John McCain
Town Hall
Cleveland, OH 05/01/08

TRANSCRIPT:
REPORTER: Senator, as you know, this is the five year anniversary of what, fairly or unfairly, has become known as "Mission Accomplished Day." The President's approval rating is at an all-time low, support for the war in polls is at an all-time low and some of your friends on the left are trying to make sure that you carry some of that political baggage. The DNC is spending about half a million dollars on an ad, MoveOn.org says it will spend about a million dollars saying, "If you don't like the Iraq War, blame John McCain." What do you think specifically of those ads and what is the political thrust for you?

JOHN MCCAIN: John, obviously I think the ads are falsifying my position, particularly when they have hundred year quote. Every objective organization that judges these things say that both Senator Obama and the DNC and others are falsifying what I really said. It's very clear on that particular issue. I think the record is pretty clear that I came back early on after the admission of military success and argued vehemently against a strategy that was failing there and advocated a strategy we might have sued in succeeding. So, I'll put my trust in the voters of this country that I know how to lead and that I have the experience and the knowledge and the background to make those judgments. I will also make the case that when Senator Obama and Senator Clinton say that they're going to set a date for immediate withdrawal that that will lead to chaos and genocide and chaos in the region which will then require us to come back and endanger our national security. I said, as you well know, more than a year ago, I would much rather lose a political campaign than lose a war and I still stand by that statement. My knowledge and experience, which Senator Clinton and Senator Obama do not have, dictates to me that we must succeed. And the strategy is succeeding. With spikes. And with enormous difficulty and enormous sacrifice that saddens us all. But the consequences of taking the path that Senator Obama and Senator Clinton want would be a disaster for our nation's security and would require a much larger expenditure of American blood and treasure.

LABEL:
JM OH 5-1 (EW#5) DAGH -- Clip O

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