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http://www.newsmax.com/politics/republicans_debate/2008/01/30/68839.html
Romney Says McCain Out of GOP Mainstream
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
SIMI VALLEY, Calif. -- Mitt Romney said Wednesday that John McCain is out of
the conservative mainstream, as the rivals for the Republican presidential
nomination vied for votes in next week's multistate primary.
Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, said McCain twice voted against
President Bush's tax cuts and pushed campaign finance reforms that
restricted fundraising and spending. The Republican establishment embraced
the tax cuts and opposed the new campaign law, which many saw as more
helpful to Democrats.
"Those view are outside the view of mainstream Republican thought," Romney
said in the opening moments of a debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential
Library. The forum came 24 hours after McCain won Florida presidential
primary despite criticisms that he is too moderate on several issues dear to
party loyalists.
McCain, an Arizona senator, disputed the claims, saying "I'm proud of my
conservative record." He said Romney left Massachusetts with high taxes and
a large debt. "His job creation was the third worst in the country," McCain
said.
SIMI VALLEY, Calif. (AP) _ Republicans John McCain and Mitt Romney focus on
each other in Wednesday's televised presidential debate only hours after
Florida voters left no doubt that they are the two viable contenders for
their party's nomination.
With Rudy Giuliani slated to bow out of the race and Mike Huckabee limping
badly, McCain and Romney are almost certain to engage each other more
sharply than they did in last week's rather tepid GOP forum in Boca Raton,
Fla.
The stakes are especially high for Romney. The former Massachusetts governor
lost to McCain in Florida and now must try to thwart his momentum with the
multistate Super Tuesday primaries and caucuses next week.
In a possible prelude to Wednesday's exchanges, Romney in recent days called
the Arizona senator dishonest, liberal, an economic novice and a lover of
tax hikes. He sharply criticized McCain's Senate record on immigration,
campaign finance laws and energy.
McCain in turn ridiculed Romney's shift on matters such as abortion rights,
and said Romney had supported a premature withdrawal from Iraq.
McCain enters the debate with Giuliani's likely endorsement and a new boost
of confidence for his once-staggering campaign, putting the onus on Romney
to persuade GOP voters to resist a McCain bandwagon.
The two-hour debate will be carried by CNN at 8 p.m. EST from the Ronald
Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif.
Romney Says McCain Out of GOP Mainstream
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
SIMI VALLEY, Calif. -- Mitt Romney said Wednesday that John McCain is out of
the conservative mainstream, as the rivals for the Republican presidential
nomination vied for votes in next week's multistate primary.
Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, said McCain twice voted against
President Bush's tax cuts and pushed campaign finance reforms that
restricted fundraising and spending. The Republican establishment embraced
the tax cuts and opposed the new campaign law, which many saw as more
helpful to Democrats.
"Those view are outside the view of mainstream Republican thought," Romney
said in the opening moments of a debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential
Library. The forum came 24 hours after McCain won Florida presidential
primary despite criticisms that he is too moderate on several issues dear to
party loyalists.
McCain, an Arizona senator, disputed the claims, saying "I'm proud of my
conservative record." He said Romney left Massachusetts with high taxes and
a large debt. "His job creation was the third worst in the country," McCain
said.
SIMI VALLEY, Calif. (AP) _ Republicans John McCain and Mitt Romney focus on
each other in Wednesday's televised presidential debate only hours after
Florida voters left no doubt that they are the two viable contenders for
their party's nomination.
With Rudy Giuliani slated to bow out of the race and Mike Huckabee limping
badly, McCain and Romney are almost certain to engage each other more
sharply than they did in last week's rather tepid GOP forum in Boca Raton,
Fla.
The stakes are especially high for Romney. The former Massachusetts governor
lost to McCain in Florida and now must try to thwart his momentum with the
multistate Super Tuesday primaries and caucuses next week.
In a possible prelude to Wednesday's exchanges, Romney in recent days called
the Arizona senator dishonest, liberal, an economic novice and a lover of
tax hikes. He sharply criticized McCain's Senate record on immigration,
campaign finance laws and energy.
McCain in turn ridiculed Romney's shift on matters such as abortion rights,
and said Romney had supported a premature withdrawal from Iraq.
McCain enters the debate with Giuliani's likely endorsement and a new boost
of confidence for his once-staggering campaign, putting the onus on Romney
to persuade GOP voters to resist a McCain bandwagon.
The two-hour debate will be carried by CNN at 8 p.m. EST from the Ronald
Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif.
