McCain's Confusion Has Nothing to do With His Age

I can appreciate the fact that the McCain campaign and Republicans in general are a little touchy about the senator's age -- running to be the oldest president in U.S. history will do that -- but that's no reason to characterize every critical adjective in the language as some kind of slight about McCain's septuagenarian status.

Poll after poll shows that more voters trust Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on matters of national security than they do Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois. Hoping to bridge that chasm, the Obama campaign and Democrats harped on comments McCain made on the Today show this morning, repeatedly calling the 71-year-old presumptive GOP presidential nominee "confused," seeming to feed into concerns voters might have about the Arizonan's age.

After McCain said this week that it's "not too important" when U.S. troops come home from Iraq, Obama aide Susan Rice said on a conference call that McCain's comments reveal a "real confusion and lack of understanding of the situation in Iraq" and the larger region. She added that McCain's series of errors of fact and judgment are "reflective of a pattern of lack of understanding and lack of strategic depth."

Reporters, apparently having internalized McCain's talking points, asked Rice if she was attacking McCain's age by calling him "confused." She responded, "[W]hat I meant by that is very simple -- on critical, factual questions that are fundamental to understanding what's going on in Iraq and the region, Sen. McCain has gotten it wrong. And not just once but repeatedly."

This comes a month after Obama, responding to an ugly attack by McCain about Hamas, told CNN, "[F]or him to toss out comments like that I think is an example of him losing his bearings as he pursues this nomination." McCain, Lieberman, and their GOP allies said this was a shot at McCain's age.

This is all terribly silly. Every criticism is not a veiled reference to McCain turning 72. "Losing his bearings" has nothing to do with age -- it refers to someone who has lost their way, moving in the wrong direction. Likewise, people of all ages get "confused." It's not a slur, it's a description.

Whether he's 72 or 22 is irrelevant -- when it comes to the basics in Iraq, the list of McCain's incoherent insights is long and getting longer.

Why we're not supposed to mention this is a mystery. I guess I'm confused.

Comments

[realtalk]

WHAT IS FUNNY IS THAT PEOPLE IN THE MAINSTREAM PRESS (ESPECIALLY CNN, AND FIX NEWS, AND ALOT OF THE MAINSTREAM NEWSPAPERS) KEEP REPEATING THAT McCAIN'S STRENGTH IS FOREIGN POLICY, REALLY SHOWING THEMSELVES TO ALSO BE A BUNCH OF IDIOTS!!! HOW THEY CAN KEEP REPEATING THESE WORDS WHEN THE FACTS SHOW THAT McCAIN KNOWS VERY, VERY LITTLE ABOUT IRAQ, AND HAS PROVEN IT OVER, AND OVER. THE MAINSTREAM PRESS SEEMS TO BE DELIBERATELY IGNORING THE FACT THAT McCAIN DOES NOT KNOW SH*T ABOUT FOREIGN POLICY, THEY SEEM TO WANT TO ELECT ANOTHER IDIOT REPUBLICAN, SO THEY ARE DELIBERATELY IGNORING McCAIN'S INCOMPETENCE!

[Dave01]

So what if it is a slight about his age? The fact is he IS OLD!!!!!!!!!! Plain and simple! Many [NOT ALL] people his age are confused, out of touch, and simply stated, in loss of their bearings. His mental readiness is something that SHOULD be questioned! And so far he has FAILED every test put in front of him.

[takeamericanback08]

Battered Republican Syndrome. Republican supporters so demoralized by Republican politicians and conservative talk show hosts that they welcome McCain as another perpetrator.

[takeamericanback08]

McCain'a lack of knowledge when it comes to national security and the economy is proof that his supporters have been so mentally abused by the Bush Administration they can't help their addiction to more abuse.

[gwpriester]

McCain could not even give a clear direct answer to the question. He started with casualties, went from Iraq to South Korea and then to Germany and never paid off his point about casualties. With McCain's inability to track and inability to string together a coherent thought it is no wonder the troops will be in Iraq for a hundred years.

He'll forget they're there.

[findingthetruth]

The question SHOULD be ---- can this country afford a leader who is NOT astute enough to correct the blunders endowed by the previous leader? Everyday on the trail, McCain proves he cannot. If there are no "plants" in his audience ---- McCain has a serious problem (of which the GOP consistantly "glosses" to make McCain appear to be intelligent). In the meantime, these SELFISH actions by the GOP help the top 1% and repeatedly HURT the poor and middle class.

Age? Let's not fall into an ongoing conversation of possible dementia. McCain needs to prove to this country that he is capable of leading it. The GOP wants this distraction because there are Supreme Court Justices doing a fine job and much older. However, if McCain's judgement, knowledge, and ability to assess this country and the world falter ---- WE, as a nation will continue or worsen with the economic disarray we endure at the present.

Our deficit cannot afford a flinch. McCain is not the answer. The blunders on the trail speak volumes. It is a shame that there will be some who will vote for McCain JUST because he's a Republican. Another election cycle ---- go for it. This cycle --- NO ONE can afford to be selfish and hurt the majority of people in this country.

[clevelandchick]

I think the bought and paid for by the GOP Mediacracy is just trying to protect their BBQ buddy so they stretch for a bias and try to equate it with the blatant racism and sexism they've exhibited towards the Dem candidates. They want to paint their victims as prejudice to get the heat off their backs and shield McCain.

As most people on this board have so wisely pointed out, McCain isn't 'confused or losing his bearings. Obama and his camp are actually being generous with those labels. Truth is, McCain's just not that smart to begin with and he's changed his position so many times on so many issues, that it would be hard for even a member of Mensa to keep all of his flip-flops straight.

[charon]

McCain really is not, let's face it, very bright. Yes, he is smarter than Bush, but so are most high school graduates. Spending 5 years in the Hanoi Hilton hardly qualifies one as an expert on defense issues, and neither does learning to fly an F4 Phantom. The guy is an idiot who only got into office because he spent time in a POW prison.

[StillAmused]

It isn't about McCain's age. It's about STUPID, and that takes real effort.

The imbecile wants to stick his thumb in the eye of all Mesopotamia with, at last word, 58 permanent military bases on their soil.

Someone slip him a note... bin Laden specifically cited the presence of the Prince Sultan U.S. Air Base in Saudi Arabia as a PRIMARY REASON FOR THE 9/11 ATTACKS, and -- before the last traces of reason drained from our foreign policy -- we accordingly ABANDONED IT in 2003!

You can't walk around with an American flag wrapped around your head and hope to elude open manholes.

[jfor]

It was never about bin laden it was about keeping the royal Saud family in power. They were feeling the heat from their religious leaders so in order to appease them they told us to get out. Have you noticed that it is not an affront to Islam for America to sell Saudis billions of hi tech weapons?

[StillAmused]

"It was never about bin laden it was about keeping the royal Saud family in power."

Uh...

"Until now, politics in Saudi Arabia has consisted of the royal family and nothing else. Now, al-Qaeda is trying to move into the vacuum to try and create an alternative to the royal family..."

"... al-Qaeda has clearly... thrown down the gauntlet to the regime." -- TIME, May 14, 2003

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,451935,00.html

Sounds to me like it was very MUCH about bin Laden and al Qaeda... who posed the more direct threat, the extremist 'tip of the spear' for those "religious leaders".

Are you suggesting that 58 permanent U.S. bases in Mesopotamia do NOT constitute provocation?

[GPRogueCowboy]

(WebMD) Almost one in seven U.S. adults aged 71 and older -- about 3.4 million people -- have dementia, a new study shows.
http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/news/20071031/more-than-3-million-have-dementia

Most of those elders with dementia -- 2.4 million people -- have Alzheimer's disease, according to Duke University's Brenda Plassman, PhD, and colleagues.

They reviewed data on a nationally representative group of 856 people aged 71 and older, including people in nursing homes.

The elders took tests of mental skills including memory, language, and attention to screen for dementia. They also provided blood samples and noted their depression, medications, medical history, and family history of memory
problems.

The findings:

Almost 14% of the participants had dementia.
About 10% had Alzheimer's disease.
Dementia became more likely with age.

John McCain is still accusing Obama of wanting to negotiate with Ahmadinejad. Why doesn't the McCain campaign and other assorted Republicans ever accuse Obama of wanting to negotiate with Khamenei?

McCain confused Shia, Sunni, Al Qaeda and Iranians earlier this year in his visit to Iraq.

Senator Lieberman fortunately overheard and corrected McCains GAFFE.
Recently McCain stated the US Troop Level in Iraq had returned to Pre-Surge Level.

He repeated the same mistake ( or was it dementia) .

Do you really want this OLD MAN to have his finger on the NUKE BUTTON?

[watchingthings]

Yes Mr. McCain........just because you are old and confused does not have to mean that your confusion stems from your old age. Some people just can't see themselves retiring....they keep pursuing their goal.......even if they can't remember what that was. I suppose you are not "flip flopping".......just seeing things differently on a day to day and year to year basis.

[jeanrenoir]

This is obviously going to be a generational, as well as class and racial, election. McCain's only hope is that the geezers, who've always voted in overwhelming numbers, will be enough to put him over the top in the fall. So his campaign appeals to them through complaints about "ageism" just as Hillary tried to stir up her women against Obama with cries of sexism all over the place. McCain's going to get the geezer vote, just as Clinton got the women's vote, and just as Obama got the black vote, come hell or high water. The bottom line is going to be how the raw numbers of geezers vs. younger (under 50) voters plays out. Demographics as destiny all over again. So it doesn't matter whether Obama's camp disses McCain about age or not. All that matters is whether the voters under 50 outnumber those over.

[pcplz]

Hey now! Here's a certified Geezer and Coot to boot, that has more sense than to vote for Mcc.....uh....whas his name!!!

[IndependentMynd]

Why are most in the MSM giving McBush a pass? Is it because of his age? Isn't that reverse ageism? Treat him like you would any other candidate and stop coddling him. He's a war hero. He's strong. He's brave. So why can't he take it???

[darker]

MEDIA is owned by the Republican corporations that give it money for their advertising.
Is this news or a "surprise"? Not.

That is WHY Media lets republicans off "easy" while slamming down on anybody
who opposes their views and policies.

It's called PROPAGANDA.

[JonStewart4President]

The MSM continues to provide cover and exuse McCain time and time again. Dubya was younger than McCain is, and he gets confused about facts all the time. It has nothing do with age, it has to do with the fact that these two guys have deeply flawed ideas about foreign policy and neither one of them do well with looking at and using facts.

Besides which that McCain, like Dubya, is not the smartest guy. McCain graduated like 894th out of 899 and only advanced as far as he did because his father and grandfather were Admirals. Dubya got "C"s at Yale and he only got in because he was a legacy.

McCain is confused, period. He's been this way for years. He's famous for mixing things up when he talks and frankly, he's not the brightest bulb in the marquee, to begin with. No, his getting older probably doesn't help, but that's not what the criticisms are about. McCain's abilities whether impacted by age or not, are not of goodness. He shouldn't be President because a.) of his policies b.) his lack of comprehension of facts. Whether that is due to age is immaterial. What matters is that he's displaying it.

[blueshield]

I agree Mc.Cain's confusion is part of the package, not age. Except for George Sr, all recent Repub prezidents have been long on bumpersticker policy and short on logic, cause and effect, nuance, depth of understandign.

But that's because Repub appeal is based on pandering to the public, and then use this popular support for cover for political agendas.

[jarotra]

It's not so much McCain is old, it's his politics that are old. You can't get away with saying different things to different audiences any more. It's called accountability.

Honest John McCain is not equipped to campaign in the age of youtube. He gets a pass from the media, but that is not unlimited. His Hillary/Bosnia moments will inevitably reach critical mass, he can't help himself. When that happens, good luck on getting his image back.