST look at your OLD pal McCain. This guy had a 90 rating his first 10 years as a Senator. His last 10 years, his rating is 74.9 from the American Conservative Union, with an all-time low of 65 in 2006, just over one year ago. Your boy McCain has been FLOPPING to Liberalism for the last few years while you have a heart attack about Romney becoming a Conservative. Your beef should be the other way around! Get mad at McCain for flopping to Liberalism/Moderate instead of Romney for flopping to conservatism. WHILE you’re busy accusing Romney of becoming Conservative the last 3 years, YOU FAIL to see McCain has become a Liberal. He’s got a 65 rating, just one point higher than Ben Nelson, a Democrat! Why are you more concerned with Romney becoming a conservative, instead of being upset that McCain became a LIBERAL/MODERATE! And as for Mac being able to beat Hillary. 8 months ago, the polls showed Rudy in the lead, should we believe that he s leading now? Six months ago, polls showed Fred in 2nd nationally, should we believe that now. One month ago, polls showed Huck in 1st slightly ahead of Rudy after Iowa. Should we believe that too? Why do you get caught up in polls 10 months away? In 2000, polls showed Bush ahead by 17 over Gore, Gore won the popular and lost the electoral college! Can you possibly believe polls are an accurate predictor of 10 months AWAY! Polls are a snapshot in time. Not a FORECAST of the future. Why am I discussing all of this with someone who posts about polls 10 months from an election? (I need to ponder this for a bit
Oh well, have a good night. We obviously disagree about what the definition of conservative is. BTW, for all who keep throwing out what Mitt said 10 years ago, let’s focus on what the issues are about this election and what the candidates say they will do. I know that’s hard for all the McCain people because they don’t want to focus on McCain’s flops on immigration and taxes just in the last 6 months. Also, they don’t want to focus on McCain becoming a liberal/moderate 65 rating from the American Conservative Union the last 10 years, they’d rather castigate Romney for becoming WHAT! a CONSERVATIVE! NOOOO! NOOOO! We can’t have another CONSERVATIVE in the Republican Party! Shame, Shame on Mitt Romney for becoming a CONSERVATIVE! We can’t have more of those, NO, let’s get more McCain Moderates and Liberals in the Party, YES, then we can be the Democrat-Lite Party, YIPPEEE!
Posted By: Chris in TX | January 22, 2008 at 11:47 PM