McCain: 11/19-11/25

In the news: McCain spent his Thanksgiving holiday with U.S. troops stationed in Anbar and Baghdad. This marks his seventh trip to Iraq, and he has visited Iraq more than most presidential candidates, topping Romney with only one visit, and Giuliani with no visits. Once he returned home, McCain focused his campaign efforts in New Hampshire. Also, Rick Davis, the national campaign manager for McCain said that McCain has as much chance in Iowa as anyone and that McCain is trying to balance time and money between Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. Currently, McCain is ahead of Giuliani in New Hampshire, but behind Romney.

In the polls: McCain is losing support in his home state of Arizona. Giuliani has pushed ahead at 20%, while McCain falls behind at just 18%. However, the polls also show that McCain’s job approval rating has risen from 42% to 45%. Also, in Maricopa county, McCain ranks at 32% while Giuliani is only at 22%. In a poll by Rasmussen Reports and Fox Television Stations Inc., McCain would beat Clinton 50-39%. He is also viewed favorably by Alabama and is ranked above Giuliani at 59%.

In the news: The Straight Talk Express has had a busy couple of weeks - traveling to Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. In New Hampshire, John McCain agreed to attend a bipartisan forum on global warming that will be held there this December; organized by Al Gore and The Governator, McCain agrees that climate change is an issue that needs to be discussed more often, especially amongst GOP canidates. He has also put forth his stance on meeting with the leaders of Iran and North Korea: "The logic is, you don't want to do something that enhances the image and prestige of someone who is your adversary." Citing Henry Kissinger as a prime example to follow, McCain criticized his competition's (cough cough Clinton's) desire to send high ranking politicans abroad as "goodwill ambassadors," going on to say "I would have a tendency to ask people to have a specific mission, rather than just saying, 'Why don't you go over and be real nice to the folks in Yemen,' you know? 'See what you can do.' I certainly wouldn't want to do anything to embarrass the previous president of the United States."

In the polls: As of November 7th, McCain has reclaimed his place as second favorite in GOP polls, only behind Rudy Guliani. Another recent collection of polls shows that McCain is the Republican canidate most likely to beat Senator Clinton in an election, and that he has the "lowest level of core opposition" (lowest percentage of people who said they would "definitely" vote against him if he wins the presidential nomination).

Endorsements: In the past few weeks, McCain has recieved support from a number of former POWs (their captivity exceeded 6 years), as well as Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling. He has also recieved the backing of Senator and former Presidential hopeful Sam Brownback, who proclaimed "John McCain is the only candidate who can rally the Reagan coalition of conservatives, Independents, and conservative Democrats needed to defeat Hillary Clinton or any other Democrat in the general election next year." In keeping with this anti-Clinton theme, McCain's campaign website now features "The John & Hillary Show," a fun and interactive jab at both McCain's Democratic and Republican opponents.