John McCain on FOX

Surprise, surprise!

John McCain was on TV Sunday morning!

He appeared on FOX News Sunday to give his views on a number of issues.

What seem to be grabbing the most attention are his statements about Donald Rumsfeld.

McCain said he doesn't have confidence in the Secretary of Defense, but admits that's irrelevant because the President does.

He's got that right.

McCain said, "Have I disagreed with the secretary of defense? Yes.

"But my job is not to have an open confrontation with the secretary of defense. My job is to try to work with him as long as he enjoys the confidence of the president to try and get this job completed. It doesn't help if I get into some kind of fight with him."

I wouldn't call that big news. Then again, anytime McCain is in disagreement with anyone in the administration in any way, he receives a lot of attention. The mainstream media love to cite the wisdom of John McCain.

I may have missed it, but I haven't seen a lot of reports about McCain's account of the President's meetings with families of our fallen military men and women.

Why would the media ignore his comments relating to Cindy Sheehan?

Transcript

(Excerpt)

WALLACE: Let me switch, if I can, to another subject: Cindy Sheehan. I suspect you know who she is?

MCCAIN: Sure.

WALLACE: The woman whose son was killed in Iraq last year who's now camped outside the president's ranch. It's clear that she has joined with some left-wing anti-war groups and has even taped a commercial, which we're going to show later, in which she accuses the president of lying.

Question though: If you were the president, would you meet with her?

MCCAIN: I don't know if I would or not, Chris, because he did already meet with her once, as you know. And that, I think, probably was sufficient. But this thing has blossomed.

Look, I've been with the president of the United States when he has met with the families of those brave young men and women who have sacrificed. I have seen his compassion, I have seen his love, I have seen his concern. So any charge of insensitivity or uncaring on the part of this president, is absolutely false. He cares and he grieves.

WALLACE: Now, I know you were on that campaign trip in June of 2004. Were you in the meeting with him when he met with Cindy Sheehan?

MCCAIN: I don't -- you know, I don't remember her, because there was a number of families. We sort of met separately, but I did see him encounter and try to do his best to comfort these families, and I saw...

WALLACE: So when she talks about callous, jovial, acting like he was at a party?

MCCAIN: I have seen him, I have seen his care, and I have seen him grieve. And I'm sure he wouldn't like to hear me say this, but I saw him afterwards. He was very, very grieved. And that's the job of the president of the United States. He fully appreciates the tragedy of the loss of these brave young Americans.

Two statements worth repeating:

1) "I have seen his compassion, I have seen his love, I have seen his concern. So any charge of insensitivity or uncaring on the part of this president, is absolutely false. He cares and he grieves."

2) "And I'm sure he wouldn't like to hear me say this, but I saw him afterwards. He was very, very grieved."

That certainly sounds like McCain was saying there was no doubt in his mind--NONE-- that President Bush cares deeply and grieves for the troops that have died and the families who mourn them. McCain has seen Bush visibly moved after meetings with families of the fallen.

He clearly states that any reports to the contrary are false.

That would mean McCain considers Cindy Sheehan's revamped story of her 2004 meeting with the President to be a crock. He discredits her claim that Bush didn't care about her loss and that he acted like their meeting was a party.

Where is the liberal media to report on this? They usually hang on McCain's every word.

Cindy Sheehan is the big story. It would follow that media magnet McCain's comments on Sheehan would be news. The problem for the media is that McCain said "any charge of insensitivity or uncaring on the part of this president, is absolutely false."

That doesn't fit their template for the Sheehan story, does it?

They can't have someone they respect as much as John McCain disputing the world according to Cindy Sheehan, can they?