The Myth Is Back!

01/23/2009 by Peter Hart

Sometimes you don't need to read more than a headline. Take today's Washington Post:

Senate Gets Reacquainted With McCain the Maverick

OK, let's read just a bit:

Two and a half months removed from his defeat in the race for the presidency, colleagues say, McCain bears more resemblance to the unpredictable and frequently bipartisan lawmaker they have served with for decades than the man who ran an often scathing campaign against Barack Obama.

The "unpredictable and frequently bipartisan" John McCain doesn't really exist--McCain has for some time boasted a reliably conservative Senate voting record. (His "maverick" years of 2001 and 2002 were an exception to the rule.) It's good to know that this media-manufactured myth is back--before we had time to miss it.

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3 Responses to “The Myth Is Back!”

  1. FAIR Blog » Blog Archive » The Mac Is Back (Again)! Says:

    [...] maverick John McCain, or they take a few rather trivial anecdotes (as the Washington Post did early this year) and salute the Return of the Maverick.  It'd be less confusing if the media hadn't created the [...]

  2. The Mac Is Back (Again)! - Fox News Watchdog Says:

    [...] maverick John McCain, or they take a few rather trivial anecdotes (as the Washington Post did early this year) and salute the Return of the Maverick.  It'd be less confusing if the media hadn't [...]

  3. Dana Milbank Misses the Mythical John McCain - Fox News Watchdog Says:

    [...] we've pointed out plenty of times before, McCain's Senate record has staunchly conservative throughout his career–except for [...]

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