Why are people So Damn Intimidated By McCain?

I don't understand the fear that's been spreading over DU since McCain became the presumptive nominee. So what he's a Vietnam vet...the guy is a staunch supporter of one of the biggest strategic blunders in DECADES!!! He won't be whooping anyone's ass on foreign policy, even he admitted that the Iraq War could hurt him.

But DU's fear of McCain has even prompted posters to suggest General VPs like Zinni(who no one knows a damn thing about) and Bush appointee General Patraus...WTF? That's playing right into the Rethug hands because we're giving them more credibility than they deserve.

Obama clearly doesn't.

...and soft velvety mouth.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/53/buddyicons/58835808@N00.jpg

All mouth, no substance=John McCain

the repug side. It's sad really. People have let fear of repugs set the tone of what we do.

:shrug:

McCain -- Not such a hero! http://www.namvets.com/Reading/john_mccain_is_no_war_hero.htm
And there are a lot of these sites!

McCain -- Keating 5! http://www.realchange.org/mccain.htm
Plenty of these as well

McCain's infidelity on his 1st wife who was handicapped by a car accident, his divorce and remarriage to a 25 year old 1 month later - http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2006/0607.benen.html

McCain's wife stealing drugs from her own non profit for her addiction - http://www.salon.com/news/feature/1999/10/18/drugs/

McCain's abrahmoff $100,000 "problem" - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=4555514


McCain's new lobbyist "issues" - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/21/us/politics/21mccain.html?_r=2&ex=1361250000&en=33711052dbdd623d&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

These are just a few....there are other "problems" McCain has.

I can name 3 of them that are still allowed to post PROFUSELY on this board.

Quit bitching about Clintonites and spend the energy on something productive.

McCain's book is very revealing and points out a number of vulnerabilities.

WE all realize what McCain has become over the past four years. WE'VE all been here to see it, and anybody politically active knows him for a political whore that will go wherever he must to get votes. But the VAST majority of the country gets their news in 15 second sound bytes. Most people don't know that McCain voted against a law banning waterboarding...they think he's against torture because that's what they've been TOLD. Most people don't know that he gave a valedictory speech at Jerry Falwell's university...they just remember him calling people like Falwell "Agents of Intolerance" and pissing off the right-wing of the Republican Party. Most people don't know he gave a speech at CPAC - hell, most people don't have a clue what CPAC IS - bragging about how ultra-conservative he can be and how he'll appoint Scalia clones to the Court...they think he's a "maverick" that bucks his party on a daily basis to strike out on his own.

People that actually KNOW McCain for the fraud he is aren't going to be swayed, and nobody is worried about anybody on this site (or DKos or just about any other site filled with liberal political junkies). We're worried because the MSM portrays McCain in a MUCH different light than we see him, and that is all most people have to go on to make their decisions.

For christ's sake...if it were about reality over perception, do you think we'd have had to suffer through the last 8 years of the idiot we have in the white house? Don't EVER under-estimate your opponent.

perfectly.

As of now, according to Arizona polls for Arizona, McCain beats Obama, and not by small margin.

running a campaign is supposed to do...expose your opponent. Just as much as the GOP will attempt to paint Obama as liberal...we can paint McCain as a charlatan and phony. Ever since he's run for President, he has been no kind of maverick.

I was just responding to the "Why worry?" approach that the OP seemed to be suggesting. We need to WORK to overcome the image McCain has of being a maverick who "stands up for his ideals before his party". Anybody that thinks it's going to happen on its own is just being naive.

I knew he was a POW and supposed to be a hero, but I never realized how much actual TV footage they have of him, from being shot down, captured, tortured for years, etc. It was a lot more extensive than I ever thought.

Let me just say that if they play that during his campaign, it's going to be a huge problem for us.

That's just my theory.

afraid of. It was apparent Obama won the first smackdown without even trying. McCain is relying on lines being fed to him and doesn't think fast on his feet.

They will fight to limit the debates to as few as possible so that the public doesn't get to directly contrast the two. They will play up his "experience" in order to make it seem as if Barack is fresh outta high school. They will play up his war record in Vietnam. They will play up his conservative credentials. They will do everything they can to DISTRACT from the fact that he is the poorer candidate.

It's not about "fear". It's about respect. We need to respect the fact that this particular Republican can draw many people from the middle and even from the conservative wing of the Democratic party. The simple fact is that neither side can win without support from the middle, and McCain is CAPABLE of drawing heavily from that demographic. Whether he will or not remains to be seen and is heavily dependent on what kind of campaign our nominee runs.

help with the experience argument. But truth be told, that's an old argument already. Hillary Clinton has tried that and look how well it's working. Why do you think the Rethugs are already bitching about his middle name? They can't attack him without looking like a Party of Bigots. I respect his service to the degree it should be respected. But too many on DU are FEARING McCain and there's nothing to be afraid of because the man is truly out of touch with what is going on.

...doesn't mean it won't work for a man that has five times her experience in Washington.

It's not about "fear". It's about "respect". If you honestly don't think McCain can win this election, I'd suggest you haven't paid attention to the last two. Both Gore and Kerry were considerably more qualified for the job, and both of them were better candidates than Bush. And both lost.

You're fear of McCain is allowing outside forces to dictate to your decisions. I already told you I respect him on a certain level, but not nearly to the point you seem to. It's not a reverence I have for him.

We don't need a military expert (who has NO political or policy experience) to counter him. It would be nice if we had a VP with SOME military service or background, but it's not essential--and we don't need a fucking General. MSNBC has been promoting Zinni as VP, and that's what started the BS about him on DU as a VP pick, but I think Zinni also serves as an military analyst for them sometimes--it's all about self-promotion and ratings, kind of like when Fred Thompson ran and NBC went crazy promoting him.

If we nominate Obama to face him the rethugs have a fighting chance of winning by playing the "can you trust this rookie with national security?" card. If we nominate Hillary he doesn't have much, aside from personal popularity, to run on.

The 100 years of fighting will come back and bite him in the ass when the DNC pumps that stuff all over the place. The guy is more neocon on foreign policy than Bush is. He has NO CLAIM to being superior on that front. Even though they will try to create that perception...I truly believe it'll fall to pieces because McCain is too much of a warhawk.

I can't wait to see the ads of these quotes from McCain...

"I will follow him to the Gates of hell!!"

"The war will go on folks"

"We could be there for 100 years...look how long we've been in Korea!"

Because we have two of the weakest, least-electable candidates we have ever run.
Because we are having a bitter, divisive primary campaign while the Repigs are uniting behind McCain. The Fundies are falling behind him because they thing the war is a Crusade and/or will bring on the End Times, and he would die in office, allowing one of them (Huckabee?) to take over.
Because McCain has been sold as a "moderate", he can get a lot of votes from Democrats.
Because many polls show him winning, and the rest show it close enough to steal. At this point in 2000 and 2004 we had a commanding lead.
Because the South is a write-off for us.
Because the MSM ADORES McCain, and will devote BILLIONS of dollars worth of airtime to getting him elected.
Because the Swift Boaters will be back, and the MSM will be at their service.
Most of All, because of who is in the White House now. He got (s)elected twice!

due to this statement, "Because we have two of the weakest, least-electable candidates we have ever run."

Old White men parked in the senate forever are so much better, I guess you think.

McCain is going to play the "experience" card and that will hurt either of our remaining candidates quite badly.

Either of them is also far more vulnerable to swift boating than Kerry was.

In a year when people have had enough of the current regime and want a change, we are essentially tied with McCain in the polls, even before the baleful impact of the media is brought to bear upon us. In any other year he would be unbeatable. Even this year it will be an uphill battle for us.

Just like in 2000 and 2004, we have little hope of winning any southern states. Some say Virginia, but can that really happen? Florida's voters may try to vote Democratic, but Florida is Florida.
What is left for us? Ohio. Blackwell is gone, but the county people who did a lot of the mischief are still there. If all the votes are counted, we might win, but how do we make that happen?

Of course, we have to run the table in the blue states. We can't afford to lose a single one.

It is going to be a tough race.

And, he comes off a little nutty. I think once the spotlight shines on him full-strength this summer, people won't just shrug and lose interest (as they did with Dole), I think they'll outright recoil from him.

McCain has a loose-cannon viciousness about him that no amount of PR can cover up for long.

no we don't need any ex soldier as VP

then he gave up "secrets" while in enemy custody...oh wait that what the hard core RW says.

mcclame is a paper tiger and an old calendar that needs to be thrown away...

Seriously, that thing is intimidating. Why doesn't he have it removed?

Those people stole 2 elections, lest we forget.

empty suit like Bush elected they stand a good chance of getting McCain elected. I know we've all heard reports of Republicans crossing over to vote for Obama, but come election time, my bet is that the Republicans will stand firm behind McCain just to keep a Democrat out of office. This doesn't even take into account the other dirty tricks that the Republicans will come up with like voter fraud. We can't afford to be complacent about this election.

Many Democrats are still intimidated by the GOP. I think the George W. Bush era has spooked so many Democrats that they're succumbing to an almost Nixonian level of paranoia about the political skills of the Republican establishment.

The Republicans are still clinging to the glory days of the 2003 playbook, where all they had to do was say "9/11" and all dissent was automatically neutralized. That's pretty much over. The flaming out of Giuliani's campaign should demonstrate this. Thankfully, the Republicans haven't figured it out yet, and hopefully they won't for a long time.

He will be smoked in the GE. Don't let the RW scare you into thinking that idiot MCCain has a chance. Wait until his shit is called to the carpet.

You know like when he first said the Iraq invasion would be easy and over quick? That was over 4 yrs ago.