The problem with McCain’s Big Vision Thing speech; Update: “I will ask Democrats to serve in my administration;” “Illegal immigration has been finally brought under control” (hahaha)
You’ll have to forgive me for not getting all worked up about John McCain’s BVT (Big Vision Thing) speech this morning in Columbus, Ohio.
The fatal flaw lies in McCain’s persistent belief, shared by the MSM and Beltway pundits, that partisanship in and of itself is at the root of all our ills.
McCain’s problem is that he has allied himself, for the unprincipled, empty cause of mindless “bipartisanship,” with people and causes that move our country in the wrong direction.
I don’t want a Republican presidential nominee who makes common cause with La Raza/The Race.
I don’t want a Republican presidential nominee who sneers about profits like Ralph Nader.
I don’t want a Republican presidential nominee who talks and walks like Al Gore.
And as I’ve said before in response to the annoying McCain platitudes about “reaching across the aisle” and “getting things done:”
When did it become the Republican Party’s top priority to “get things done?”
“Get things done” is mindless liberal code for passing legislation and expanding government.
And as McCain’s ample legislative record demonstrates, “reaching across the political aisle” never entails pulling opponents to the right. It always entails selling out the right.
How about defending our side of the political aisle?
How about standing up to the regulatory and legislative encroachment of those on the other side of the political aisle?
How about limiting the damage done by Democrat meddlers trying to get their “things done?”
How about less trashing of the entrepreneurs on our side of the aisle who are the engine of our economy?
How about getting more things undone?
***
From the prepared text of the speech (full text here):
Next January, the political leadership of the United States will change significantly. It is important that the candidates who seek to lead the country after the Bush Administration define their objectives and what they plan to achieve not with vague language but with clarity.
So, what I want to do today is take a little time to describe what I would hope to have achieved at the end of my first term as President. I cannot guarantee I will have achieved these things. I am presumptuous enough to think I would be a good President, but not so much that I believe I can govern by command. Should I forget that, Congress will, of course, hasten to remind me. The following are conditions I intend to achieve. And toward that end, I will focus all the powers of the office; every skill and strength I possess; and seize every opportunity to work with members of Congress who put the national interest ahead of partisanship, and any country in the world that shares our hopes for a more peaceful and prosperous world.
…I am well aware I cannot make any of these changes alone. The powers of the presidency are rightly checked by the other branches of government, and I will not attempt to acquire powers our founders saw fit to grant Congress. I will exercise my veto if I believe legislation passed by Congress is not in the nation’s best interests, but I will not subvert the purpose of legislation I have signed by making statements that indicate I will enforce only the parts of it I like. I will respect the responsibilities the Constitution and the American people have granted Congress, and will, as I often have in the past, work with anyone of either party to get things done for our country.
For too long, now, Washington has been consumed by a hyper-partisanship that treats every serious challenge facing us as an opportunity to trade insults; disparage each other’s motives; and fight about the next election. For all the problems we face, if you ask Americans what frustrates them most about Washington, they will tell you they don’t think we’re capable of serving the public interest before our personal and partisan ambitions; that we fight for ourselves and not for them. Americans are sick of it, and they have every right to be. They are sick of the politics of selfishness, stalemate and delay. They despair when every election — no matter who wins — always seems to produce four more years of unkept promises and a government that is just a battleground for the next election. Their patience is at an end for politicians who value ambition over principle, and for partisanship that is less a contest of ide as than an uncivil brawl over the spoils of power. They want to change not only the policies and institutions that have failed the American people, but the political culture that produced them. They want to move this country forward and stake our claim on this century as we did in the last. And they want their government to care more about them than preserving the privileges of the powerful.
There are serious issues at stake in this election, and serious differences between the candidates. And we will argue about them, as we should. But it should remain an argument among friends; each of us struggling to hear our conscience, and heed its demands; each of us, despite our differences, united in our great cause, and respectful of the goodness in each other. That is how most Americans treat each other. And it is how they want the people they elect to office to treat each other.
If I am elected President, I will work with anyone who sincerely wants to get this country moving again. I will listen to any idea that is offered in good faith and intended to help solve our problems, not make them worse. I will seek the counsel of members of Congress from both parties in forming government policy before I ask them to support it. I will ask Democrats to serve in my administration. My administration will set a new standard for transparency and accountability. I will hold weekly press conferences. I will regularly brief the American people on the progress our policies have made and the setbacks we have encountered. When we make errors, I will confess them readily, and explain what we intend to do to correct them. I will ask Congress to grant me the privilege of coming before both houses to take questions, and address criticism, much the same as the Prime Minister of Great Britain appears regularly before the House of Commons.
We cannot again leave our problems for another unluckier generation of Americans to fix after they have become even harder to solve. I’m not interested in partisanship that serves no other purpose than to gain a temporary advantage over our opponents. This mindless, paralyzing rancor must come to an end. We belong to different parties, not different countries. We are rivals for the same power. But we are also compatriots. We are fellow Americans, and that shared distinction means more to me than any other association. I intend to prove myself worthy of the office; of our country; and of your respect. I won’t judge myself by how many elections I’ve won. I won’t spend one hour of my presidency worrying more about my re-election than keeping my promises to the American people. There is a time to campaign, and a time to govern. If I’m elected President, the era of the permanent campaign will end. The era of problem solving will begin. I promise you, from the day I am sworn into office until the last hour of my presidency, I will work with anyone, of either party, to make this country safe, prosperous and proud. And I won’t care who gets the credit.
Thank you.
The bulk of the speech is a “look back” as if it were 2013 and McCain’s assessing all his progress as president. You know it’s pure fantasy because of this line:
Illegal immigrants who broke our laws after they came here have been arrested and deported. Illegal immigration has been finally brought under control, and the American people accepted the practical necessity to institute a temporary worker program and deal humanely with the millions of immigrants who have been in this country illegally.
At no time in American history has illegal alien amnesty ever led to a reduction in–let alone control of–illegal immigration.
Fantasy land.
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I come from a long line of conservative Republicans. In November, I will be unenthusiatically voting in my 15th Presidential election. Never before have we had such a Hobson’s choice of presidental candidates.
I cannot get my head around how McCain wound up the Republican nominee. I never liked him and my disapproval increases exponentially every time he opens his mouth. McCains only redeeming merit is his recognition that the Iraq intervention was and is a long term necessity in confronting global terrorism.
The blog isn’t the huffington post because the owners are not advocating what the liberal blogs are.
This blog does a good job to let people vent about the things that they like, and don’t like.
The members of this site are quite understandably expressing their frustration at the events that we all are in.
However, we’ll have to wait to see who ends up being our president. When that happens, the people who either didn’t vote at all, and participated in a democrat victory in november will then explain to us all how this was a better choice.
Here’s a comment on McCain’s speech from an AP story today:
I really like all of that.
You sir are not a conservative on illegal immigration. This is the same BS rhetroic/strawman used by the libs and mcamnesty during the amnesty debate. Look, the answer is simple. It is not an either “shoot them all” or amnesty them all choice. Such garbage!!! Eliminate the magnets that draw and keep them here. No jobs, no welfare, no anchor babies, no citizenship, etc and they WILL leave on their own accord and others will not come. Just make life difficult to live in the US illegally with no benefits and problem solved. Any reasonable person could put together a plan based on the issues that caused the problem in the first place. But MORONS like you try to pigeonhole the answer in to all or nothing crap. Another rah rah cheerleader for mcamnesty.
McCain can’t or won’t grasp this, and I don’t understand why. Is he so tied to getting his lawn mowed at a cut rate?
What a nutty comment. The same old, “we can’t deport 12 million people crap the libs been feeding us for years now. Apparently if we can’t deport 12 million people that means we can’t deport anyone. How completely illogical is that? As has been said before, stop treating them as if they are invited guest and make living here illegally tough, they will mostly self-deport. If a couple don’t leave it’ll still be much much better.
It’s curious how the pro illegal bunch never lays out their position. They don’t take up our worries and refute them they resort, every single time, to trying to manipulate our feelings. These people come here and then send the money they make back home yet they don’t have much infrastructure down there. Why not? Because they tear it down and sell it for scrap just like we are seeing here more and more each day. Mexico might be a nice place to visit but you wouldn’t want to live there. 30 years ago you could park your truck on a construction site with your tools in back and the tailgate down no one would touch your stuff. Try that today I dare you. So tell me what has changed, explain to me why it has and how it has nothing to do with illegal immigration. Go ahead tell me how much they care and how like they are to you or I.
Back in March, I thought I could come around and vote for McCain and other Republicans. Now that is getting to be an even more bitter pill to swallow. And it ain’t cause what the Democrats have been saying.
Quite right. This approach is working for some states now as illegals are “deporting” themselves to neighboring states which still welcome them.
By not voting for the LOTE does NOT mean that we will not vote1
There are still issues and other offices
that concern us.
The slppery slide to the socialist left is where some of us will no longer encourage by our voting for the LESSER OF TWO EVIL!
Until the Grand Ol’ Party gets some backbone – WE the PEOPLE will choose – and it will be those of honor who will protect and honor the Constitution – and not the “breathing” one foisted upon us by librals from both parties.
“Illegal immigrants who broke our laws after they came here have been arrested and deported. Illegal immigration has been finally brought under control..”
What rock has this idiot McCain been sleeping under? Did his best buddy Juan write that for him? Or maybe it was his other buddy Calderon?
THIS IS AN OUTRIGHT BALD-FACED LIE!
The worse thing is, millions of complete morons will hear that and accept it as truth. Damn it, there should be a test administered to be able to vote – if you’re too ignorant, then you can’t vote.
McCAIN YOU ARE A LYING SACK OF ….
I can’t wait until the rest of America wakes up to your evil self-serving lies, and kicks your butt south of the border where it belongs.
Sorry for that outburst, but woah.. I never thought of myself as the sort of person who would ‘froth-at-the-mouth’ over politics, let alone against a Republican, but holy crap, this guy just keeps sinking to lower and lower depths almost on a daily basis.. McCain get the hell out, you are NOT a Republican.
Again, Michelle… respectfully:
What’s the alternative?
Clinton? Obama?
Hell. No.
Again, on that same point: HELL NO!
The Governor of Arizona is defunding Maricopa County, the Sheriff vows it won’t make any difference he will still enforce the State Law against Illegal Aliens. This is the state that John McCain is pointing to as a success? This is the state that hasn’t suffered from nelegect of it’s elected leaders? The State that put up a virtual fence that doesn’t work at how much expense to the Tax Payers? Success huh? Well let’s have a look at the measuring stick McCain is using.
On May 15th, 2008 at 4:07 pm, franksalterego said:
You and me both, buddy.
I believe his silly little speech today was the groudwork for making Lieberman his VP pick.
Bleh, that should have been groundwork.
I see your point. I am not super thrilled about McCain either but respect that he can actually step across party lines, however bad the bills come out to be…. I have always thought them to be political stunts to gain respect from moderate Dems that have trouble voting for liberals.
Whatever his intentions, he is light years ahead of any Dems and I think would do a generally good job.
Liberalism is the demise of this great country and it is quite sad. I pray to God that we can get a Reagan-esque political leader once again.
Michelle, where do you get these LOSERS??
Frank is obviously a troll or deliberately keeping his head in the sand, parroting the tired old false dichotomy of Bush, McCain, Kennedy, et al: “We can’t deport 12 million
undocumented workersillegal aliens, THEREFORE (sic) we must make them citizens.”Frank – try a little ‘attrition through enforcement’, which is working just fine in several states where enacted, and very popular in many more state legislatures.
Read all about it here.
And check this poll that shows for the first time all three choices – attrition, amnesty, and deportation.
Attrition through enforcement is what American citizens want, and what their state lawmakers are acting on.
…by Michael Novak at NRO:
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=Y2NmNDFmM2FjMjNhZDY5NDVkY2MxNTg4ZGIxMzc5ODY=
Tough call. A serial criminal, Hillary from the Boss Tweed Party, Obama from the Moonbats, or McCain from the Democrat Party.
oh really Uncle Samnesty??
if I remember correctly, during the amnesty bill debate, Sen. Cornyn of Texas had an amendment to deport violent felons, and Juan McPain voted NO to that, and it narrowly failed.
this guy is such a slimeball defender of illegal aliens that he cannot be trusted to do anything but lie and lie to us over and over, but his previous words and ACTIONS speak volumes about his intentions.
he may have an “R” next to his name, but he ain’t “R” kind of guy.
And we are losing states rights now?
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=26496
This is for the most part true. But its just a progression. If they go for each others throats first, then its only a matter of time.
And these people have shown that they can set aside differences to attack what they perceive is a common enemy, which is Israel and our country, in the name of Islam.