John McCain joins in Republican bashing....getting ready for '08

I really miss John McCain. I do. I used to really like him. He was one of the few Republicans who seemed to actually try to be moderate. He seemed to be a uniter, not a divider, in the real way, not in the fantasy way of George W. Bush. But something happened to him, and I am not sure what.

That being said, he has now joined in the Republican chorus attacking John Kerry for some recent statements about education and Iraq.

Let's go ahead and get Kerry's direct quote out of the way. Kerry said, "You know education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. And if you don't, you get stuck in Iraq."

Dumb statement to make, especially before the midterm election? Yes. Is it 100% false, though? Maybe not.

Not too long ago, there were stories in the media that talked about the military lowering the standards for signing up. The military was now beginning to accept high school drop-outs, something the military was not known for doing.

So if the military is accepting high school drop-outs, wouldn't John Kerry's statements have some validity? I recently heard a professed Republican call into a local radio talk show. He said he did not like John Kerry, but agreed with the sentiment of his statement. He said his son did not do well in school and ended up joining the military, and that his son had recently told him that he wished he had done better in school so that he would have had more options besides the military.

So now John McCain, along with George Bush and White House spokesman Tony Snow, wants John Kerry to apologize to the troops. Now keep in mind that John Kerry and John McCain are both Vietnam veterans. Keep in mind the bravery that both men showed by serving in the military, but now one wants the other to apologize to the troops.

Why doesn't McCain apologize to the troops for continuing to support the Iraq war? Why doesn't McCain apologize for allowing our troops to continue to be caught in the middle of a civil war? Why doesn't George Bush apologize for sending our troops to a war that we have no business in? Why doesn't Donald Rumsfeld apologize for botching the war effort with one bad decision after another?

I guess apologies can go on for days.

I really miss John McCain, the brave Vietnam veteran who served his country. When did he lose himself and become part of a spin machine?

more info:
ABC News: McCain to Kerry: Apologize to Troops