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John McCain Scolds 2012 Republican Candidates For Talk Of Isolationism

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» 34 comments

Republican Senator John McCain joined his colleague Senator Lindsey Graham in what seemed to be a coordinated message of urging their fellow Republicans to back off on their criticism of President Obama’s handling of Libya. McCain not only feared that partisanship was trumping policy, but he was also scared of the rhetoric being used by the Republican presidential candidates.

McCain first reiterated a message he delivered earlier in the week regarding Republican attempts to invoke the War Powers Act to possibly limit Obama’s efforts in Libya, “I would say to my Republican friends, if this were a Republican president, would you be trying to impose these same conditions?” McCain suggested Gaddafi is too dangerous for us to be playing political games, and urged Republican candidates for President to recognize the danger as well.

McCain suggested that President Ronald Reagan would be shocked to see the isolationist talk coming from the current crop of GOP candidates at the last debate and suggested:

“[Reagan] would be saying ‘That’s not the Republican Party of the 20th century, and now the 21st century. That is not the Republican Party that has been willing to stand up for freedom for people for all over the world.’”

The former presidential candidate makes it clear that he disagrees strongly with any Republican who claims Obama was wrong to take military action in Libya. Politics certainly makes for some strange bedfellows, because who could have predicted that one of Obama’s loudest defenders on an issue would be the very man he defeated in a fierce election just a short time ago?

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  • Miroco

    The only good thing that happened last election was the emergence of Sarah, Poor John remains an embarrassment. Combat is difficult to predict but if anyone with actual knowledge had been in charge the whole Libya issue could have been resolved in days. Under O’s “leadership” billions have been wasted and our entire country is made to look weak. A committement, a carrier, a warrior and case closed in a week, but no—my guess, it wouldn’t give O enough time to get his commie pals in charge of the rag tag rebels.

  • BatBoy

    McCain… “I would say to my Republican friends,”

    I am just not sure that John has many Republican Friends left.

  • Dem4Ever

    America is sick and tired of standing up for the freedoms of others. Particularly those who use that freedom to try and destroy us.  Iraq is a wonderful example.  
    And then there is Afganistan.  I’m continually amazed by the fact that Afgani’s are so willing to fight and die for the right to live in poverty.

    Now we’re liberating Libya from Gadaffi and turning an entire country over to rebels with possible and likely ties to Al Quieda.

    Enough already!

  • Fokker News

    Miroco said:
    the whole Libya issue could have been resolved in days.

    Yeah, I am sure you believed it when the initial estimates for the Iraq war were place at 50-60 billion.

  • GoneFishing

    And just what ‘Profound Consequences’ could their be? There are no threat to us at all. The insurgence and rebels OTOH have been shown to be supported by Iran, and offer support in return with a goal of uniting the ‘Arabic World’ into a single block…Qahdafi made clear he likes running his own show, and does not want to join Iran and the Islamic nutters. That is one of the reasons for the rebellion to begin with. The Rebels do want Libya within the fold of Radical Islam and if they win, they will be.

  • Rusty Shackelford

    Senator McCain…thank you for your service but time has raced past you….please,please just go away. Go to Arizona and enjoy Cindy’s money but again,please just go away.No one care what you think.

  • Glackin

    Miroco said:
    The only good thing that happened last election was the emergence of Sarah, Poor John remains an embarrassment. Combat is difficult to predict but if anyone with actual knowledge had been in charge the whole Libya issue could have been resolved in days. Under O’s “leadership” billions have been wasted and our entire country is made to look weak. A committement, a carrier, a warrior and case closed in a week, but no—my guess, it wouldn’t give O enough time to get his commie pals in charge of the rag tag rebels.

    Sounds like a plan. Sounds like the one W, Darth & Rummy had for Iraq.
    How did you make out with that one? (Hint: 4400 dead.)

  • TillieGlockenspiel

    Rusty Shackelford said:
    Senator McCain…thank you for your service but time has raced past you….please,please just go away. Go to Arizona and enjoy Cindy’s money but again,please just go away.No one care what you think.

    I could not agree more. I respect McCain’s service to and sacrifices for our country during the VietNam war, BUT I am tired of his and Lindsey Graham’s “version” of conservatism. Both are RINOs of the Rockefeller wing of the party.

    I recommend that everyone listen to George Will’s take on the “five” wars Obama has now gotten us into. He was on the panel with Christianne Amanpour this morning.

    McCain is dead wrong to have the same old knee-jerk reaction to the involvement in Libya. Each use of the American military, whether personnel or material, should be evaluated individually on its merits. Moreover, the situation in Afghanistan cannot be judged simply by looking at our history there, since we are now occupying the position that Russia did, not the position we held previously, so our exposure and goals are different.

    Listening to McCain is not helpful to the GOP or to the security goals of the country at large.

  • Paleoconservatarian

    John McCain’s fantastic defeat is a perfect example of what happens when the Republican party chooses a presidential candidate that secured his nomination by racking up victories in a string of states only Democrats are likely to win in the general election.

    In other words, John McCain doesn’t speak for a Republican party that can ever win.

    Our nation can no longer afford it’s world overreach. It hasn’t been able to afford it for awhile and should have retrenched after the Berlin Wall fell. Moreover, we can’t stand for the freedom of others when they don’t have the same sense of freedom which we have now let alone that what we once possessed.

    When we go oversees, do we establish Republican forms of government wherein the leadership understands the basic liberties of a free people, who themselves respect the rights of others? Or thrust unprincipled democracy on an unready people so to see them give birth to a government that turn out to be allies of our enemy Iran? Else do we prop up kleptocrats and strongmen? Without forethought, the world scope of our various interventions is just military enterprising and opportunism on a grand scale. It’s a recipe of disaster. It’s the weak nation that feels it has to have boots on the ground to protect it’s interests instead of relying an orbit of friendly, like minded nations. It’s the doomed nation which has tripwires in every corner of the world, reacting to threats instead of having the nimbleness and freedom of action which would come of strategic disengagement.

    John McCain is a fool, wedded to a world view of 50 years past it’s prime.

  • http://justplaythegame.us JustPlayTheGame

    John, if war was nothing more than for the voice of Freedom, America would stand proudly with any nation fighting for that end. As it is, You sir and many other great heros of the Vietnam war have been tricked into believing war is for freedom instead of for the control and rape of other nations. We as true Americans can no longer allow our countries corporate empire to expand on the backs of suppressed people. How many million died after our pullot of vietnam. What have we done but to place other less than democratic regimes into nations we are supporting in the name of freedom. wake up John! Americans are tired of being the protector of nothing while losing freedoms here on our own soil. Democrats and Republicans are dinosaur parties needing a change.

    Forget party lines and start picking common sense.

  • Dem4Ever

    BREAKING NEWS…

    Rory McElroy has won the US Open by 8 strokes.

  • THE REAL ROYAL KING

    I hope McCain gets the Republican nomination for president.

  • TfT

    Oh yeah, I remember when John told his fellow democrats to stop criticizing Bush about his froeign policy. This is why McCain never was, never will be solid in the republican camp. He joined his democrat buddies in criticizing Bush and now he criticizes his fellow republicans for talking about Libya.

    John and Lindsey,two peas in a pod who need to shut up and go away and get off television. they are allowed on the air because they are commited rino’s who would rather criticize republiacns than democrats.

  • Thelonious Funk

    When I was a kid, I would love to build myself a fort out of couch cushions and blankets, crawl inside, and pretend that the world around me didn’t exist.

    Of course, that was when I was a kid.

  • winning

    Okay, so the rino loser who ran the worst campaign in history is offering up advice. Awesome.

  • TillieGlockenspiel

    The thing I really love with both McCain and Graham is how the media treats them like “brilliant” foreign policy experts AS LONG AS THEY AGREE WITH THE LEFT, but, as McCain found out in his abortive campaign for president, the media will turn on him (and Graham) in a heartbeat if they perceive that it is in Obama’s interest.

    McCain’s time is long past, but he doesn’t accept it.

  • Michael_T

    I would submit that Senator McCain would have much more credibility on this issue if he had not sung ‘Bomb Bomb Iran’ to a crowd in South Carolina.

    While he criticizes those in his own party for playing politics with their opposition to the intervention in Libya, he also has a history of being a bit too anxious to engage in wars with countries that currently do not pose a real and present danger to the United States.

  • TillieGlockenspiel

    http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2011/06/19/george_will_five_wars_how_many_do_these_people_want.html

    George Will: “The United States is engaged in hostilities in Iraq, Afghanistan, the tribal region of Pakistan, Yemen and Libya. That’s five wars, how many do these people want? With regard to Libya: Did Libya attack us? No. Was it about to attack us? No. Were we obliged by a treaty to get engaged in a civi war in a tribal society? No. Were American’s endangered? No. Find me a reason for this.”

    “The reason is the humanitarian reason,” Amanpour said.

    “To say that people are isolationists, akin to those didn’t want to resist Hitler and Japan because they don’t want to prolong the folly of the involvement in Libya is preposterous,” Will concluded.

  • Azarkhan

    So John, when do we invade Syria? Wholelotta human rights abuses going on there.

  • GoneFishing

    Paleoconservatarian said:
    John McCain’s fantastic defeat is a perfect example of what happens when the Republican party chooses a presidential candidate that secured his nomination by racking up victories in a string of states only Democrats are likely to win in the general election.

    In other words, John McCain doesn’t speak for a Republican party that can ever win.

    Our nation can no longer afford it’s world overreach. It hasn’t been able to afford it for awhile and should have retrenched after the Berlin Wall fell. Moreover, we can’t stand for the freedom of others when they don’t have the same sense of freedom which we have now let alone that what we once possessed.

    When we go oversees, do we establish Republican forms of government wherein the leadership understands the basic liberties of a free people, who themselves respect the rights of others? Or thrust unprincipled democracy on an unready people so to see them give birth to a government that turn out to be allies of our enemy Iran? Else do we prop up kleptocrats and strongmen? Without forethought, the world scope of our various interventions is just military enterprising and opportunism on a grand scale. It’s a recipe of disaster. It’s the weak nation that feels it has to have boots on the ground to protect it’s interests instead of relying an orbit of friendly, like minded nations. It’s the doomed nation which has tripwires in every corner of the world, reacting to threats instead of having the nimbleness and freedom of action which would come of strategic disengagement.

    John McCain is a fool, wedded to a world view of 50 years past it’s prime.

    Just wait. They will try to do the same thing with Romney…The Republican Party; Experts at kicking their own ass.

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  • AmericaSucks

    A last gasp from what’s left of the once-proud Republic Party.

  • X-3

    SHADDUP RINO.

  • AmericaSucks

    X-3 said:
    SHADDUP RINO.

    Reagan was a RINO, too.

  • Nacho

    RINO

  • Hembolize

    McCain is very intelligent person and former Republican nominee for president in the 2008. On this topic, I think so , whatever he is doing , all are right .Like obama.
    http://juveneu.net/

  • THE REAL ROYAL KING

    I gather a RINO is someone who serves his or her country in the military, is wounded in action, is taken prisoner, is brutally tortured and comes back to serve his country in Congress. Is that about right? Such people can’t be “real” Republicans?

  • Hugo Daun

    THE REAL ROYAL KING said:
    Such people can’t be “real” Republicans?

    If he’d won the presidency, many of these folks would be kissing the Crypt Keeper’s ass right now.

  • Steve_27

    Yeah with Kucinich leading the charge here John makes another strong point. (Roll eyes)

    So how about later today Obama goes into Yemen and without consulting congress? If ANY politician say’s we shouldn’t be there, is that “isolationism?” Then maybe on Thursday we can go into Syria in the same way. If anyone ask’s why congress how we can afford it I guess that makes us “isolationist” also? I say we hit Iran first though, they’re the biggest threat and need to get hammered. Good to know we can go everywhere now with “We cant be isolationist” as a defense.

  • Steve_27

    THE REAL ROYAL KING said:
    I gather a RINO is someone who serves his or her country in the military, is wounded in action, is taken prisoner, is brutally tortured and comes back to serve his country in Congress. Is that about right? Such people can’t be “real” Republicans?

    Kerry, Murtha, Durbin, Rangle, Kennedy, McGovern, Carter; As you can see, it is easy to have served then come home a clueless scumbag. Nice try though.

  • billwhit1357

    I respect John McCains military service, but it is time for him to retire, he is more RINO that Conservative. He is backing Obama when Obama did another illegal move, and that is pretty sickening! We have a President that does not have the confidence of the American People, who is UnTrustworthy, who Lies outright, and has walked all over our Constitution and our Laws and who should be Impeached. I voted McCain in 2008 only because he was the better of two evils. I will support anyone who runs against the current Worthless Excuse of a Leader and Human, B. Hussein Obama! We need another four years of this Idiot and AntiAmerican like we need another 9/11, we Don’t! Anyone but Obama in 2012!

  • X-3

    billwhit1357 said:
    Anyone but Obama in 2012!

    I agree. Maybe it’s too much to ask any more but I keep hoping for a candidate I can vote “FOR” instead of simply voting against the people who want to “fundamentally transform” my country. The last president I voted “FOR” was Ronald Reagan.

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