Reading: Krugman smacks down McCain

Paul Krugman finds daylight and appears once again for those of us who aren't Times Select subscribers.

There are a couple of big memes that are dominating talk about the 2008 election. One is the supposed inevitability of a Clinton nomination. The other is the "straight-talker," "maverick," "moderate" reputation of John McCain.

Krugman says it's time to put that one to rest:

So here's what you need to know about John McCain.

He isn't a straight talker. His flip-flopping on tax cuts, his call to send troops we don't have to Iraq and his endorsement of the South Dakota anti-abortion legislation even while claiming that he would find a way around that legislation's central provision show that he's a politician as slippery and evasive as, well, George W. Bush.

He isn't a moderate. Mr. McCain's policy positions and Senate votes don't just place him at the right end of America's political spectrum; they place him in the right wing of the Republican Party.

And he isn't a maverick, at least not when it counts. When the cameras are rolling, Mr. McCain can sometimes be seen striking a brave pose of opposition to the White House. But when it matters, when the Bush administration's ability to do whatever it wants is at stake, Mr. McCain always toes the party line.

It's worth recalling that during the 2000 election campaign George W. Bush was widely portrayed by the news media both as a moderate and as a straight-shooter.

I used to respect McCain, but it's been too clear for too long that there's not much he won't do--including compromise his professed principles at the drop of a hat--to become President.

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