Cheney's Bagman
If there is still doubt that a McCain presidency would be BUSH III, consider this: McCain has brought onto his team one of the original Enron conspirators, former Senator Phil Gramm of Texas. Gramm has been with McCain for a year, but stayed in the background until McCain made his comeback and became the clear nominee of the GOP.
"Snake Eyes Gramm"* started his political life as a Texas Democrat. Like many others, Gramm used the Democratic Party, which still had life in Texas back then, to gain a foothold in politics, then switched to the GOP. If that's all there had been to it, no big deal, (though I've always wondered why the Dems don't sue turncoats like Gramm to recover their monetary support). No, that's not the end of the story.
In 1981, Gramm attended Democratic Caucus budget meetings and then secretly shared their strategy with Republicans to help pass newly inaugurated President Ronald Reagan's budget. In response, the House Democratic leadership stripped him of his seat on the committee. (Wikipedia) Gramm wasn't just a turncoat, he was a spy.
He then made the change to the Republican Party, a wholly owned subsidiary of Corporate America. Gramm was the perfect corporate puppet to be president, but when he ran for President in '96, he learned that his political capital was gone. Ironically, it wasn't his questionable connections that sunk him, but more likely, his extremely unphotogenic face*. Now, he's back, and on board with McCain.
As for McCain's promise to end partisanship when he is president, consider the following quote from Gramm, now one of his closest advisors:
"We're going to keep on building the party (the Texas Republican Party) until we're hunting Democrats with dogs." - As quoted in Mother Jones, August 1995
Gramm took a low profile after the Enron stink came near him and his wife when it was disclosed she not only sat on the Enron Board of Directors, she had used her position on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to grant Enron favorable rulings before she took a seat on the Enron Board. Her Senator husband's role was to push through Congress deregulation schemes that resulted not only in the California blackouts, but more urgently, in the energy and economic disasters we face today. Big surprise, Enron was a major contributor to his campaign. (Wikipedia)
Bush's Brain
McCain has also brought Bush's Brain, Karl Rove, on board. I won't waste time characterizing him, as we all know his talents. He too, has a questionable record. Remember Valerie Plame? Rove's involvement in the Alberto Gonzales and Department of Justice scandals? Two campaigns crafted on propaganda, lies and stolen elections?
The most important messages McCain is sending is 1) that he would make a deal with the Devil to get elected, and 2) that he has no more character, courage or principle than the people around him.
I would simply point out that the large number of lobbyists in McCain's campaign is not nearly as significant as having Cheney's Bagman and Bush's Brain as part of his team.
Bush III is looking more and more realistic.
