Huh? McCain: Gates is "a political appointee who's never been in the military."

[Clio the Leo]

Telling.

McCain Spox: Senator 'Misspoke' When He Said Defense Secretary Never Served In Military
Evan McMorris-Santoro | December 1, 2010, 10:32AM

A spokesperson for Senator John McCain (R-AZ) says the preeminent veteran in the U.S. Senate "misspoke" yesterday when he said Secretary of Defense Robert Gates never served in the U.S. military.

McCain dismissed Gates' claim that repealing the military's ban on openly gay and lesbian service members would have little or no effect on military readiness in an interview with NBC News yesterday by suggesting that Gates doesn't really know what ending Don't Ask, Don't Tell will mean for fighters on the ground. McCain, who continues to be opposed to repealing DADT, stated that Gates was not an objective expert on the matter because he's "a political appointee who's never been in the military."

In truth, Gates served in the Air Force as a second lieutenant for two years starting in 1967. (That was the same year McCain, a Navy pilot, was injured in a fire aboard the aircraft carrier Forrestal in the coastal waters off Vietnam.)

McCain spokesperson Brooke Buchanan told TPM that McCain knows that Gates served in the armed forces and "simply misspoke" when asked about DADT by NBC News.

"Obviously Senator McCain is aware of Secretary Gates' many honorable years in service," Buchanan said in an email.

McCain's office did not immediately reply to questions about whether the Senator has offered Gates a personal apology for misstating his military record.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/12/mccain-spox-senator-misspoke-when-he-said-secdef-never-served-in-the-military.php

[xchrom]

1. McCain is a liar. Nt

[FSogol]

2. Why does McCain always look like someone spun him around in circles 10x before he starts speaking?

Time for Grandpaw to retire.

[Clio the Leo]

10. He's a fan of "Dead or Alive"?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJv5qLsLYoo

ETA: I dont think I realized how much of a Boy George wannabe this guy was at the time.

[FSogol]

11. +1 n/t

[boppers]

26. Other way around.

Pete Burns often accused Boy George of stealing his androgynous look.... Burns was doing it in 1979, George picked it up in '81, and both were part of what became known as the "New Romantic" look/movement.

[TwilightGardener]

3. Ignorant, senile, or both?

[sarge43]

16. Not ignorant. You're too kind.

He was a senator when Gates was appointed SecDef. He had to be approved by the senate. Besides Gates has been a beltway player since God was a boy. McLame knows his c. vita.

It was a deliberate lie or he is losing it.

[RC]

4. If national politicians had to take and pass reality tests,

most of them would be out of a job.

[Clio the Leo]

13. Maybe Michelle Bachmann should add a "civic" course to her...

.... classes on the US Constitution.

Also, it's entirely possible that McCain thinks the President is still a Senator ... who's just being kept in a special building just for the black members of the Senate. .... and thinks Roland Burris is an elevator guy or something.

[young but wise]

5. I really dislike Mccain. He's so bitter.

[Zoeisright]

6. Yeah, every time pukes lie they say they 'misspoke'.

Too little too late, McCain. Your ignorance is on display for all to see. As well as your hypocrisy.

[niyad]

7. gates didn't crash five planes, didn't disobey orders that reulted in being a pow--maybe THAT is the

service to which grumpy is referring.

[opihimoimoi]

8. McGramps has been abusing the Sauce much too much..he shows signs of brain reduction by intoxication

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

9. He knew damn well of Gates' military experience when he "misspoke." He did it on purpose

hoping that the minions in the Republican Party would believe that nonsense before he corrected himself.

This old goober is getting more and more desperate. He is so pathetic. I can't believe so many people--even Democrats--even fell for that Maverick bullshit! McCain was NEVER an honorable man. NEVER!!!

[Clio the Leo]

14. I think your explanation may be the most accurate....

... as much as we all joke about it, the chances of him engaging in a little bit of a mindscrew is a lot higher than him forgetting.

[sarge43]

17. +1 n/t

[lumpy]

18. You got it right. McCain is an out and out liar just like so many

Repubs who get away scott-free with their blantant lies.

[Blasphemer]

21. Sadly true

It became clear during the 2008 election that his reputation up until then was a myth. If he was the sort of maverick that he pretended to be, he'd be in favor of a repeal.

[polichick]

28. I agree - that hero, maverick stuff was a myth. No honor, ever! nt

[sarge43]

12. OIC, like that former SecDef Dick "Five Draft Deferments" Cheney?

Repubs work hypocrisy like Michelangelo worked marble.

[impik]

15. And Republicans just fall in line behind that piece of shit

[karynnj]

19. But being an appointee in a Democratic administartion of a Democratic legislator ERASES being in the

military - even if as in his case he was also in teh Bush administration.

It drives me crazy that Republicans, who never served, are never questioned. It drove me crazy see how many times, Scott Brown has spoken of his 30 years in the military - even though he NEVER was on active duty - yet the Republicans argued that Kerry's 4 months in Vietnam, where he was shot at and got two prestigious medals in a nearly 4 year active duty was not enough. Not to mention, from various accounts of McCain's service before he was taken prisoner, he would likely have gladly swapped fitness reports with Kerry, whose were uniformly excellent.

[Azathoth]

20. If McCain were a Democrat, a GOP veterans group would have destroyed him years ago

They would have called themselves POWs for Truth and they would have had great fun reminding people that his military "service" consisted almost entirely of sitting in a jail cell telling his captors whatever they wanted to know while "real" soldiers actually spent their time fighting the enemy and trying to rescue sorry sacks like him. They'd have called him a pretend soldier and a "legacy admission" who tripped and fell on his face the instant he got to a war zone. The sneering, the innuendo, the nonstop baiting on Faux and talk radio would have been relentless, and he would probably have never even made it to the Senate.

Instead, he's a Republican, so not only has he been able to build an entire political career around his time in the Hanoi Hilton while being inexplicably regarded as some kind of Washington oracle and expert on military affairs, but he also apparently gets to smear the military service of others.

[political_Dem]

22. I bet McCain "misspoke".

The sad thing here is that a man who crashed several planes while serving is hurling stones at a glass house.

[lumpy]

23. He lies.

period

[zulchzulu]

24. McCain needs to be exposed as a hapless, careless Airboy who was known as Johnny Songbird

McCain was a fucking bad soldier.

He crashed several planes that would have had him mopping floors if it wasn't for his daddy. One of his crashes killed many fellow naval officers. Then he carelessly flew where he was told he would get shot down and got shot down. Then he used his daddy's credibility to allow him to make radio messages for the Vietcong saying the war was wrong. He then got to go to whore houses and get laid while his fellow POWs had to sit in chains.

Not to mention being one of the Keating Five! Not to mention bringing Sarah Palin into the political scene...

McCain is one fucked up asshole. Period.

[zulchzulu]

25. McCain thinks you didn't serve in the military unless you got held prisoner or crashed planes

The twit obviously had some major head wounds when he was crashing planes and getting caught in battle.

Dumbass...

[polichick]

27. McShame strikes again! nt

[yellowcanine]

29. What, no apology? If a Democratic senator had done that pubbies would be screaming "resign!"

You know they would.

Grumps is definitely losing whatever grip he had on reality.

[Supersedeas]

30. the entire THRUST and SUBSTANCE of his argument pivots on the THING he mispoke about!!!!!

yet, McCain the Maverick counts accountability in crickets from the Corp Media outlets.

[fatbuckel]

31. He "misspeaks" alot.