McCain runs away from bills he once championed

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To show what a good little right-wing soldier he is, McCain has abandoned a number of bills that he used to champion. He didn't just support these bills, mind you, he actually fought for them. And not back in the 1970's, but within the past few years. Carpetbagger Report (via DailyKos) has the goods:

* He said this week that he’d vote against his own immigration plan.

* McCain used to champion the Law of the Sea convention, even volunteering to testify on the treaty’s behalf before a Senate committee. Now, if the treaty comes to the Senate floor, he’s vowed to vote against it.

* McCain was a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to illegal immigrants’ kids who graduate from high school. In 2007, to make the far-right base happy, he voted against the bill he had taken the lead on.

* In 2006, McCain sponsored legislation to require grassroots lobbying coalitions to reveal their financial donors. In 2007, after receiving “feedback” on the proposal, McCain told far-right activist groups that he now opposes the measure he’d backed.

* McCain used to support major campaign-finance reform measures that bore his name. In June 2007, McCain announced his opposition to a major McCain-Feingold provision.

It’s one thing to shift with the political winds, and I’ll gladly concede that there are worse qualities in a presidential candidate than changing one’s mind about a policy matter or two. Indeed, McCain has been in Congress for a quarter-century; he’s bound to shift now and then on various issues.

But these aren’t just random bills that McCain voted on — these are bills that he personally championed — recently. And now, after McCain sponsored the bills, he’s not even willing to vote for them anymore.

It's not too early to start knocking McCain off his media-darling pedestal. No doubt the other side is gearing up their Obama opposition reasearch.

The thing that scares me about McCain is that he's even MORE enthusiastic about the Iraq occupation than Bush is, if that's possible. The guy's militarism is frightening.

Of course, if he is the nominee, it'll be fun watching him tack desperately to the center, with the right-wing howling in rage with every move.

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