lily
01-13-2007, 10:36 PM
Link (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/12/AR2007011202220.html?referrer=email)
The War Within Sen. McCain
Vocal Supporter of Bush Is Increasingly Critical, Isolated
By Dan Balz and Shailagh Murray
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, January 13, 2007; Page A01
There is no mistaking the anguish of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). Sitting in
his Senate office, he is uncharacteristically subdued, his voice at times
almost inaudible.
Although the Bush administration this week finally embraced his
long-standing call to send more troops to Iraq, McCain believes the way it
has handled the war "will go down as one of the worst" mistakes in the
history of the American military.
"One of the most frustrating things that's ever happened in my political
life," he said, "is watching this train wreck."
McCain, an all but announced presidential candidate, offered those
assessments toward the end of a lengthy interview Thursday night. No
politician in the United States is more clearly identified with President
Bush's new policy, and no politician has more to lose if it fails.
Democratic opponents have already coined a name for the troop "surge": the
McCain Doctrine.
McCain made it clear that he supports Bush's plan to send more than 20,000
additional U.S. troops to Iraq as the only way to prevent that country from
slipping further into chaos. "I cannot guarantee success, but I can
guarantee failure if we don't adopt this new strategy," he said.
But he also voiced deep frustration over what the war has done, both to this
country and to Iraq. "I think many things that have happened in the world
that are unfavorable to the United States are the result of our weakness in
the Iraqi conflict," he said.
Asked how the war may affect his candidacy, McCain shrugged off the
question. "I can't think about it or worry about it," he said. "I have to do
what I think is right."
On the night of Bush's speech, he told CNN's Larry King: "I would much
rather lose an election than lose a war."
The risk now is that both could be lost.
As a forceful advocate for a policy that appears to fly in the face of the
message voters sent in November, the politician who has long played for the
center of the electorate now finds himself isolated on the right.
"The war is going badly, and he is now the leading public advocate of more
of the same or even much more of the same," said Ron Klain, a Democratic
strategist and chief of staff to then-Vice President Al Gore. "That's an odd
place to be."
At a time when many Republicans are voicing opposition to Bush's plan,
McCain is not budging. Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), one of McCain's
closest friends in the Senate, explained the political stakes in the
simplest terms. "If we're successful, he'll get the benefit," Graham said,
referring to Iraq. "If we fail, he'll get the blame."
The War Within Sen. McCain
Vocal Supporter of Bush Is Increasingly Critical, Isolated
By Dan Balz and Shailagh Murray
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, January 13, 2007; Page A01
There is no mistaking the anguish of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). Sitting in
his Senate office, he is uncharacteristically subdued, his voice at times
almost inaudible.
Although the Bush administration this week finally embraced his
long-standing call to send more troops to Iraq, McCain believes the way it
has handled the war "will go down as one of the worst" mistakes in the
history of the American military.
"One of the most frustrating things that's ever happened in my political
life," he said, "is watching this train wreck."
McCain, an all but announced presidential candidate, offered those
assessments toward the end of a lengthy interview Thursday night. No
politician in the United States is more clearly identified with President
Bush's new policy, and no politician has more to lose if it fails.
Democratic opponents have already coined a name for the troop "surge": the
McCain Doctrine.
McCain made it clear that he supports Bush's plan to send more than 20,000
additional U.S. troops to Iraq as the only way to prevent that country from
slipping further into chaos. "I cannot guarantee success, but I can
guarantee failure if we don't adopt this new strategy," he said.
But he also voiced deep frustration over what the war has done, both to this
country and to Iraq. "I think many things that have happened in the world
that are unfavorable to the United States are the result of our weakness in
the Iraqi conflict," he said.
Asked how the war may affect his candidacy, McCain shrugged off the
question. "I can't think about it or worry about it," he said. "I have to do
what I think is right."
On the night of Bush's speech, he told CNN's Larry King: "I would much
rather lose an election than lose a war."
The risk now is that both could be lost.
As a forceful advocate for a policy that appears to fly in the face of the
message voters sent in November, the politician who has long played for the
center of the electorate now finds himself isolated on the right.
"The war is going badly, and he is now the leading public advocate of more
of the same or even much more of the same," said Ron Klain, a Democratic
strategist and chief of staff to then-Vice President Al Gore. "That's an odd
place to be."
At a time when many Republicans are voicing opposition to Bush's plan,
McCain is not budging. Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), one of McCain's
closest friends in the Senate, explained the political stakes in the
simplest terms. "If we're successful, he'll get the benefit," Graham said,
referring to Iraq. "If we fail, he'll get the blame."