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http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/mccain_florida/2008/01/21/66198.html
McCain Woos Cuban Vote
Monday, January 21, 2008
MIAMI -- John McCain courted the Cuban vote Monday and reminded Florida
voters of his history in the state, though he may have alienated coastal
voters with his stand on hurricane insurance.
Florida has emerged as a showdown state with Republican rival Rudy Giuliani,
who has been campaigning here while McCain focused on his successful
strategy to win New Hampshire and then South Carolina.
"I've been in this state for decades," the Arizona senator said, mentioning
at nearly every campaign stop from Miami to Jacksonville to Pensacola that
he has lived, worked and campaigned on behalf of others in Florida in the
past.
He told local reporters in a hurricane strike zone that he did not support
national catastrophe insurance _ a position certain to rankle some
Floridians and, perhaps, draw fire from his opponents.
"I believe that this nation and federal government has an obligation to help
out in any tragedy or natural disaster," McCain said during a round-table.
"Very badly, we need to fix our ability to bring relief, help and
assistance, both short term and long term, to the victims of disaster."
However, he said: "I do not support a national catastrophic insurance
policy. That insurance policy is there, and it's called FEMA, and it's
called disaster preparedness and it's called addressing disasters."
Nevertheless, he said of the Federal Emergency Management Agency: "I still
do not have confidence that FEMA is capable of handling all of those
responsibilities."
Coming off New Hampshire and South Carolina victories, McCain faces stiff
challenges from Giuliani, the former New York mayor who for weeks has
planted himself in his must-win state, as well as two former governors _
Mitt Romney of Massachusetts and Mike Huckabee of Arkansas.
Recent Florida polls show a tight four-way race in the state that offers its
winner a hefty 57 delegates toward the Republican nomination and serves as a
gateway to nearly two dozen states that vote on Feb. 5.
McCain hopes his personal and professional links to the state as well as his
military background will help him break out of the pack in a state that is
home to a large number of veterans and active duty service members.
"We come into Florida with some wind at our back, and recognize that we've
got some hard campaigning in the next 8 days or so," McCain told reporters.
Looking beyond Florida, McCain said he was encouraged by a pair of New York
polls that showed him with double-digit leads over Giuliani and said: "Maybe
we're going to win in New York."
He appeared more certain about his Florida chances.
"I'm confident that we can win here in this very important state that
represents so much of America and our base begins here in Miami with the
Cuban American community," McCain said as he looked for support in the
Little Havana section of Miami.
Cuban immigrants are a significant voting block in South Florida _ and
McCain is fighting with Giuliani for their backing. That was evident at the
Versailles Restaurant, where McCain and his wife, Cindy, navigated a media
crush to order Cuban espresso. Two giant Giuliani banners were strung from
the sides of neighboring buildings.
Then McCain appeared at a news conference flanked by three members of
Miami's congressional delegation _ Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Mario Diaz-Balart,
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen _ as well as a Cuban refugee who spent 28 years in a
Castro gulag.
McCain talked of "a long, long relationship with Cuban American community"
and said: "I'm proud to have sat on the flight deck of U.S. Navy Aircraft
during the Cuban Missile Crisis." He was part of Attack Squadron 65 on the
USS Enterprise as it circled the island nation in the 1960s.
He also argued that he has "fought for the freedom of the Cuban American
community" by calling for the U.S. embargo to continue until the country
holds free and fair elections. And, he mentioned that his fellow prisoners
of war, though not him, were tortured by Castro thugs in Vietnam.
In Miami and elsewhere, McCain repeatedly emphasized his four-decades-old
ties to the state.
As a Naval Academy graduate, McCain was stationed for a year in Pensacola
for pilot training and, at one point, his plane went down in Pensacola Bay.
His family lived in Jacksonville for several years while he was a prisoner
of war in Vietnam. Upon his release, he lived in Jacksonville, where he was
a commanding officer of his squadron at Cecil Field.
McCain Woos Cuban Vote
Monday, January 21, 2008
MIAMI -- John McCain courted the Cuban vote Monday and reminded Florida
voters of his history in the state, though he may have alienated coastal
voters with his stand on hurricane insurance.
Florida has emerged as a showdown state with Republican rival Rudy Giuliani,
who has been campaigning here while McCain focused on his successful
strategy to win New Hampshire and then South Carolina.
"I've been in this state for decades," the Arizona senator said, mentioning
at nearly every campaign stop from Miami to Jacksonville to Pensacola that
he has lived, worked and campaigned on behalf of others in Florida in the
past.
He told local reporters in a hurricane strike zone that he did not support
national catastrophe insurance _ a position certain to rankle some
Floridians and, perhaps, draw fire from his opponents.
"I believe that this nation and federal government has an obligation to help
out in any tragedy or natural disaster," McCain said during a round-table.
"Very badly, we need to fix our ability to bring relief, help and
assistance, both short term and long term, to the victims of disaster."
However, he said: "I do not support a national catastrophic insurance
policy. That insurance policy is there, and it's called FEMA, and it's
called disaster preparedness and it's called addressing disasters."
Nevertheless, he said of the Federal Emergency Management Agency: "I still
do not have confidence that FEMA is capable of handling all of those
responsibilities."
Coming off New Hampshire and South Carolina victories, McCain faces stiff
challenges from Giuliani, the former New York mayor who for weeks has
planted himself in his must-win state, as well as two former governors _
Mitt Romney of Massachusetts and Mike Huckabee of Arkansas.
Recent Florida polls show a tight four-way race in the state that offers its
winner a hefty 57 delegates toward the Republican nomination and serves as a
gateway to nearly two dozen states that vote on Feb. 5.
McCain hopes his personal and professional links to the state as well as his
military background will help him break out of the pack in a state that is
home to a large number of veterans and active duty service members.
"We come into Florida with some wind at our back, and recognize that we've
got some hard campaigning in the next 8 days or so," McCain told reporters.
Looking beyond Florida, McCain said he was encouraged by a pair of New York
polls that showed him with double-digit leads over Giuliani and said: "Maybe
we're going to win in New York."
He appeared more certain about his Florida chances.
"I'm confident that we can win here in this very important state that
represents so much of America and our base begins here in Miami with the
Cuban American community," McCain said as he looked for support in the
Little Havana section of Miami.
Cuban immigrants are a significant voting block in South Florida _ and
McCain is fighting with Giuliani for their backing. That was evident at the
Versailles Restaurant, where McCain and his wife, Cindy, navigated a media
crush to order Cuban espresso. Two giant Giuliani banners were strung from
the sides of neighboring buildings.
Then McCain appeared at a news conference flanked by three members of
Miami's congressional delegation _ Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Mario Diaz-Balart,
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen _ as well as a Cuban refugee who spent 28 years in a
Castro gulag.
McCain talked of "a long, long relationship with Cuban American community"
and said: "I'm proud to have sat on the flight deck of U.S. Navy Aircraft
during the Cuban Missile Crisis." He was part of Attack Squadron 65 on the
USS Enterprise as it circled the island nation in the 1960s.
He also argued that he has "fought for the freedom of the Cuban American
community" by calling for the U.S. embargo to continue until the country
holds free and fair elections. And, he mentioned that his fellow prisoners
of war, though not him, were tortured by Castro thugs in Vietnam.
In Miami and elsewhere, McCain repeatedly emphasized his four-decades-old
ties to the state.
As a Naval Academy graduate, McCain was stationed for a year in Pensacola
for pilot training and, at one point, his plane went down in Pensacola Bay.
His family lived in Jacksonville for several years while he was a prisoner
of war in Vietnam. Upon his release, he lived in Jacksonville, where he was
a commanding officer of his squadron at Cecil Field.
