McCain's Glass House
Issue 1 is GOP presidential politics, including John McCain's FCC letter and
Bush's tax-cut plan. Issue 2 is Democratic presidential politics, including Al
Gore and Bill Bradley's promise to allow open gays in the military.
Most pundits agree that the revelation of John McCain's influence-peddling
letter to the FCC has hurt his campaign, although several--including Paul Gigot
(PBS's NewsHour With Jim Lehrer ) and Tucker Carlson (CNN's
Late Edition )--think that McCain is just defending his
constituents, as he was elected to do. Pundits disagree on Bush's sweeping
tax-cut proposal. Joe Klein (NBC's Meet the
Press ) notes that the cut is bigger than the congressional GOP's
(doomed) proposal last fall, and Al Hunt (CNN's Capital Gang ) and David Broder (PBS's Washington Week in
Review ) think that New Hampshire voters care more about schools and
health care than taxes. Mark Shields ( NewsHour ) remarks that Jack
Kemp's aggressive tax-cutting campaign strategy didn't work in the 1988 GOP
primary, but his colleague, Gigot, responds that McCain's emphasis on tax-cut
moderation apes the failed electoral strategies of George Bush (in 1980) and
Bob Dole (in 1988). On Meet the Press , Rep. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a
McCain supporter, thinks that McCain's critique that Bush's tax plan as too
large is not working. John McLaughlin, Lawrence Kudlow, and Jim Warren (all of
PBS's McLaughlin Group ) enthuse over Bush's recent debate
performances.
Many pundits--including Mara Liasson ( Washington Week ), Mark
Shields ( NewsHour and Capital Gang ), Sam Donaldson (ABC's
This Week ), and Paul Begala (MSNBC coverage of
Friday's night's GOP debate)--think that Gore's and Bradley's outspoken
advocacy of gays in the military will hurt them in the general election. Paul
Gigot ( NewsHour ) and Steve Roberts ( Late Edition ) contrast
Gore's ideological approach to this issue with President Clinton's pragmatic
approach. Tucker Carlson ( Late Edition ) notes that only a nation with
no security threats could devote so much attention to a "boutique issue" like
the military's homosexual policy. George Stephanopoulos and George F. Will
(both of This Week ) think the issue is a red herring, because Congress
can override any executive order that overturns "don't ask, don't tell."
Margaret Carlson ( Capital Gang ) and Joe Klein say that Bradley's
aloofness and condescension still hurt his popularity, and Klein predicts that
if he is the Democratic nominee his Senate votes against the Gulf War and
welfare reform will haunt him.
Miscellany: John McLaughlin, Jim Warren, and Eleanor Clift (of
the McLaughlin Group ) call the new criterion for participating in
general-election presidential debates "undemocratic." (A participant must have
at least 15 percent support in five national polls.) They argue that any party
qualifying for federal matching funds should get to participate. On
Fox News
Sunday , Bill Bradley also voices disagreement with the rule, saying
that the Reform Party has a "strong case" that it should be included in the
debates, even without 15 percent support. On CBS's Face the Nation ,
Gov. Jesse Ventura, Ref.-Minn., notes that he had only 10 percent support when
he debated Minnesota's Democratic and Republican candidates for governor; six
weeks later he won the election with 37 percent. ... On Friday's Larry King
Live (CNN), both Bob and Elizabeth Dole say that the general election will
be close, not a blowout by Bush. Appearing with his wife again on This
Week , Bob Dole predicts that Bush will win the nomination (although he
still will not endorse him). Steve Roberts opines that although Mrs. Dole has
proved to be an awful presidential campaigner, her popularity among women will
be hard for Bush to resist when he selects his running mate. ... When Elizabeth
Dole praises Bush's "executive experience" on This Week , Sam Donaldson
points out that her own husband had no such experience when he ran for
president.
Last Word
Look, I've always had two principles. One is make bureaucracies react on
behalf of the taxpayers, and second, do whatever I can to increase competition
and lower costs in telecommunications. Those are the guiding principles I've
had. Today, we are asking the federal government to release all correspondence
that I've had with every government agency. But finally, let me remind you, I'm
the chairman of the committee that is designated by the Congress to oversight
[sic] the FCC. And it's my responsibility to try to see and make them act. And
so I believe that the record will be clear that I've done that on behalf of the
consumer.
--John McCain ( Face the Nation )
