Seared but false?
POWERLINE
Top aides to John McCain have denied John Kerry's claim that McCain's camp approached Kerry about a spot on the Democratic ticket in 2004. The McCain camp insists it was the other way around. According to Mark Salter, then McCain's Senate chief of staff and now senior adviser to his campaign for the GOP presidential nomination, "Kerry asked McCain about joining his ticket two or three times, always couching the matter hypothetically: 'Say I were to offer you this, would you be interested?'" Each time McCain would respond, in essencce, "Oh, come on, John, it wouldn't work."
I must say that this account, which is in accord with the rumors back in 2004, sounds more plausible than Kerry's. As the presidential candidate, Kerry had more to gain from McCain than McCain had to gain from Kerry. If McCain had been at all interested in running with Kerry, it seems likely that Kerry would have sealed the deal.
McCain's "approach" may be seared, seared in Kerry's memory, but that doesn't mean it occurred.
The Diane Feinstein conflict of interest story
I've written often about the ethically challenged House Democrats. Today, on the AOL blog, I take a look at the ethics issues that have arisen concerning Senate Democrat Diane Feinstein. I note that these issues were raised largely by liberal organizations and media outlets, who would like to see an investigation by an independent watchdog. Feinstein, however, has opposed the effort of Barack Obama to create such a position within the Congress. |
