Obama Meets With McCain At Transition Office (VIDEO)

Update, 2:40 pm

Marc Ambinder at The Atlantic has a joint statement issued by Obama and McCain on the meeting:

"At this defining moment in history, we believe that Americans of all parties want and need their leaders to come together and change the bad habits of Washington so that we can solve the common and urgent challenges of our time. It is in this spirit that we had a productive conversation today about the need to launch a new era of reform where we take on government waste and bitter partisanship in Washington in order to restore trust in government, and bring back prosperity and opportunity for every hardworking American family. We hope to work together in the days and months ahead on critical challenges like solving our financial crisis, creating a new energy economy, and protecting our nation's security."

Update, 1:40 pm

Ken Bazinet of the New York Daily News offers this pool report from the brief meeting.

Asked about the goal of the meeting, Mr. Obama said, "We're going to have a good conversation about how we can do some work together to fix up the country, and also to offer thanks to Sen. McCain for the outstanding service he's already rendered."...

Your pool tried to get the President-elect to answer a question on the auto industry bail out, but was shouted down by the pool sherpas. Mr. Obama finally said with a smile, "You're incorrigible."

Sitting around a coffee table, with three U.S. flags behind them, were: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), President-elect Barack Obama and Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), the chief-of-staff-designate.

Your pool was in and out in about three minutes.

WATCH:

***

CHICAGO - President-elect Barack Obama says he and Republican Sen. John McCain plan to work together to "fix up the country."

The two former rivals met in Obama's transition office Monday in Chicago. Rahm Emanuel, Obama's incoming White House chief of staff, participated in the meeting, as did McCain's close friend, South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Obama said that he and McCain were "just gonna have a good conversation about how we can do some work together to fix up the country. And also to offer thanks to Sen. McCain for the outstanding service he's already rendered."

When asked if he planned to help the Obama administration, McCain replied, "obviously."

Comments

[jannike]

08:29 AM on 11/18/2008

If Obama pals around with terrorists, and McCain pals around Obama, it means that McCain pals around with anti-american people to. Please media, don't forget this. Ask them again and again in the years to come. Maybe that will help against all this stupid things coming up during the election.

[DKLabRat]

08:13 AM on 11/18/2008

God, it's freaky the way that McCain turns on and off that cheese-eating grin like someone hit a switch.

[lmab]

03:32 AM on 11/18/2008

I think McCain would have rather been getting a root canal. What a laugh. So much for his great experience. I hope he will share his plan to get Bin Laden.

[lmab]

03:23 AM on 11/18/2008

Not to worry.....Just heard that McCain is immediately suspending any plans to work with Obama "for the good of the country"......He has canceled all guest appearances on network TV and is headed straight to Vegas.

[Jellyfisheater]

04:46 AM on 11/18/2008

Lolz

[Palin012]

02:46 AM on 11/18/2008

John McCain is the shizz. I wouldn't want to be friendly with him either but hey, you gotta show yourself to be a big person. Obama sits there acting like he's some kind of Movie Star, what a fake.
If Obama was smart, he'd hand over the position. He's not MY President.

[lmab]

03:26 AM on 11/18/2008

He may not be your president.....but he is THE president and McCain is just another Dukakis.

[Jellyfisheater]

04:50 AM on 11/18/2008

If anyone's the bigger person, it's Barack Obama. John McCain's campaign essentially called him a ter.or.ist, questioned his patriotism, tried to underline some sort of 'otherness' to Barack....which I can tell you would not have happened if his skin was paler than it is.

I'm sure John McCain is fundamentally a decent person but I think the credit needs to go to Obama here, whether you consider him your president or not. A whole lot of people did not want to think of George Bush as their president, but you would have expected them to get on board....which is presumably what you must do now that the tables have turned.

[Matterrr]

12:52 AM on 11/18/2008

Imagine McCain endorsing Obama in 2012

[suhud]

11:41 PM on 11/17/2008

Don't see how McCain's personal dislike and disdain for Obama wouldn't affect efforts to work together for the good of the country, if he can't even suppress it for a photop. Maybe it was just a bad case of gas, but I have my doubts...

[CommonSenseMom]

10:29 PM on 11/17/2008

No. No. NO! NO! NO! I love you Obama and I worked my butt off to get you elected but uh uh NO John McCain. NOPE.... NOT gonna do it. Not gonna accept it. I'm NOT gonna welcome John McCain to the shin-dig. NO WAY.

I know you want to keep your friends close and your enemies closer...but I tell you what, if you appoint John McCain to anything of importance he (and IT...meaning the move) will bite you.

Leave him in the senate and let him grimace and make snide sarcastic remarks through the next 4 years.

Photo-OP done. Now let's move on. Please.

[canucklivinginUSA]

12:18 AM on 11/18/2008

When did he say he was going to appoint him to any position in his cabinet? Accepting what the pundits tell you shows how idiotic you are

[StillIRise]

01:26 AM on 11/18/2008

Come on, Mom. Show some common sense. Obama just talked to the man, he didn't hand over the keys to the White House. I'm sure that he can and will find a way to work with McCain in the interests of our nation without appointing him to any important position in his cabinet. Obama is a very intelligent man, and has always been one step ahead of his opponents/enemies. He's not stupid.

[Rictracee]

10:23 PM on 11/17/2008

McCain looks like a sour puss

[NYC07]

09:43 PM on 11/17/2008

I guess at the meeting McCain must have told Obama how to capture Bin Laden or is he not going to tell, since he LOST!!.

[BillMelater]

09:19 PM on 11/17/2008

Well I wish they could get started - lol.

http://billmel8er.wordpress.com

[gwynece1]

08:44 PM on 11/17/2008

I don't know if President-elect Obama was gloating but he knows that John McCain can be of immense value regarding helping the country get back on the right track. However, as far as John McCain goes, those grimaces were back. He does seem to personally dislike Obama. I guess he feels that Obama was some wet-behind-the-ears know it all, who doesn't deserve the presidency. He needs to let it go...the better man won...

[Coolcat101]

09:38 PM on 11/17/2008

I have found McCain to behave like that around people who he isn't friendly with. He was weird with the debate moderators, he was weird with random reporters who questioned or challenged him. He was even weird with Palin at times. McCain is just one of those people that cannot hide his discomfort or his annoyance at people.

[Palin012]

02:48 AM on 11/18/2008

You guys have to remember that he's been like tortured pretty badly, every bone in his body was broken. That could really be just effects from all of that because Palin lovese McCain.

[Palin012]

02:48 AM on 11/18/2008

Obama won but America lost.

[repugnicansfearme]

08:20 PM on 11/17/2008

I could have -wink- won if I just -wink- didn't have all -wink- these facial tics -wink-wink-wink-wink-wink-wink

[firewmn]

07:53 PM on 11/17/2008

MCain is not very mavericky is he...& .... Barack is very Presidential....

[gi]

07:49 PM on 11/17/2008

Change is1 a: to make different in some particular : alter b: to make radically different : transform