Kerry and McCain ... a question

Back in the campaign, rumors were rampant about Kerry courting McCain as his veep. McCain got all cutesy-poo on the yak shows about it, but never confirmed or denied it. Now, after the fact, some Kerry detractors are saying that, among other things, it was an issue that helped cause Kerry to lose (assuming he actually lost).

This is NOT A THREAD TO START A FLAME WAR.

DO NOT HIJACK MY THREAD WITH AD HOMONYM BULLSHIT

My question is ..... what are the facts around this and what is rumor?

Did Kerry actually make an offer? I seem to recall him saying he and McCain spoke but there was no formal offer. But the rumors persisted. Was it the media fanning an ember to get a conflagration (my best guess as to what happened)? Did McCain rebuff Kerry or did Kerry simply speak to McCain .... and then go elsewhere for a veep?

Kerry approached McCain a couple of times, but McCain made it known he was not interested. Don't have any specific links. It was kept quiet.

I found a lot of articles referring to a 'rumor' and 'speculation', but no confirmation, and from McCain's own mouth thatKerry never offered it.

This one doesn't indicate that Kerry really offered it, just mentions general speculation:

(AP) Republican Sen. John McCain allowed a glimmer of hope Wednesday for Democrats fantasizing about a bipartisan dream team to defeat President Bush — a far-flung notion the senator's staff quickly squashed.

McCain said in a television interview that he would consider the unorthodox step of running for vice president on the Democratic ticket — in the unlikely event he received such an offer from the presidential candidate.

"John Kerry is a close friend of mine. We have been friends for years," McCain said Wednesday when pressed to squelch speculation about a Kerry-McCain ticket. "Obviously I would entertain it."

Within hours, the Arizona senator's chief of staff, Mark Salter, closed the door on that idea. "Senator McCain will not be a candidate for vice president in 2004," Salter told The Associated Press, saying he spoke for the senator.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/03/10/politics/main605167.shtml
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This shows a transcript where McCain states that Kerry never offered it to him:

SNOW: Now John Kerry, is it true that John Kerry asked you to be his vice president?
McCAIN: Uh, no. No, it was never offered.

SNOW: It was never offered. So, it may have been discussed elliptically, but never flat out request.

McCAIN: Never was an offer, no. (...)

SNOW: Right. But, so- I want to just lay to rest once and for all: never approached you, never hinted that he wanted to talk to you about being vice president. All that kind of stuff was made up.

McCAIN: Well, I cannot attest to that. All I can tell you is my conversations with him were private conversations, but he never offered it.



http://chris-bowers.mydd.com/story/2004/7/8/12341/76664

like the beaten dog that he has become.

I'd feel sorry for him if his constant heeling for Bush wasn't helping to aid the overturning of democracy in this country by the fascists.

McCain's son LOATHES Bush and his minions. There has to be even more reason than what we already know.

Was it before or after this that McCain grew "weary" of the mentioning of their friendship by Kerry.

McCain, you are an ass hat.

.... friends. And I see no reason whatever to disbelieve that. If for no other reason than they're members of a small club .... decorated Vietnam vets serving in the Senate. Add Hagel and Cleland to that club.

I also think - and on this agree with you - that it was McCain who threw the final wet blanket on the veep speculation with what I thought was a completely disrespectful statement about Kerry.

But then I have to look at motive .... were the words real or was McCain so weak himself that he did what Rove and company told him to do.

I really think they have pictures of McCain fellating a goat or something like that.

of hearing one of the Kerry campaign staffer (it might have even been Mary Beth Cahill (sp? - my how quickly we forget, I must have seen her name tens of thousands of times and can't remember the spelling of it) - anyway, someone from the campaign on a panel discussion shortly after the election, talking about things that went wrong during the election. One of the things she talked about was Kerry courting McCain for VP, how they lost a lot of time because of it. It sounded to me pretty much like a confirmation of the rumor.

I can't give you any reference beyond my memory, however ...

But took it with a grain of salt, considering the source. At the time I recall thinking hers and Shrum's stock were in the toilet.

But yeah ... that's the closest to confirmation I ever saw. But for the reason above, discount (but not ignore) its value.