McCain's loving comment to wife Cindy: 'you c*nt'

Dumpster Diving

You think supporting progressive writing means buying this book on the basis of third hand reporting from anonymous sources on a scurrilous remark that may or may not have happened and that no alleged witness will put their name to?  Did you learn this from Karl Rove?  When do we get to see you on the Springer show?  
If he did say that, it is still no one's business but McCcain's and his wife's, and to bring it into the realm of unreliability for the presidency is worthy of Ken Starr.  I hope that if he did, she gave him hell for it, but then again, it's none of my business.  Or yours.

But you promote progressive writing on the basis of this?  Hell's bells woman, get a grip!

This post is exactly what is wrong with American politics; descending to the sleaze, innuendo and opportunistic bashing.  I'm sore dissapointed the Blend resorts to this down-low.

This is trashy of you, Pam, I've learned to expect better here.

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by: Brian @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 11:59:33 AM CDT

Anonymous sources are always problematic

but they must be judged on a case-by-case basis. If the person is Judith Miller, who peddles such sources even after they are proven wrong, then you can't believe the source.

Schecter doesn't have that problem.

If we are to disregard ALL anonymous sources out of hand, then we are going to let a lot of criminal actions go uninvestigated and unpunished.

It is OUR business since this man is pushing the "family values" BS. Since McCain has also been critical of Clinton's conduct in the past, then the issue is germane. If he were one of the FEW politicians who has always made it a point of drawing the line at people's personal lives, you would have a point.

Say what you will about Clinton, but at least he had the blow job in private. If you are going to say such things to your wife in public, then expect it to be discussed.

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by: Kosh @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 12:25:53 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Criminal Action?

Calling your wife a cunt is not a criminal action, and is still no one's business, even if it were substantiatied, which this post didn't manage to do.  Anonymous sources are not reliable and so can not be given reliability.  There is no criminal activity implied here.  This is trash-taliking, plain and simple.

We don't know that he said that to his wife, nor that he said it in public.  All we know is that someone reported it, on the basis of what someone else said, and then someone wrote a book.  That's called gossip.  And if Pam promotes that as evidence of progressive writing, then she is a detriment to progressives, and should write for Drudge.

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by: Brian @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 12:57:45 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

It's is not about anything criminal

it's about hypocrisy.

Any person who preaches one thing, then practices another is fair game.

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by: Kosh @ Mon Apr 14, 2008 at 16:07:26 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

It is fact that he dumped his waiting first wife for a 15 year younger rich woman

after he got back from 'Nam.

McCain has a reputation for a temper, and it wouldn't surprise me if he directed it towards his wife or at other women. The C word is common in this culture, men say it about their steady sexual partners (wives and long-term live-in lovers) all the time when talking with other men or out of ear of the partner.

Whether or not he said the C word to his wife in public, he still is opportunistic and ill-tempered.

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by: NancyP @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 13:19:07 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Reputation

Clinton had a reputation for womanising when he was elected both times.  Bush had a reputation for incompetence when he was chosen/elected both times.  That's not the point.

The point is offering this unsustabtiated bit of gossip as as progressive writing.  It feeds into prejudice, presumption and bigotry.  McCain may have a temper, if so, good on him.  Better a temper in the president than in his over-reaching Vice President.  But we have no evidence of that from this irresponsible post.  

That's the point.    

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by: Brian @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 13:51:54 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Temper and nuclear weapons don't mix.

I'd rather have a calm person at the red phone, thank you. Also one who doesn't seem to be willing to have 100 years of war.

No, I don't think it is at all surprising, and therefore I don't think it is huge news, if an ex-military man with money, ego, and temper calls his wife a C in public - even if impeccably sourced. At least half of married men have done this, I'd bet. I am guessing that using the C word in public would make him MORE popular with men, not less.

Gentlemen worthy of the name do not go into politics, and are scarce anywhere.

NancyP

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by: NancyP @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 15:27:26 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Then you got sucked in

by the same ole trash talk that pervades all American politics.  If this is what goes down and that people buy into it then forget Fox, the Blend does a much better job  at spreading unsubstantiated innuendo and having people believe it.  

This is so disappointing.

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by: Brian @ Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 15:38:44 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

yup, because opportunistic bashing isn't just for republicans anymore

we need more attack dogs on the left, FAR more.  people respond to it, and democrats have been exclusively at the receiving end for far too long.

besides that, the frightening possibility of mccain's presidency means that his abilities as a leader and diplomat should be assessed by his personal encounters with others.  he has demonstrated his appalling interpersonal communication and conflict resolution skills numerous times, and they occur within public settings.  these are not private affairs, as is the clinton example that you and so many other right-wingers are so fond of recalling.  this was done in PUBLIC, in front of reporters.  the man has no sense of propriety, and we are expected to shrug it off for the sake of "progressive writing"?  just what the hell is that, exactly?

innuendo and sleaze--by the way--is discussing whether obama is a muslim, or whether he hates america.  sound familiar?  to imply that's what pam does here does a disservice to the sleaze that is americablog and other blog-darlings of the right.  

to call your wife a "cunt" in public or in private is beyond the beyonds.  to even fathom using such language to someone, or in front of others, is a foreign concept to a person with a shred of respectability.  the fact is that these occurrances should be a wake-up call for americans that we are looking at a man who is not fit to lead the public.  why he is even a candidate is beyond me.    

The gays stole my lunch money

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by: matt in mpls @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 16:22:53 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

What's really scary...

...is that there are voters who appreciate that kind of attitude and will vote for just such a hothead.

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by: Hazumu @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 12:03:50 PM CDT

As is the case for almost every Republican

a Woman's place, and a Gay Man's place, is in the bedroom....Oh, or public bathroom.

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by: A&E @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 12:34:13 PM CDT

Snare? Damn!

McCain is so angry and outa control even this book is dangerous, apparently, since people have to "snare" it.  :-)
Pam, I think you meant "snag."

But seriously, I'm less interested in how he behaves to his family and more concerned with his reputation as hot-tempered in the Senate.  That's more telling.

"In order to maintain an untenable position, you have to be actively ignorant."  The Colbert Report

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by: Lev Raphael @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 12:43:18 PM CDT

P.S.

I suspect we've all blown up at our spouses more than once and even said some really terrible things.  You don't know what had been going on up until this point and if this just pushed him over the edge.  We also don't know what kinds of things she says to him.

"In order to maintain an untenable position, you have to be actively ignorant."  The Colbert Report

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by: Lev Raphael @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 13:18:48 PM CDT

sure, but i think the point is

that he is either so hot-headed or has such a tin ear that he would spout off like that in front of journalists. doesn't instill much trust that he'll comport himself reasonably or intelligently as president.  we've already lived through 7 years of one embarrassing twit.  do we want a 4 yr chaser of an uncontrolled hot head?  just wait until he calls angela merkel a cunt.  or worse yet, the wife of ahmadinejad.

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by: Lurleen @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 13:33:15 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Yes, I got the point and have said something about his temper above

But I was also trying to say that this moment in time lacks context.  How do we know she didn't say something vile to him out of earshot?

And now that I'm saying something moderately nice about McCain I'll say something nice about Clinton.  She has been unfairly pilloried as calculating, as when she didn't choose between the Stones and The Beatles but said she had both on her iPod.  Big deal!  So she has diverse tastes.  The press went nuts about this, said it was a sign of phoniness.

But has anyone noticee that NcCain said his favorite group was NIN?????????????  Can you believe it?  He said it was his daughter's favorite "band"  I don't believe he's ever even listened to one cut from one NIN CD.

"In order to maintain an untenable position, you have to be actively ignorant."  The Colbert Report

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by: Lev Raphael @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 16:12:29 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Egads.

The idea of him rocking out to Closer is just a tad bit too creepy for me to want to deal with...

My America includes LGBT families.

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by: Mena @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 18:56:51 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Mena, you are great!

That was exactly the thought in my head but I didn't even want to put it down.  As Reznor sings: "Help me!"

I think McCain's probably more an Alice Cooper, Ozzy Osbourne or Ted Nugent fan.  :-)

"In order to maintain an untenable position, you have to be actively ignorant."  The Colbert Report

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by: Lev Raphael @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 20:31:13 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

However....

Help me indeed!  ;^)
The title of March of the Pigs would be appropriate.  
I would have used Hurt but I really did prefer Johnny Cash's version of it.  Come to think of it, maybe that's what McCain was thinking of.  A-ha!  That's it!  :^)

My America includes LGBT families.

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by: Mena @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 23:01:43 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

LBJ was almost as much of a dick

There's a famous story about LBJ being similarly dickish toward Lady Bird during a dinner at the WH with some cabinet level folks. As they sat down at the table he said, "Lady Bird, I don't like that dress you're wearing." She demurred and moved the conversation along. A few minutes later he spoke to her again, "Lady Bird, I said I don't like that dress you're wearing."
"Yes, I heard you."
"Well, what are you going to do about it?"
Lady Bird excused herself and returned a few minutes later wearing a different dress. People at the dinner were mortified, but nobody said a word and the story didn't come out until he was long dead.

OTOH maybe Methuselah McCain was just being a straight talker and clearly communicating his feelings with the woman he'd had an affair with while still married to his first wife. [/snark]

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by: vanitysmurf @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 13:46:51 PM CDT

LBJ was a big dick

The rumor in the press corps was that once he was asked if he could really handle Vietnam, and in a room with no women present, he hauled out his Texas panhandle and basically asked, What do you think?

if it's apocryphal, it still says a lot that such a legend would arise about LBJ.

"In order to maintain an untenable position, you have to be actively ignorant."  The Colbert Report

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by: Lev Raphael @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 17:27:59 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

It is completely innapropriate to report such stuff...

Got any more??????

Question:  What does an atheist do when they fall to the floor and start "speaking in tongues"?

Answer: Get a CAT scan.

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by: Snooky Ookums @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 13:47:11 PM CDT

not inappropriate

The man, if he's this disrespectful to his wife IN PUBLIC, that's just the tip of the iceberg.

The fact is McCain's temper and questionable judgment has been  publicly discussed by his GOP colleagues, not just anonymous sources.

Click on over - the conservatives have been documenting McCain's unsuitability for some time now.

Defending His Amnesty Bill, Sen. McCain Lost His Temper And "Screamed, 'F*ck You!' At Texas Sen. John Cornyn" (R-TX). "Presidential hopeful John McCain - who has been dogged for years by questions about his volcanic temper - erupted in an angry, profanity-laced tirade at a fellow Republican senator, sources told The Post yesterday. In a heated dispute over immigration-law overhaul, McCain screamed, 'F- you!' at Texas Sen. John Cornyn, who had been raising concerns about the legislation. 'This is chickens-stuff,' McCain snapped at Cornyn, according to several people in the room off the Senate floor Thursday. 'You've always been against this bill, and you're just trying to derail it.'" (Charles Hurt, "Raising McCain," New York Post, 5/19/07)

***

Sen. McCain Repeatedly Called Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) An "A**hole", Causing A Fellow GOP Senator To Say, "I Didn't Want This Guy Anywhere Near A Trigger." "Why can't McCain win the votes of his own colleagues? To explain, a Republican senator tells this story: at a GOP meeting last fall, McCain erupted out of the blue at the respected Budget Committee chairman, Pete Domenici, saying, 'Only an a-hole would put together a budget like this.' Offended, Domenici stood up and gave a dignified, restrained speech about how in all his years in the Senate, through many heated debates, no one had ever called him that. Another senator might have taken the moment to check his temper. But McCain went on: 'I wouldn't call you an a-hole unless you really were an a-hole.' The Republican senator witnessing the scene had considered supporting McCain for president, but changed his mind. 'I decided,' the senator told Newsweek, 'I didn't want this guy anywhere near a trigger.'" (Evan Thomas, et al., "Senator Hothead," Newsweek, 2/21/00)

***

Sen. McCain Had A Heated Exchange With Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) And Called Him A "F*cking Jerk." "Senators are not used to having their intelligence or integrity challenged by another senator. 'Are you calling me stupid?' Sen. Chuck Grassley once inquired during a debate with McCain over the fate of the Vietnam MIAs, according to a source who was present. 'No,' replied McCain, 'I'm calling you a f-ing jerk!' (Grassley and McCain had no comment.)" (Evan Thomas, et al., "Senator Hothead," Newsweek, 2/21/00)

***

In 1995, Sen. McCain Had A "Scuffle" With 92-Year-Old Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-SC) On The Senate Floor. "In January 1995, McCain was midway through an opening statement at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing when chairman Strom Thurmond asked, 'Is the senator about through?' McCain glared at Thurmond, thanked him for his 'courtesy' (translation: buzz off), and continued on. McCain later confronted Thurmond on the Senate floor. A scuffle ensued, and the two didn't part friends." (Harry Jaffe, "Senator Hothead," The Washingtonian, 2/97)

***

Sen. McCain "Publicly Abused" Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL). "[McCain] noted his propensity for passion but insisted that he doesn't 'insult anybody or fly off the handle or anything like that.' This is, quite simply, hogwash. McCain often insults people and flies off the handle.... There have been the many times McCain has called reporters 'liars' and 'idiots' when they have had the audacity to ask him unpleasant, but pertinent, questions. McCain once... publicly abused Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama." (Editorial, "There's Something About McCain," The Austin American-Statesman, 1/24/07)

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by: Pam Spaulding @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 14:08:56 PM CDT

I totally agree

He is clearly someone with poor impulse control, high handed, angry, "McNasty" indeed.

I was playing devil's advocate above, but seriously, anyone who can't keep a civil tongue in his head in front of journalists and with his wife is scary.  He's not only too old to be president, he's too hot-tempered and I imagine that his cancer has exacerbated all these problems.

I look forward to him losing his cool against the very cool Obama in a debate.  :-)

"In order to maintain an untenable position, you have to be actively ignorant."  The Colbert Report

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by: Lev Raphael @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 16:45:34 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

TiVo is our friend

and I cannot WAIT! :)  

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by: Louise @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 18:46:49 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I've got a nasty-ass temper too

but I've also learned:

1. to control it to a large extent
2. to choose my words carefully
3. not to use them for shock factor/ mean-spirited effect

But most importantly, I'm not ever gonna be answering that phone at 3am!


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by: Louise @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 18:46:00 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Amen, Louise

I'm a Taurus and can really blow my stack, but I have never berated my spouse in public like that. Hell, not even in private.  Clearly, McNasty has a long history of not controlling his temper.  Can you imagine being married to someone like that?


"In order to maintain an untenable position, you have to be actively ignorant."  The Colbert Report

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by: Lev Raphael @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 20:34:46 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Not for a minute can I imagine a long-term relationship like that

I'm a Gemini (he's a Leo); our squabbles in the past when younger were spectacular but with the strong underlying friendship, we've learned how to be much more "fair" about them now. Name calling was always a cheap last resort and unworthy- discussions are better and not derailed if one doesn't use that sort of tone/phrase. A skill McCain seems to have never developed!

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by: Louise @ Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 05:34:16 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

Absolutely

Yes, name-calling doesn't further anything.  It helps too not to accuse--expressing anger or rage centered on what you feel is less destructive. We've been together for 25 years and (Aquarius was in my house of love and I've only been in love twice, each time with an A.)  We've always been soul mates which makes anger more disruptive in some ways but we learned early that humor could sometimes break things up.  If you're laughing, it's hard to be pissed off.  

"In order to maintain an untenable position, you have to be actively ignorant."  The Colbert Report

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by: Lev Raphael @ Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 07:19:37 AM CDT

[ Parent ]