John McCain is the Best canidiate for Democrats and Republicans

"There are some pretty impressive names on that list..." Reply: It's not being a senator that is a problem, it's that he hasn't held any other type of office besides senator. James Monroe was a governor, John Quincy Adams held a cabinet position, Jackson was basically a governor, Van Buren was a governor as was Harrison and Tyler. Johnson and Nixon were both vice-president before becoming the head honcho. I won't go into details about all the presidents listed, but you can see the point. Off the top of my head, Kennedy is the only one I can think of that didn't have any executive experience before becoming president, and if it were not for his assassination, it seemed at the time history would not have regarded him as a great president. "he clearly had no idea what was being addressed [about the president's working group on financials]" is obserd and false." Reply:....err....I think you are just seeing what you want to see. If anyone is interested, here is a video of the incident. http://youtube.com... He never says anything directly about the group, his opinion of it, or if he would abolish it or not. In case you didn't get a good look at it the first time, watch it again here http://youtube.com... "hypothetically if Adam Sandler was a good actor" Reply: Hypothetical indeed. "but he didnt fake cry well does that make him a bad actor?" Reply: It would make him a bad dramatic actor, just like John McCain would be a bad executive. "McCain bold solutions to stimulate the American economy," Reply: Such as.....? What does that even mean....? "believes taxes should be low" Reply: But he won't vote to make Bush's tax cuts permanent? "fair and has a track record of commitment to these principles" Reply: Not exactly. He has done some good things to stop pork-barrel spending and promote free trade, but has also voted for increases in social security taxes, massive spending in No Child Left Behind, and other regulations. Here is what the Club For Growth has to say about him. [From CFG] "While John McCain can easily point to a handful of pro-growth votes over his twenty-four years in Congress, a deeper look at Senator McCain's record and rhetoric, especially in recent years, ought to give American taxpayers a long and hard pause." I would say he is more of a mixed bag on these issues than committed to free markets "Now its not that i dont want to hear what all the Paul supporters are preaching BUT i want a serious contender." Reply: Fair enough. You started the debate, so you set the parameters. But to say a candidate is the "Best" you have to show they are better than everyone else, not just the one's you choose. Unless your only criterion for best is electability, which means you probably have shallow political convictions. And even if that were the case, Barack Obama would be the best, since he leads in most head to head polls. http://www.realclearpolitics.com... "McCain appeals to both Republican and Democratic voters." Reply: So does Obama, what makes McCain better than him? Second, we aren't even through the primaries yet, so it isn't clear who will appeal to voters in November. "McCain, has the experience and knowledge to be a commander in chief for our country while at War in Iraq." Reply: There is a difference between serving in the military and having an understanding of how geopolitical structures work. And any candidate who doesn't understand that it is our presence around the world, i.e. trying to "police" the world, that is causing terrorism is woefully unqualified to be in charge of our military. Osama Bin Laden has said himself that if you want to understand what is going on with Al Queda to read the books of Michael Scheuer. And here is what Michael Scheuer had to say about Rudy Guiliani calling Ron Paul's foreign policy absurd: [Scheuer] "I thought Mr. Paul captured it the other night exactly correctly. This war is dangerous to America because it's based, not on gender equality, as Mr. Giuliani suggested, or any other kind of freedom, but simply because of what we do in the Islamic World – because ‘we're over there,' basically, as Mr. Paul said in the debate." The only candidates who really understand this point are Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich (is he still in the mix?) John McCain hasn't shown that he really gets this. There is a difference between knowing how to fight a war and when knowing when to fight a war. Big difference. "But the thing that most appeals to Dems is his ability to compromise and reach across the aisle to get things done, and that is what gives him my support....The big thing is McCain will get things done wjish is the number one priority in our situation." Reply: It's not just getting things done that matters, but getting the right things done. Compromise can be a useful political asset, but the truth doesn't always fall in the middle. Sometimes in trying to be bipartisan, instead of getting the best of both worlds you end up with the worst. Again, I don't have any huge problems with McCain like some other republicans, just that I don't think he is quite the best choice. I respect him and have a favorable attitude towards him, but I haven't decided if I will vote for McCain should he get the nomination. If he comes down to him and Hilary, I would probably vote McCain. Now if it were McCain and Obama, I might have to consider it further. Obama is for ending the war, decriminalizing marijuana, and his health care plan is at least better than Hilary's (focusing on subsidizing low-income health insurance, rather than a massive government take over). I think he could be a democratic version of Regean, restoring America's image abroad and making people more optimistic about the future. If he does well, I don't know. Only time will tell...