Sen. John McCain cancels Bilbray event

[wicket]

Poor widdle McCainy is taking his ball and going home :nopity:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060531/ap_on_el_ge/mccain_canceled_appearance

U.S. Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record) on Tuesday canceled an appearance for a Republican congressional candidate who has attacked his opponent for supporting McCain's immigration bill.

McCain, R-Ariz., was scheduled to speak Wednesday at a breakfast fundraiser for Brian Bilbray, who is in a close runoff race with Democrat Francine Busby to fill the seat left vacant by disgraced former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham. Cunningham was sentenced in March to more than eight years in prison for accepting bribes. The winner of the June 6 special election will fill the remaining seven months left in Cunningham's term.

Bilbray, a former congressman who worked as a lobbyist for an anti-immigration group, has repeatedly attacked Busby for supporting the immigration bill passed last week in the Senate. McCain was a principal architect of the bill.

In an e-mail sent to the Bilbray campaign, McCain spokesman Craig Goldman acknowledged that McCain and Bilbray "disagree on some of the issues related to immigration reform."

[Rose Siding]

1. The Fightin' Fiftieth!

Go Francine!!!

snip>
Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman has deployed 70 field staffers to canvass voters and generate turnout for Tuesday's election. The Democrats are sending House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to campaign for Busby. California's two Democratic senators, Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, will also campaign for Busby.

The Democratic congressional committee on Tuesday sent out a mass fundraising e-mail by chairman Rep. Rahm Emanuel.

"The years when Democrats just played defense are over. This election, it will be Democrats who set the tone forcing Republicans to frantically spend millions of dollars to defend themselves. It will be Democrats who go on to Republican turf and make them fight for their political lives," according to Emanuel's message.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,197579,00.html

snip>
$3.1M. The NRCC has only $24M cash on hand. They are spending one-eighth of their cash on hand to defend a seat with a local Republican partisan index of around RNC +20. If Busby wins, Republicans are finished come November. Even if she does not win, Republicans are still in a world of hurt.

http://www.mydd.com/story/2006/5/29/193439/200#commenttop

[rodeodance]

4. whow--boxer, feinstein and Pelosi will be campaigning for her!

Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman has deployed 70 field staffers to canvass voters and generate turnout for Tuesday's election. The Democrats are sending House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to campaign for Busby. California's two Democratic senators, Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, will also campaign for Busby.

[wordpix2]

2. goody, goody, more evidence of repuke machine falling apart

:evilgrin:

[wicket]

3. The implosion is picking up steam

n/t

[ronnykmarshall]

5. Tee-hee!

GO FRANCINE!

[ShockediSay]

6. Bilbray "worked" as a lobbyist

according to this article.

There's a winning campaign slogan for Busby right there.

[cascadiance]

7. I just got a phone message on my answering machine from McCain tonight...

urging me to vote for Bilbray. So it appears they are all going back and forth on what they should do to fight off Busby. I'm guessing that McCain got a few stern calls to do this the last few days from the party bosses.

[yasmina27]

8. dislexic I am

I thought it said "library" event :)

[yasmina27]

9. self delete

don't know why it double posted

[President Kerry]

10. thank god..

a rare example of McCain not selling out.

[Bucky]

11. What he "didn't sell out" here was his own ego.

He was fine with whatever differences they had up till then. McCain the "reformer" supporting a lobbyist running for Congress? No problem! But once Bilbray opposed McCain's pet immigration bill (the "Votar por me por presidente Act of 2006", then all of a suddent McCain gets in a snit and says he won't help. Amazing how McCain takes a stand on the issues when it comes to protecting his own career.

[neuvocat]

12. Its just as well.

Bilbray doesn't need anymore support to help his candidacy. If someoene from his own party helps derail it then its all the better.