Desperately Seeking McCain

Democrats look to jump start Kerry's campaign with... a Republican

by Vincent Fiore
06/01/04

The nation is not only in the grips of war, it is also in the grip of an election. It is only the middle of May, yet so many of the chattering class treat each day preceding the November 2 showdown as a quasi-election in itself.

As I and others have stated before, a lot can happen between now and November 2. It is safe to say that a lot will.

So how should one take the latest political flavor of the day-the desperate attempts of Democrat leaders to enlist Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, as John Kerry's vice president. There are many ways look at this.

The New York Times page-one, sub-headliner on May 15 that many Democrats view McCain as a potential choice for John Kerry’s Vice President, is as laughable as it is seemingly impossible. Senator McCain has been very definite: "I have totally ruled it out." As to his availability, McCain's attempt at the Presidency in 2000 against George W. Bush ended in defeat, with the then 64-year-old senator reluctantly supporting Bush.

John McCain has a history of bucking his party. He has received much glorified coverage from typically liberal press outlets. Words like "maverick," "principled," and "courageous" fall like rain upon McCain when going against the wishes of the Republican Party. He has been and is the most viewed Republican senator on political talk shows, from Chris Matthews’s "Hardball" to Tim Russert’s "Meet the Press." It is why the media has allowed the story considerable play, sharing the headlines with their preoccupation of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, if only for a day.

In John McCain, the mainstream media finds itself doing something it scarcely does: writing adoring press about a Republican.

But that is as far as it goes. If McCain were to leave the Senate, he would also leave his character and strengths with it. Along with those qualities, McCain would regrettably abandon his very recognizable and celebrated stature in the Senate to sit in the Vice President's mansion in order to play a supporting role in what will unquestionably be a Democratic Party presidency.

But what is simply astounding to me is the way some people in the Democrat Party have embraced this idea. Senators, former and present alike, have expressed enthusiasm for a Kerry/McCain ticket. Senator Bill Nelson, Democrat of Florida, himself on the Kerry short list for Vice President, seemingly melts when contemplating the fictitious ticket. He said: "There's a collective sigh that says, ‘this feels right.’ I think it's very plausible… he would say it's time for me (McCain) to go serve my country again in another capacity, where I can do some good."

Former Senator Bob Kerrey embraces the ticket as well, but informs the Arizona senator of the Democratic Party's litmus test: "Senator McCain would not have to leave his party. He could remain a Republican, would be given some authority over selection of Cabinet people. The only thing he would have to do is say, 'I'm not going to appoint any judges would overturn Roe v. Wade.’”

This alone should tell people that this is nothing more than a wedge to divide support for Bush, hatched in the dark recesses of the Democrats’ machinery. McCain staunchly opposes Roe v. Wade, along with many other of the party’s main issues. Donna Brazile, who ran Al Gore's campaign in 2000, says this: "McCain has not been pro-choice; he's not been out front on affirmative-action. He's not been out front on core issues that defined the Democratic Party."

All this points to a problem the Democrats are having in fielding a winning team for November. Reminiscent of Bush's media-proclaimed problem of having "no gravitas" in 2000, the Democrats hope to find a version of Dick Cheney. But their bench is light on prospects, and heavy with has-beens and unknowns. They are looking for lightning to strike the Kerry camp, if only to enliven a campaign that has been unable to spring commandingly atop the polls, even with the constant bad news coming out of Iraq.

Along with Bush, Democrats have been treated to the most destructive three months of his Presidency. While Bush’s poll numbers have recently dipped, Kerry's have remained unchanged throughout. For all practical purposes, Bush and Kerry are still in a virtual dead heat. Democrats have also seen Bush rebounded from every "silver bullet" that has been shot at him. For Democratic Party insiders, this demonstrates the lack of excitement and ability to sell the notion of a Kerry presidency that has them looking for someone to fill the void in what has up until now looked like a case of persona non grata.

There's a part of Senator McCain that enjoys this. I believe, as others do, that he bares the scars of the 2000 election heavily, which have left him embittered towards Bush personally. McCain has always loved attention, and the mainstream press is always obliged him in this way. So it is of no surprise to hear McCain say things like "I will always take anyone's phone call" in reference to being formally asked to be John Kerry's running mate. That's just "maverick" McCain’s persona talking.

If Democrats are seriously looking across the aisle for a possible solution to the Kerry candidacy malaise, they are in more trouble than they care to admit. McCain added to the ticket would instantly overshadow John Kerry himself, something that I cannot believe Kerry has not taken into consideration. For it is ego that drove John Kerry to seek the presidency, and it is ego that will sustain him.

Chris Lehane, a Democratic strategist who worked for both Al Gore and John Kerry cited the possibility of a Kerry/McCain ticket as a "dream team."

He got it exactly right. It really is just a dream.