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McCain finds friendly audience in Saint Paul town hall
Senator John McCain fielded 18 questions from a friendly crowd at the Landmark Center in Saint Paul Thursday night, including one he's not quite ready to answer yet regarding Governor Tim Pawlenty's future. "I think Minnesota Governor Tim Palwenty would make an excellent vice president," asked Dave Story of Farmington, a young man on the front row, "What do you think, what are his chances?" "I knew we should've stopped at the last question," McCain quipped, "This meeting is adjourned!" McCain went on to say what he's often said of Minnesota's governor, which is that Pawlenty has a "big future" in the Republican national party and is part of the next generation of leaders. But he said he's not ready to speculate about the potential vice presidential candidates. Pawlenty, as national co-chair of McCain's campaign and a good friend, has often been said to be on McCain's "short list." It was McCain's second campaign stop of the night in the Twin Cities. He'd earlier headlined a major fundraiser at the Hilton in downtown Minneapolis. The Saint Paul appearance was dubbed a "Town Hall Forum" for undecided voters. But all of the ticketed guests had to be screened by the McCain campaign. And most of those who spoke to KARE 11 after the event conceded they were already leaning heavily toward McCain in this year's election. McCain also took a swipe at the presumptive Democratic nomineee Barack Obama, for changing his mind about public financing. Senator Obama announced Thursday that he would forego public matching funds, which will allow him to blow through the $85 million spending limit for the general election. The Arizona Senator was asked by another audience member to explain how he had differed from President Bush on matters related to Iraq. McCain recalled conversations he had with officers on the ground in Iraq in the early stages of the war. "And they said, 'Senator McCain we're gonna lose this thing, we don't have enough troops on the ground.' And I came back and I gave speeches and said we don't have enough troops on the ground." McCain bristles at the notion that he'll be the third Bush term, or nicknames such as Bush Lite and McBush, tossed around by Democrats. "I was called disloyal by Republicans for not supporting that strategy and I said here' s the strategy that's going to work." McCain also promised that, if he's elected, he'll be a constant presence in Americans' living rooms. "The last time I remember feeling like I knew my president was when Ronald Reagan," one woman in the audience asked, "And it was because he talked to us frequently. Would you do that?" "Yes," McCain answered without hesitation, "I would go on television all the time to describe the people the situation in Iraq and Afghanistan even if nobody watched, even if nobody watched, I'd have a map and say here's what happened to you in the last two weeks since I talked to you last."
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