September 22 - From his lobbyists, to the economy and foreign policy, McCain's Straight Talk Express is off the rails. The Real News Network's Pepe Escobar examines the contradictions and inconsistencies within the McCain campaign.
McCain recently announced that "the crisis on Wall Street started in the washing culture of lobbying and influence peddling," which is an interesting statement for a candidate whose list of advisers hosts a range of paid lobbyists. The names on the line-up include Wayne Berman, a lobbyist for Chevron and Haas Oil, Carly Fiorina, ex-CEO of Hewlett-Packard (who has admitted that she doesn't believe McCain could run a company), and Randy Scheunemann, a paid lobbyist for the country of Georgia.
The shaky foundations of the McCain platform continue to quiver as McCain appears to be flip-flopping from one position to the next on a variety of issues. Be it his response to last week's catastrophic economic meltdown, or his stance on meeting with other world leaders such as the President of Spain. In addition, his basic knowledge of current issues may be called into question when he makes such rudimentary mistakes as calling for the resignation of the President of the FEC, when he was actually attempting to state that the President of the SEC should resign.
In early April, McCain voiced that he "would like (Zapatero) to visit the US". However, his foreign policy advisor, Randy Scheunemann, has emphasized in the past that McCain would not be engaging in any meetings with the Spanish leader. The debatable competency of his international knowledge was revealed in a recent interview with a Miami radio station. When McCain was asked if he would agree to meet with Spain's President, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, he responded with a discombobulated answer about his stance on working with Latin American leaders.
The Real News journalist, Pepe Escobar, coins the phrase the "McCain mess express" in his commentary on the Republican Candidate, to illustrate the contentious position of the campaign. He examines how McCain's plaguing hindrances, such as contradictory statements and lacking knowledge, may be taking this campaign on the wild ride of a runaway freight train.
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