Allen: McCain doesn’t want his balanced budget pledge to be recorded on tape.
Allen: McCain doesn’t want his balanced budget pledge to be recorded on tape.
Yesterday, Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) presidential campaign released an economic plan promising that McCain will “balance the budget by the end of his first term.” But in a speech in Denver yesterday, McCain refused to mention his strict promise, instead just saying that he will “get government’s fiscal house in order.” On CSPAN’s Washington Journal today, Politico reporter Mike Allen said that the fact that McCain “didn’t actually say it in his speech” is an indication that he doesn’t want to be videotaped making the pledge:
HOST: Start with your story yesterday about Sen. John McCain’s speech in Denver, CO yesterday outlining his new economic plan. You wrote that he promised to balance the federal budget by the end of his first term.
ALLEN: He did, but Greta, what’s fascinating is he did it on the paper he put out on the 15 page book, the McCain Economic Plan, but he didn’t actually say it in his speech. So, he’s getting it both ways. The promise is out there for conservatives who might want to see it, but there’s no videotape of it to show later which might give you some indication of how likely Sen. McCain thinks it is that this will actually occur.
Watch it:
Perhaps McCain is trying to avoid making a “read my lips” pledge on video.
Transcript:
HOST: Start with your story yesterday about Sen. John McCain’s soeech in Denver, CO yesterday outlining his new economic plan. You wrote that he promised to balance the federal budget by the end of his first term.
ALLEN: He did, but Greta, what’s fascinating is he did it on the paper he put out on the 15 page book, the McCain Economic Plan, but he didn’t actually say it in his speech. So, he’s getting it both ways. The promise is out there for conservatives who might want to see it, but there’s no videotape of it to show later, which might give you some indication of how likely Sen. McCain thinks it is that this will actually occur.
HOST: Well, why not put it on video, why not have it on the public record in that way?
ALLEN: I don’t know the real answer to that, but they put out the night before, Politico posted this document, and in it it says that he’ll balance the budget by 2013, so the end of his first term, before he takes the office, oath for a second time, or passes the baton to his successor, and that is a very difficult challenge. CBO, Congressional Budget Office figures, suggest that it might involve cutting one-third of spending that’s not committed by law, including defense. And you know how politically likely that is, so Sen. McCain does take on a really tough issue here, as your viewers well know, in order to balance the budget, they’re going to have to be changes made to Social Security. President Bush tried that, you saw how far that went.
But Sen. McCain acknowledges that real changes are not just going to come through spending cut here, spending cut there. You’re going to have to make changes to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid. And granted that’s going to have to be a very popular president. Somebody who, just after they’ve taken office and can work across the aisle and can do maybe even like a choctalk to the American people, explaining this. President Bush thought that after he was re-elected, he had that big electoral victory, big popular victory, that he would have the mojo, that he would have the political capital to do it. And it just didn’t happen, it was just too tough.
Now, it’s clear from Sen. McCain’s record, things he’s said in the past, his language today, that if he got in office, he would have probably big Democratic majorities in the House and Senate. He would work with those chambers to cut benefits, waive future benefits a little bit, increase the Social Security taxes, or the amount of income that’s taxed for the very wealthy. But that’s not something you can really talk about in a campaign, so they’re a little vague about it. I think you’re going to see a lot of stories in coming days, can McCain pay for what he’s proposing here. USA Today had a very tough editorial today saying that he needs a little more straight talk.
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Has McSame / MacChurian Candidate figured out that three is a thing called YouTube ?
Is this a reprise of “Read my Lips! No New Taxes !” ???
July 8th, 2008 at 5:55 pmMcCain’s campaign is finally working out the function of the tubes and wires of the internets.
July 8th, 2008 at 5:57 pmExactly right. Taxes will be raised by whoever is elected. They have to be because of where bush has taken us with the help of the republicans in congress.
It’s just a question of who’s taxes will go up and how much……it aint rocket science.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:07 pmMaybe McSame is like our troll, always off topic and nothing useful to say. That would be a reason not to be recorded, wouldn’t it?
If you think McCain would make a good president, you are insane.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:08 pmThis suggests the guy thinks he may actually win and run for a second term. Think on that one before declaring the election over and moving on. Never a good idea to quit before the enemy does no matter how enfebled the enemy appears.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:12 pmMcCain: What? You mean to tell me they make films with sound now?
July 8th, 2008 at 6:15 pmmccain: hand me my powder horn, I’m going to Iran..We will balance the budget on the profits from a war.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:17 pmWith the recent bashing of Obama and the condoning of McCain I feel compelled to examine the present political partisan phenomenon phrased as Philip-plopping. My reference (Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, C. & G. Merriam Company, Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.A., 1977) defines “flip-flop” as an intransitive verb denoting the action of a sudden reversal of direction or point of view. Note there is no value judgment attached to the action.
It is only when the action is assigned judgment in terms of an adverb or adverbial phrase and applied to “My Guy” or “Your Guy” does the concept of “flip-flopping” take on a positive or negative connotation. “Your Guy” is a flip-flopper because he is a wishy-washy opportunist. BAD! “My Guy” is a flip-flopper because he is a fact-considering pragmatist. GOOD!
To illustrate the concept in real terms let us consider a scenario with which we are all too familiar. Imagine, if you will, two drivers side-by-each, at a stop light. Both drivers have a common destination but that is the end of their similarity.
The driver in lane 1 (closest to the curb) waits for the light to turn green by revving his engine, creeping over the line and watching the opposing light to gain an advantage at the start. When the light turns green he makes a rubber-burning, jack-rabbit start and begins the trip using the means to justify the end–getting to the destination in front. He changes lanes without looking, signaling nor considering the drivers he cuts off, he exceeds the speed limit, he pushes the limit on yellow lights, he honks, he curses, he follows too closely, if not breaking the laws he sure is bending them out of shape, he ignores all the one-finger waves and mouthed profanities, and, if stopped, he lies about his actions.
The driver in lane 2 (closest to the center) spends his time waiting for the green light by carefully planning his trip. He considers the traffic, the weather, the road conditions, the time of day (rush hour), the day of the week (week-day, week-end), time of the month (holiday), and the month of the year (season). When the light turns green he observes the entrance to the intersection and when safe to do so he starts at a reasonable rate to conserve gas. He uses the means dictated by law and common sense to attain the end–getting to the destination safely and legally. He changes lanes when the circumstances indicate that it would be a prudent move but only after checking the traffic and making the proper signals. He adjusts his speed to assure a safe and prudent rate at or under the posted limit. He maintains the proper distance when following. He anticipates the traffic lights and does not stop suddenly nor proceed unsafely. He uses his horn only as a safety measure to warn other drivers of his presence. He exchanges friendly five-fingered waves of greeting with his fellow drivers. He obeys all the applicable laws to assure he is not stopped so he has no need to stretch the truth.
Who got there first? Who knows? Who cares? The point is that both drivers flip-flopped continuously during the trip. Was one a “good” flip-flopper? Absolutely! Was one a “bad” flip-flopper? Without a doubt! Pray tell which is which!
Now is the time to apply those value laden adverbs. For the driver in lane 1 the two words that come to mind immediately are “arbitrarily” (selected at random and without reason) and “capriciously” (characterized by a sudden, impulsive, unwarranted change of mind). For the driver in lane 2 the terms “considerately” (matured by extended, deliberative thought) and “justifiably” (proven to be just, right and reasonable) seem very appropriate.
How, you ask, does the preceding parable shed light on the pressing problem of the present political phenomenon phrased as phlip-phlopping?
One need to look no farther than the lanes which the drivers have chosen.
The arbitrarily and capriciously flip-flopping driver in lane 1 is on the RIGHT.
The considerately and justifiably flip-flopping driver in lane 2 is on the LEFT.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:17 pmThat’s ok hate….we got your number.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:19 pmpronster Says:
July 8th, 2008 at 6:22 pmMore porn… boring… goodbye.
So the old goat finally figured out what that lensy thing does. It’s sorta like a tape recorder, except that it not only records what you say, but it takes like a moving picture of you saying it.
Wait! Someone could look at that later, it does have that replay thingy, right? Hell No! No camera picture tapey reporting thingy, or yer drafted you punk!
July 8th, 2008 at 6:25 pmGod I hate to correct you but, well, I must. Please try to be as factual as possible and we will try to speak slower and use smaller words. It’s not just the dems fool.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:28 pmWhat is it with these porn-peddlers?
Flag’em as many times as you can stand.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:28 pmpronster, you don’t really think anyone’s actually going to ‘click’ that link, do you?
Poor obsessed baby. Get a paper bag, blow into it, seal it off and pop it. Try it again, and again and again.
That should keep you out of trouble for a week or so.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:28 pmMcCain doesn’t want a record/video to be played back by an interviewer while he puckers up and tries to flip-flop-deny while sucking cushion through his anus . . .
and “hate am” - Congress down?? seems odd that the REPUBLICONS have blocked any action in Congress and are in a panic knowing that they are going to lose so many that the Republican Seats will be reduced to one . . . in a Minneapolis airport. And the oil went down due to increase in confidence in the dollar brought on by polls showing Obama LEADING McCain in Electoral Votes . . . and the “request” by Iraq that the U.S. leave . . .
July 8th, 2008 at 6:28 pmFlag pronster for linking to pornography.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:29 pmThat’s okay folks. We won’t have to worry about him running our federal deficit to 20 trillion. He has no shot in hell.
July 8th, 2008 at 6:31 pmIs pronster really Jeff Gannon?
His long sideburns are kinda ‘old school’, though.
July 8th, 2008 at 7:12 pmThese little turds give vandals, through the ages, a bad name. At least the punks used to get exercise tracking down vacant buildings to throw rocks at. With the modern breed we have to deal with them dropping dead if they actually mange to climb out of Mommy’s basement.
July 8th, 2008 at 7:35 pmMy God McCain & his cronies are liars. Over & over– lies, deceit, & of course– flip-flops. He has no intelligence.
July 8th, 2008 at 7:41 pmSo if it isn’t on youtube it didn’t happen. How corny is this liar.
July 9th, 2008 at 5:02 amIt must be his uncontrollable lying eye tics. those fast hard blinks gives you away liar.
Hey mcchimpy, you and your bud hagee are anti-youtube. Are you trying to push your lying repug “youtube?”
July 9th, 2008 at 5:41 amWell, really, who wants his own lies in record?
July 9th, 2008 at 6:44 ammcchimpy doesn’t want us to see his medical records and he doesn’t want his stank face on TV. It may be a medical problem
he doesn’t want us to see him limping.
he doesn’t want us to understand his relationships with hagee, lieberman and chimpy.
I believe less in repug ads endorsed by groups or actors instead of mcchimpy. mcchimpy just states Sen. Obama does nothing. he is liberal (which isn’t a bad thing) or he’s out of touch.
mcchimpy runs a shabby campaign.
he’s another pain in the US of American’s ass.
July 9th, 2008 at 8:49 amSen. McCain is saying he’d rather we quote the press release instead of a videotape.
Not a biggie, IMO, stupid is stupid, whether verbal or written.
July 9th, 2008 at 2:15 pm