Vail (Colo.) Daily News: “We’re winning in Iraq, McCain says”
While campaigning in Colorado on Wednesday, August 16, Senator McCain reiterated his position on Iraq, among other things. Here are key excerpts from the Vail (Colo.) Daily News report:
ASPEN — Republican presidential hopeful John McCain shrugged off reports that his campaign is suffering both financially and in polls, claiming — during a stop Wednesday in Aspen — that he will be “just fine” when the campaign gets more intense.The U.S. senator from Arizona insisted that every campaign experiences difficulties, including Ronald Reagan’s winning presidential bid in 1980.
“We raised the money — we just spent too much money and now have it under control,” McCain said. McCain told a capacity crowd at the Aspen Institute that his positions on issues will hit a positive chord with voters in coming months. “In September and October we’re going to have this great debate on Iraq [in the Senate], and people are also going to start paying attention to the race,” he said.
The nomination will be wrapped up by January because of states scheduling primaries and caucuses earlier than in the past, he predicted. That will put the pressure on him to score early victories in places such as New Hampshire, Iowa and South Carolina….
McCain said the U.S. must keep troops in Iraq and prevail in stabilizing the country despite the unfortunate loss of “blood and treasure” it will bring. He said “the threat of radical Islamic extremism” is the biggest challenge of the 21st century.
His definition of victory includes an ideological shift in Iraq and throughout that region, not just victories on battlefields. The U.S. didn’t win the Cold War by beating the Soviet Union in a tank battle in Europe, he said.
In the same way, the U.S. and its allies must incubate democracy in the Middle East and Persian Gulf countries. McCain initially criticized the Bush administration’s handling of the war. “I railed against the strategy,” he said….
You can read the full text of the original article here. You can contact The Tower at tower@campaignia.org.