McCain in Valley for DeWine

Monday, August 21, 2006 The presidential hopeful said his friend is facing a tough re-election effort. By DAVID SKOLNICK VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER BOARDMAN — U.S. Sen. John McCain said it's nice to be considered a leading Republican candidate for the 2008 presidency, but it doesn't mean much two years before the election. McCain made three stops Monday in Ohio for U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine, a Republican incumbent. The two attended a fundraiser at the Spread Eagle Tavern & Inn in Hanoverton and then met with a handful of supporters at the Mahoning County Republican Party's headquarters in Boardman. About 100 to 125 people attended the luncheon with tickets costing between $100 and $1,000 each. Earlier in the day, the two campaigned in Parma. DeWine is being challenged by U.S. Rep. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, in the November general election. McCain and DeWine have been friends for 24 years. To those who say McCain is the favorite to win the Republican presidential nomination in 2008, he says the statement is "very flattering." McCain said he won't decide on running for president, something he did in 2000, until early next year. "I remember other front-runners at this time like President Muskie," McCain said. McCain was referring to the late U.S. Sen. Edmund Muskie of Maine. Muskie was considered the Democratic front-runner heading into the party's 1972 primary season but failed to win the nomination. McCain's potential presidential campaign is attracting a number of key Republican advisers and strategists. Also, McCain has spent the past week campaigning for Republicans in Iowa, South Carolina, Virginia and Ohio. All are considered key battleground states in the presidential election. "All states are equal, but some are more equal than others," McCain said. "Ohio has decided the last five or six [presidential] elections. Ohio is a battleground state, and what happens in Ohio impacts the entire United States." Actually, the electoral votes of Ohio decided the past two presidential elections. DeWine's race McCain said DeWine is in for a "tough race" against Brown. At the Boardman stop, DeWine criticized Brown for his votes for tax increases, against the Patriot Act, and against the defense appropriations bill. "It's been a series of wrong votes" by Brown, DeWine said. "I've worked with Democrats and Republicans to get things done and make a difference. Sherrod Brown hasn't had anything serious accomplished" in Congress. Ben LaBolt, a Brown spokesman, said DeWine brought McCain to Ohio to distract people from his votes in the Senate. "Mike DeWine can't run on his record, so he's hiding behind surrogates who disagree with him on the issues that matter for Ohio families," LaBolt said. Brown and not DeWine is more politically aligned with McCain on issues such as the Iraq war, fiscal discipline and campaign finance reform, LaBolt said. McCain said he normally doesn't criticize political opponents of his allies but took exception that Brown voted against funding the defense appropriations bill. "Do we agree on every issue?" McCain said of DeWine. "Of course not. I don't think it's inappropriate though. We represent different states." DeWine and McCain were asked to comment on President Bush's statement Monday about Iraq that "there's a lot of people — good, decent people — saying, 'Withdraw now.' They're absolutely wrong ... We're not leaving, so long as I'm the president. That would be a huge mistake." Both said they hadn't heard the president's comment. But McCain said the U.S. isn't going to withdraw from Iraq based on an arbitrary deadline. "We all want to withdraw from Iraq, but until there is evidence the Iraqi government can run the country, we can't pull out," he said. skolnick@vindy.com