John the Maverick

Here’s what I’ve noticed about John McCain in his current iteration:

1) He wants the benefit of being a POW, without the baggage of being called out for using it as a crutch.

2) He wants the benefit of being a Republican, without the baggage of that party’s brand.

3) He wants the benefit of being a maverick, without the baggage of pissing off his party’s base.

4) He wants the benefit of being a conservative, without the baggage of being responsible for those views.

5) He wants the benefit of flip-flopping, without the baggage of being called out on it.

6) He wants the benefit of gender/identity politics, without the baggage of fulfilling the agenda those politics are based on.

7) He wants the benefit of experience, without the baggage of a VP pick that reflect it.

8) He wants the benefit of change, without the baggage of campaigning like a Democrat.

9) He wants to mimick the style, rhetoric, and website design of Barack Obama, without the baggage of Obama’s resume.

10) He wants to campaign for offshore drilling, without the baggage of admitting it’s not a short-term solution.

11) He wants to campaign for the environment, against torture, for cutting spending, for cutting taxes, but without the baggage of being held to any of those views should he change his mind later.

12) He wants the support of Hillary voters, without the baggage of catering to their views (only to their gender).

13) He wants the big crowds of Obama (see the rallies in Dayton and Missouri this weekend) without the baggage of shutting up about Obama’s crowds in Denver or Berlin.

14) He wants to mock Obama’s readiness to lead, without the baggage of admitting his VP is even far less ready to lead on day one.

15) He wants the photo-op from Gustav that he got during Katrina, without the baggage of President Bush or an inept federal response.

16) He wants to look like he’s helping hurricane recovery, without the baggage of actually doing something about it.

17) He wants a large security to travel with him at the Gulf Coast so he can get press attention, without the baggage of the press calling him out for diverting resources away from a natural disaster.

18) He wanted a flashy, surprise VP pick that will change the game of the election, without the baggage of an ethics investigation, the media spending the next 60 days digging up dirt on the pick it would have already known about with “old news” contenders, and without the baggage of voters wondering who this person is and why a 72-year-old work pick her beyond knowing she’s a former beauty queen.

And from the looks of this list and many more revelations before now and to be revealed later, it seems more and more clear:

He wants the benefit of campaigning without the baggage of governing.