John McCain has always had one core belief: John McCain. What else is new ?

If you are ever disappointed in Obama, just remember what the alternative was. Oy vey.

What does it even mean to suggest that a Senator has taken a position on a crucial piece of legislation because someone hasn't "reached out enough" to him? WTF? Are we in sixth grade now?

It's really reaching a point where you have to just think that these guys are pure and unadulterated chaotic evil. True, McCain won't live to see climate change totally destroy the Earth, so what has he got to lose--but his children will. I no longer see the percentage in promoting more and faster global warming even for the super-rich. Unless maybe it's really some kind of crazy religious conspiracy to bring about Armaggeddon. Really. Does anyone have any insight into the psychology of these guys--McCain, the Chamber of Commerce, etc.?

Don't ask President McCain about climate change -- he's got minions for that crap. Ask them.

Ask President McCain about the thug, crook, and in-genral dirty rotten skunk JD Hayworth...

"-- a tri-partisan group -- "

I truly believe that, in the minds of the Villagers, that Lieberman is the representative voice in the senate of the millions of "independent" voters nationwide.

"Best of all, now that it looks like McCain will have to work even harder to impress the far-right GOP base, any hopes that he'll step up and show some leadership on this all but disappear."

McCain has to face the Tea Baggers and he knows it.

The Hadley CRU has been hacked.

About 61MB of data and emails have been posted on a web site. If verified as real, the emails among the global warming promoters could be damaging to their cause. Among other quotes, they have no explanation for the recent non-increase in global temperatures.

It does not seem to have been reported in the MSM yet. This was not what made John McCain change his mind, but it certainly can not help the prospects of the climate change bills.

Actually, some in the media think the president is to blame for not having reached out to McCain "enuff."

Obama has removed the single credible Dem obstacle from McCain's path to Senatorial reelection, by putting Napolitano in the Government position. That's more of a "reach out" than the skunk McCain's ever deserved.

This is good news for McCain's 2012 presidential run.

I can't be the only one thinking that supporting J.D. Hayworth (a potential Publican primary challenger to McCain, whom a Rasmussen poll just showed as w/in 2 points of McCain, according to the post directly below this one -- without his even having declared an intent to run) might be useful...

This could be a case of McCain supporting legislation that had no chance of passing in order to build his "maverick" rep. Now that there is a chance of getting something done, it turns out he is not such a maverick after all.

The two Gigolo Johns,Miss Lindsey and Droop Dog. We are fucking doomed.

The mainstream media is my base, my friend.

McCain has strong convictions about a handful of issues he sees as matters of honor. Most of these are foreign policy or defense issues. Climate change isn't one of them.

He's worried about Hayworth.

McCain has strong convictions about a handful of issues he sees as matters of honor. Most of these are foreign policy or defense issues.

It's not apparent he has any convictions at all save the importance of keeping himself electable:

National Security Policy

1. McCain thought Bush's warrantless wiretap program circumvented the law; now he believes the opposite.

2. McCain insisted that everyone, even "terrible killers," "the worst kind of scum of humanity," and detainees at Guantanamo Bay, "deserve to have some adjudication of their cases," even if that means "releasing some of them." McCain now believes the opposite.

3. He opposed indefinite detention of terrorist suspects. When the Supreme Court reached the same conclusion, he called it "one of the worst decisions in the history of this country."

4. In February, McCain reversed course on prohibiting waterboarding.

5. McCain favored closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay before he was against it.

6. When Barack Obama talked about going after terrorists in Pakistani mountains with Predators, McCain criticized him for it. He's since come to the opposite conclusion.

Foreign Policy

7. McCain was for kicking Russia out of the G8 before he was against it.

8. McCain supported moving "toward normalization of relations" with Cuba. Now he believes the opposite.

9. McCain believed the United States should engage in diplomacy with Hamas. Now he believes the opposite.

10. McCain believed the United States should engage in diplomacy with Syria. Now he believes the opposite.

11. McCain is both for and against a "rogue state rollback" as a focus of his foreign policy vision.

12. McCain used to champion the Law of the Sea convention, even volunteering to testify on the treaty's behalf before a Senate committee. Now he opposes it.

13. McCain was against divestment from South Africa before he was for it.

Military Policy

14. McCain recently claimed that he was the "greatest critic" of Rumsfeld's failed Iraq policy. In December 2003, McCain praised the same strategy as "a mission accomplished." In March 2004, he said, "I'm confident we're on the right course." In December 2005, he said, "Overall, I think a year from now, we will have made a fair amount of progress if we stay the course."

15. McCain has changed his mind about a long-term U.S. military presence in Iraq on multiple occasions, concluding, on multiple occasions, that a Korea-like presence is both a good idea and a bad idea.

16. McCain said before the war in Iraq, "We will win this conflict. We will win it easily." Four years later, McCain said he knew all along that the war in Iraq war was "probably going to be long and hard and tough."

17. McCain has repeatedly said it's a dangerous mistake to tell the "enemy" when U.S. troops would be out of Iraq. In May, McCain announced that most American troops would be home from Iraq by 2013.

18. McCain was against expanding the GI Bill before he was for it.

-- excerpted from Alternet, where there are a lot more

Follow-up question? Since when do these congress critters (or anyone else mind you) ever get asked follow-up questions? I don't know whether it's because of laziness or ignorance (probably both) but reporters just aren't doing their job and as a result, we get answers and conversations like this. Disgustingly apropos.

trex: that's a repost of an earlier version of Steve's list at the carpetbagger report: http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/flipflops

It reached 76 there before he moved to here.

Oh, and the "Jukebox John" name is still just full of awesome.

What we are seeing is poetic justice McCain has to bend to the will of the teabaggers, otherwise they will push for Hayworth who is a real nasty wingnut, but Palin is rallying the teabaggers, Could McCain be getting what he deserves for inflicting the idiot Palin on the country.

smartalek: "I can't be the only one thinking that supporting J.D. Hayworth [in a GOP primary against John McCain] ... might be useful."

Well, speaking for myself only, I sure hope so. I'm sorry, but that's not useful, that's just plain reckless thinking for a Democrat or moderate independent. It's fuckin' crazy.

Not only is J.D. Hayworth a rabid right-wing partisan of Michele Backmann's "Yahoo! I'm cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!- cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!- cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!" variety, he couldn't find the open end of a large tote bag in broad daylight, even if you sewed large arrows on its outside to point him in the general direction.

Your obvious antipathy toward everything John McCain aside, why on God's Green Earth during these challenging times would you want to risk having Arizona elect a grandstanding, worse-than-useless polarizing moron to the Senate who's a sure-fired vote against anything sensible and reality-based?

I mean, were he to run against Sen. McCain in the primary instead of Hayworth, would you also support Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio because you might find his candidacy "useful"?

Do be careful for what you wish - because otherwise, those wishes that do come true are quite often accompanied by unintended consequences.

Aloha.

Record high temperatures far outpace record lows across US (w/ Video)

I can't figure out why McCain hasn't figured out the right hates him no matter what he does.

John McCain thought Sarah Palin was fit to be Vice-President, and possibly President.

After that, expecting him to exhibit any kind of sense or consistency is just silly.

Why anyone still cares what he thinks about anything is beyond me.

McCain has never read anything that was 1400 pages in his life. When will these goobers ever understand just how limited McCain's abilities are.
4th from the bottom of his class and would not even have gotten in to the Academy except for dada. A manipulator of the press and living off the government tit with all the benefits of marrying a wealthy woman. Why is it so hard for the press to see through this guy? Even his POW affair was a propaganda effort...due to dada.

Time for the name of McCain never to be heard from again.

Repubs are more concerned about making things that will help them deal with climate change's effects rather than anything that would halt or prevent it.

They always believe they are wealthy enough to deal with it ...such like the rich can remain unaffected by a civil war they might instigate. Anti-government people are stupid to hate the one thing big enough to protect them from the ultra-rich...or to not see gov. must expand as our nation expands in population and commerce.

Brains too small to see the need for an EPA, CPA, FDA etc without which we'd destroy our environment, and our water and food supply. Fools that confound the wise are still fools...that is how fascism comes into being.