Did John McCain Bargain to Leave the Republican Party
And stab us all in the back in doing so.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) was close to leaving the Republican Party in 2001, weeks before then-Sen. Jim Jeffords (Vt.) famously announced his decision to become an Independent, according to former Democratic lawmakers who say they were involved in the discussions.
In interviews with The Hill this month, former Sen. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and ex-Rep. Tom Downey (D-N.Y.) said there were nearly two months of talks with the maverick lawmaker following an approach by John Weaver, McCain’s chief political strategist.
The McCain’s denial is Clintonesque to say the least:
In a statement released by his campaign, McCain said, “As I said in 2001, I never considered leaving the Republican Party, period.”
That doesn’t mean he didn’t have the talks, right? Any slick politician will admire the non-denial denial. It sounds good, but if irrefutable proof ever came out that the meetings did take place he can always weasel out and try to make us prove what was on his mind.
Personally I think he had the talks and was holding out for a better offer when Jim Jeffords jumped and pulled everything off the table.













