McCain Loses Cool With NYT Reporter

NEW ORLEANS -- Republican Sen. John McCain, showing a flash of the temper he is known for, repeatedly cut off a reporter Friday when asked whether he had spoken to Democratic Sen. John Kerry about being his vice president in 2004.

"Everybody knows that I had a private conversation. Everybody knows that, that I had a conversation," McCain told the reporter. "And you know it, too. No. You know it, too. No. You do know. You do know."

The reporter, Elisabeth Bumiller of The New York Times, was following up on a question McCain had answered at a campaign event Friday morning in Atlanta. Asked if he might consider Kerry as a running mate, since Kerry asked him in 2004, McCain said no.

Afterward, on a campaign flight, Bumiller said she looked in the Times' archives and that McCain had denied talking with Kerry in a May 2004 story.

McCain interrupted, saying that everyone knew he had a private conversation, and he kept interrupting as she tried to follow up. McCain clearly was irate.

"I don't know what you read or heard of, and I don't know the circumstances," McCain said. "Maybe in May of '04 I hadn't had a conversation."

Did he recall the conversation? "I don't know, but it's well-known that I had the conversation. It's absolutely well-known by everyone. So do you have a question on another issue?"

Asked again about the conversation, McCain said, "No. No. Because the issue is closed, as far as I'm concerned. Everybody knows it. Everybody knows it in America."

Could he describe the conversation? "No, of course not," McCain said. "I don't describe private conversations. Why should I? Then there's no such thing as a private conversation."

McCain is known for having a temper and has been dubbed "Senator Hothead" by more than one publication.

Comments

[Clemsy]

He didn't lose control at all. I guess that's what the media has to call it instead of just saying he acted like an asshole, which is more accurate, but alas, well within the behavioral parameters of American politicians.

[mirandawilde]

"Well within the behavioral parameters of American politicians"
Yes, thanks to Dick "go f@#k yourself" Cheney, those parameters have been stretched quite far.
His behavior in this interview demonstrates the basic defensiveness that has been the foundation of the administrations of the elder Bush and the lesser Bush. McCain will just be another extension of those deeply corrupt administrations. They are arrogant and secretive people, they have led us into wars that have cost hundreds of thousands of lives just so rich people can get richer, and they need to go away.

[Aslanspal]

Come on!!! why did she ask that idiotic question at the end " why are your angry" then she backs off...come on ...huffpost the title on this is wrong...an­noyed...bo­thered...q­uibling...­.but Angry!!! Come on you are playing right into the right wing the media is biased hands.

[gd7277467]

Johnny !

Put on a clean Depends, and go home !!!

[mcnary]

Flash the "Queen of Diamonds" and out comes Mc Cain The Manchurian Candidate. Crazy as a Loon.

[deb813]

Is there a double standard with the media? I saw this so called flash of temper and it looked nothing like the hormonal Shame on You Barack Obama that Hillary Clinton went off on. If we are going to talk about the tempers of our male presidential candidates then we should call talk about the genteel lady when she goes off too.

[nellie]

That's a campaign speech. That's different. This is talking to the press, to a person. I still can't figure out why he got so angry. He's touchy. Not good.

[kroses98]

Read: TheRealMcCain.com for the "REAL" scoop on this guy, who you don't want to have with his finger on "The Button!"

[Perdurabo]

Too bad all the talk radio whack-jobs don't take a 3 second snippet of this, out of context, and play it day and night 24/7 for a week... like they did with Howard Dean.

[vinny]

good times

[Patton]

This is losing his temper? I keep hearing about the famous McCain temper and so was looking forward to seeing an example. But this? Come on? Are the people that put this article together on Prozac. This looked to me like a very mild disagreement.The guy disagreed with her that's all ,plus what was the point of that line of questioning? Does anyone in their right mind think McCain is gonna pick Kerry as his running mate.

[kroses98]

***TheReal­McCain.com­*** (The RNC did not buy this one!!!)

[transendentilist]

He did really lose his temper, the MSM blows everything out of proportion. But he was clearly irked at being suspected of lying. And he did lie. Only McCain calls it "mis-speaking."

[GoLeftGoDeep]

McTemper hates dissent or being questioned... makes him McSame

[scampy123]

When will this old fraud really come up with some straight talk?
Will he or any other of the so called straight talkers call on Israel to open up it's nuclear sites to IAEA inspections and sign the nuclear non proliferation treaty like Iran.
Don't hold your breath for these liars to come clean.

[JayWilliams]

I don't see anything wrong with McCain's response here---and I hate Republicans. This was an appropriate response by McCain. Why should he reveal a private conversation with Kerry?
The press has lots of great issues to hit him with---like what he intends to do about the flat economy, spending for our grand and glorious wars, immigration, torture, privacy rights, our incredible government deficit spending, al quada, the sinking dollar, trade imbalances...and so on.

[Beolarry]

The point, here, which you partisan right wingers will not acknowledge, is that McCain, in 1994 was considering the possiblilty of crossing over to the Democratic Party. Since McCain has changed all of his fundamental positions-- he's now an advocate of torture, having previously been staunchly against the government practicing torture on political prisoners, for example, it is important that the public be aware that just 4 years ago, he considered running for Vice President on a Democratic ticket.

[browndog2]

Sad. NYT trying to create news,instead of covering. Think McCain forget about lobbyist/sex article 2 weeks ago? McCAIN LOOSES TEMPER WITH NYT REPORTER! Got news?

[klmebane]

he didn't even say he had a conversation with kerry. he kept saying 'everyone knows i had a conversation. you do know, you do know.' talk about a tap dance!

[intuition]

Shouldn't a mental examination be required of those who want to be President?????? I've heard, read some bad, bad stuff on McCain. We should all question his mental stability. Now, according to Keith Olbermann's report tonight, three very high-level military leaders are coming forth stating they do not trust McCain's mental competence for the position of president, that they are really afraid of him in that he appeasr to have a serious problem with anger management.

[mikebythesun]

Wouldn't have been an issue if McCain didn't LIE about it in the first place.

On another note, even if McCain wins in November, the Democrats win. McCain is already on board with the Dems on half of the issues: immigration, stem cell research, global warming, closing Guantanamo, taxes (against it before he was for it), etc. Thanks, GOP! We couldn't be happier with your choice of a nominee! And only three years after Bush declared that America gave him a conservative mandate! Nice job SCREWING EVERYTHING UP.

[mamazboy]

For anyone who hasn't seen it, the AP is again in ass-kissing mode for St. McCain. Check out this groveling bunch of BS from the increasingly ridiculous AP:

McCain Balances Public Temper With Private Acts of Compassion

http://news.yahoo.com/s/bloomber...rg/ aryv2cui9mse

The timing is especially suspicious coming right on the heels of McJerk's nasty back-and-forth with Elizabeth Bumiller. Is it possible that McFreak is even more arrogan than Bush? Hard to imagine, but...

[GoodwithWood]

Come on Huffpo. The onlything this does is call the credibility of Huffpo into question. Give me a break.