Mar 08 2008
The Little Old Prince
Yesterday, while writing about John Sidney McCain III’s snit fit and his alleged invitation to be John Kerry’s running mate in 2004, Kyle E. Moore wrote:
Besides, McCain wouldn’t have done it anyway. He got absolutely abused by Bush in 2000, true, but he took that beating on the premise that he would be THE nominee in 2008, which actually came to pass. By the time 2004 came around, McCain’s job was to be the guy who was next in line, and that’s where he was staying.
Today, David Paul Kuhn writes in The Politico:
Mehlman, Rove boost McCain campaign
George W. Bush and John McCainJohn McCain is getting much more than President Bush’s endorsement and fundraising help for his campaign. He’s getting Bush’s staff.
It’s no secret that Steve Schmidt, Bush’s attack dog in the 2004 election, and Mark McKinnon, the president’s media strategist, are performing similar functions for McCain now.
But other big-name Bushies are lining up to boost McCain, too.
Ken Mehlman, who ran Bush’s 2004 campaign, is now serving as an unpaid, outside adviser to the Arizona Republican. Karl Rove, the president’s top political hand since his Texas days, recently gave money to McCain and soon after had a private conversation with the senator. A top McCain adviser said both Mehlman and Rove are now informally advising the campaign. Rove refused to detail his conversation with McCain.
The list could grow longer. Dan Bartlett, formerly a top aide in the Bush White House, and Sara Taylor, the erstwhile Bush political adviser, said they are eager to provide any assistance and advice possible to McCain.
It is all becoming so clear.
John S. McCain III is the designated heir, the little prince, America’s version of Raul Castro (and damn near as old). If you believe that a McCain presidency would be anything more (or less) than an extension of the Bush administration, you are a bigger fool than I thought.
(For clarification purposes, and just in case I should someday run for public office and this comes back to haunt me, I do not believe that most of you are fools. Just some of you. You know who you are.)
