McCain continues to confound

Is there some rhyme or reason to John McCain's zigs and zags?    We know he's a consistent military hawk, too ready to go bomb other countries and criticizing President Obama for not doing so.   We know he used to pride himself on being a marerick, but he lost that title.   We know he's more centrist on campaign finance reform, on integration, and some other social issues.    But it's not so easy to predict where he's going to stand on many issues.

Now he's denouncing the tactics of fellow Republican Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) for his quixotic filibuster-like antics to delay a  procedural vote on Obamacare.  Here's how the Huffington Post reported it:

"Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) ripped Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) after he gave an anti-Obamacare speech that lasted over 21 hours on Tuesday and Wednesday. . . .

"McCain also recalled the the 2009-2010 debate over Obamacare -- before Cruz was elected to the Senate -- saying 'the people spoke' on the issue when they reelected President Barack Obama in 2012. McCain said lawmakers shouldn't 'give up our efforts to repair Obamacare' but said it wasn't worth shutting down the government.

"'We fought as hard as we could in a fair and honest manner and we lost,' McCain said. 'One of the reasons was because we were in the minority, and in democracies, almost always the majority governs and passes legislation.'"

There's a side to John McCain that I dislike and scorn.   But there's also the McCain who has limits below which his decency will not let him stoop -- such as correcting a woman at his 2008 rally, who said Obama is a Muslim.   And now, calling out Ted Cruz's foolish grand-standing.

Yes, sometimes I wish he would just shut up -- and sometimes I wish the Republicans had a dozen more like him.

Ralph 

PS:   5PM.   And now even Sen. Rand Paul has deserted Cruz's fool's errand, announcing that it's clear they can't win in defunding Obamacare, so "it's time to vote."    This all leaves Ted Cruz holding the radical extremist banner that appeals only to the die-hard, Tea Party minority of the minority party.