WASHINGTON (CNN) - Sen. John McCain told CNN Friday he doesn't always see eye-to-eye with his outspoken daughter.
Meghan McCain, the 24-year-old daughter of the former Republican presidential nominee, has grabbed the media spotlight this year, thanks to a string of attention grabbing blog posts, television appearances and speeches.
Her comments critical of some of her party's positions, and jabs at some senior Republicans like former Vice President Dick Cheney and former Bush senior advisor Karl Rove, have made her one of this year's hottest young GOP pundits.
"I love and respect my daughter, and I appreciate the fact that she brings fresh views and ideas and we need that in our party," the senator said Friday on CNN's American Morning. "We don't always agree, and sometimes we have spirited discussions, and that is good in families."
The younger McCain is writing a book about the future of the Republican Party.
From CNN Politics
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That's too bad for John McCain... and that's the reason why he didn't get elected POTUS.
If he actually listened to Meghan and followed her way of thinking, he might just have been elected. Meghan speaks to everyone... speaks FOR every American citizen, and NOT just for Republicans and the Radical Right.
Meghan is the kind of person that get's elected POTUS... obviously, daddy isn't!!!
If Meghan can get the Republicans to embrace Separation of Church & State, then Republicans might be able to focus on "small government" instead of their religious base.
And I'm not even a Republican. I just think if the Republicans head down the road they're on now (with possible Sarah Palin as their future), they're going to lose more elections.
John – you and your wealthy old gray-headed obstructionist friends need to bow out. The sooner the better.
Of course they don't see eye to eye. Meghan is concerned with the future of America and John is focused on the past.
The McCain's have one purpose in mind only and that is to serve themselves. John McCain and his family have done nothing for Arizona but reap the wealth and they want him gone.
The younger McCain is writing a book about the future of the Republican Party.
Title: How the election of a black president destroyed the GOP
Why are we talking about silly stuff like this....we should be talking about how now instead of one War that we are losing...Iraq is beginning another freefall into violence under the incompetence of this administration and now we are losing two wars.....AGAIN.
But John you Should shes Smarter then you are you sure Shes your Daughter?
Pretty sick of hearing about Meghan McCain – couldn't care less, she has not import on our government and her opinion hold no more weight than that of say...jerry springer.
Which eye? They seem to be pointing in different directions lately...
New Flash John! Perhaps if you saw eye to eye with Meghan, WE the American people would like you more.
McCain when you were being tortured and you made all your anti -american ads, were you telling the truth or not? Cheney thinks that torture works to get the truth out.
Inquiring minds want to know.
While I am a Democrat and have opinions that differ from you Senator McCain, I do respect and honor you as one of the hereos of our nation for the service given by yourself and thousands of others in Viet Nam.
I do agree with your daughter about many of the problems facing the Republican Party and while I hope that Republicans do as they have in the past and not listen to this young upstart because the OLD WHITE GUYS of the party know what is best for the Republican Party.
She is speaking for the future of the party while many are trying to hold on to the past and the ways of the past. Mr. McCain you need to tell your fellow Republicans to fire Rush and other de facto leaders of the party and amend the ways of the party for it to have a future.
The only reason she is making headlines is because the liberal media loves when she badmouths the GOP. They eat it up. But truthfully, why is anyone even giving her a soapbox. Is it her experience? Of course not.
Father and daughter are the difference between the grand old party and the new conservatives.
I always believed that John McCain is a stand-up guy, but this just goes to show you that he cares about his daughter. It is nice to see this, even in politics.
As a parent I can completely agree with McCain. I don't always see eye-to-eye with my adult children, but they know I love them and I love to have spirited discussions on all topics with them. That's how they were raised.
Meghan is an opportunist attempting to ride the coat tails of her father. Reminds me of the father of Bristol Palin's child.
I have always believed John is a paper tiger. Open the gates wide for your daughter generation. Let’s go of all the reactionary thinking that has brought us nothing but stagnation so you could please the radical right. John your daughter is right and you are wrong. Step aside and let a new young person replace you.
At least old John lets the kid think for herself – unlike Darth Cheney, who obviously tolerates zero dissent even within his own family.
Yes John, at least you taught Meghan to think for herself and not be lead by the nose by the right wing conservative hate faction in this country. Good for Meghan. The more she speaks the more I like her and I'm a democrat who dislikes most republicans. I think she is her own person who speaks from the heart, and not from the republican law books of Limbaugh, Coulter, Cheney, Ingrahm, and all the others who just come across as loonies.
Of course not John. It's because your daughter "gets it". She knows where the GOP is flopping and knows how to fix it. She knows what needs to be done at the highest levels. This is why you don't see eye to eye.
You don't "get it" John.
no wonder mccain doesn't agree with his daughter, she spouts off not thinking of the damage it is causing the republican party, yet she claims to be republican, but isn't that what john macain did, like father like daughter.
this is an example of a healthy relationship.... so what if they don't see eye-to-eye on all the issues. the point is that they allow each other to have their own opinions and respect the other for their beliefs. so many, conservatives and liberals, should follow this example.
We all know that she will get the same thing that Cindy gets if she goes to far. She too will have a cast on her arm from someone shaking her hand to hard and then she will be as quiet as a church mouse.
You know.. There is something about Meghan McCain that am not sure about.. But honestly if the republican party starts to listen to this young lady I think the Democrats would have a fight on there hands..
Never thought I would say this but I do agree with her about Cheney
and Rove needs to shut up and disappear, I know they have a right to there opinions, but I think we all know them already, "anything goes in the name of protection"..look they have had there 8 years, destructive and damaging all over as it was, now let the new Administration apply its approach.
You go git-em Meghan, you are the only FRESH-Face they got
And that is as it should be.....developement for each generation offers a new hope and vision..a new path...and that is the journey Meghan appears to be on. God's speed to her.
He LOST the election. He is NOT NEWS. Neither is his daughter. Get over it.
John, she follows the doctrine she was raised by. She is a moderate Republican and has compassion.
You did your job- congratulations.
He doesn't always see eye-to-eye with any McCain, including himself. That's why the "straight talk express" had to take so many detours.
I love her. If the Republican party would stop standing up for things that are wrong and take constructive criticism it would attract a larger base. The whole problem with the party is that if you don't follow like a lemming you're attacked by your own.
Hey John, you really ought to listen to her more often, she may be your way back to the light.
This is why we need terms limit in the senate. This guy has been around for way too long. Please go away
Sorry John, nothing personal, but Meghan is smarter than you. She is in the year 2009. You and your right wing buddies are back in the 80's and 90's. Meghan seems like a compromiser, unlike Cry Baby Boehner. If I lived in his district I would try to have him unseated because he is pouting and doing nothing.
I wish Meghan would turn democrat. Have her move to Pennsylvania
and kick Spector's butt.
I wish Megan Mccain would go away. She brings NOTHING to any discussion for either party. This is her 15 minutes of fame propted up by the FAR left and soon she will go they way of Cindy Sheehan.
If she had substance, it may be worht listening. However, she has become a blowhard. Interestingly her father has the same positions she takes other to task about, yet she will not take him to task. She has no credibility.
What a relief.....John doesn't always agree with his daughter....... maybe that's why I hate John, love Meghan. She speaks openly and with passion about issues, he smirks (like his idol GW) and drools over a tight tushy.
There is still hope for the Republican Party with new blood of the caliber of Meghan McCain.
Of course he doesnt always see eye to eye with Meghan. He is a dinosaur, and she is a breath of fresh air.
Senator, maybe you have spent too much time on the job because that daughter of yours has apparently not been taught to shut her rude mouth. Whatever happened to "If you can't say something nice about a person, don't say anything"? The young in America is down the tubes ethically and morally and your daughter is a publicized version of that.
One of the numerous reasons you lost.
As much as I dislike John McCain's political philosophy I admire his respect for his daughter's independant thinking. I too taught my children to think for themselves even if it differs from what I believe! It builds character.
Which is why you lost!!
I`m 65 and if the "new" Republican Party is to prosper, they need to take a hard look at the last 8 years AND actually return to their abandoned moderate policies. They have been taken over by zealots.--– Change MUST take place and Megan`s correct. Then I will again feel comfortable as a Republican.
The real problem with you, John, is that you don't see eye-to-eye with anyone but yourself !!!
The Republicans were stupid to nominate you because you have been on both sides of their agenda all along.
You were stupid to destroy your "good guy" image by running one of the most negative campaigns in history!!!!
And yourmaverick leanings didn't serve you well when you picked "Pathetic Palin" as your running mate!!!!
Truth is, John, you're a shallow thinker who doesn't have a clue what you stand for!!!!
So, it's no wonder you're facing opposition from the GOP in Arizona. Don't worry, though. The GOP is dead so you'll probably get to run as an independant. Ask your buddy,Joe Liebermann, how that's working out for him!!!!!!
Hmmmm So he doesn't see eye to eye with his daughter sometimes, but was a 100% behind anything Palin said .. wow ...
I did not vote for John McCain but I appreciate his character post election. It's refreshing to see a polititian exercise restraint with pen and toungue after the people have spoken. Of course there are always people like Dick Cheney who represent the worst politics has to offer.
Why doesn't Mccain pay attention to new and fresh views and ideas?
His party is going down the drain becaused of their old, worn out,
unworkable policies and beliefs.
She is capable of thinking and is forthcoming, neither of which apply to him.
She said that the GOP needs new blood, new and young faces in their party.........then she needs to tell her dad to not run anymore, he is the OLD Face of the GOP
I want to hear John McCain come forth and tell the truth about torture. Sir, with great respect for the time you spent in hell at the HH, for you, for those who suffered with you, speak on these failed, damaging policies of torture in the Bush/Cheney administration. Speak for those who did not survive the torture of the HH and clean the slate of the shameful, illegal and dirty hands of Bush/Cheney.
If he would listen to his daughter, he would see that she is right on target. The GOP is floundering because they cannot reach out to the young voters. Time to tell the ultra right members either we change or we will lose all the time. Too bad the GOP cannot get rid of the old guard because they are ruining the party with their over the line views.
Funny how all the liberals love her.... the same ones who mocked Bush by saying he got everything in life just because of who his father is. How is she any different? She would be just another liberal college girl with a head full of theories and concepts but no grasp of life's harsh realities.
i like megan, she speaks her mind and i will like to see where she is in 10-15 yrs. This isthe kind of republican we need =now. not the religious fanatics and neo con that control the repubicians now
I am a Democrat in Oklahoma, and Meghan seems to be a lot more like the Republicans I know that our my age. I am glad she is speaking out against old ideas and bs the leadership of the party puts out. Finally, people are realizing that despite party affiliation, we aren't enemies. We are very similar on most topics.
There is a generation gap and Meghan is sync with the changing attitudes and values of most Americans.
Senator McCain also said that the Obama Administration was handling the tortureallegations like a Banana Republic (you can always count on a Republican to dis others). A "Banana Republic" would not have his Attorney General the task of looking into this whole mess to see if LAWS were broken. It is laws that separate us from McCain's vision of a "Banana Republic".
They would have just thrown the whole lot of them into jail and subjected to them to the same "enhanced techniques" that the Bush Administration used. That way they could get them to say anything they wanted them to say!
Perhaps if John listened more to his daughter he would have done better in his campaign, she seems to have a lot more sense than he does, maybe because she is younger and not so set in her ways as he is, or perhaps she is a good deal smarter than he is, she should run for his Senate seat when his term is up..
Don't back away from Meghan, John–she's going to save the GOP!
Daddy ought to listen to his daughter in this case. Little Meghan makes more sense than ANY of the GOP leadership.
coming from a macCain breed that is huge,i will agree she has democrat views in a republican blood good job Meghan,can i add you on facebook.
What a way to go McCain...you and your daughter have clearly shown to the world that dad and daughter can disagree on hot button issues and still maintain those ideals that bind you people together as a family.
Can you take another part-time job to educate some parents who always think that being "Right" is a genetically predispositon for parents Only?
A book about the future of the Republican Party?
Chapter 1
Bush, Cheney, Rove and my dad killed it. The End.
no wonder you did not win,....lost with lot of votes...
I have lost all faith in the Republican Party and I do believe they have lost touch with America and the world. I 'agree' with Megan McCain that Dick Cheney, Karl Rove, Rush and Ann should just 'go away'. Leave us alone. Lets rebuild the Republican Party without these losers.
Hey, news flash the rest of the nation dosen't see eye to eye with you. Ever wonder why you lost the election?
Meghan McCain's writing a book about the future of the Republican party?
Use simple words and large font so Republicans can understand it.
He and the republican party should listen more to her!
They never did.
In a summer of 2000 John The Super Maverick McCain suddenly started campaigning for and with Bush. And how! If we had an award for most loyal poodle, McCain would certainly get it.
Megan's reaction to that was:"Father, how could you?!" She was openly and clearly embarrassed of his behavior.
Just remember Meghan, the MSM will love you until you run for president or office. Remember how they treated your daddy sweety. Hugs n kisses
What truly makes one a conservative is the ability to respect and listen to different view points, to not hate and wish harm on someone who does not think exactly as you do. Democrats are the exact opposite of that, if you have ever said something to them that they disagree with, you have witnessed their evil, hateful, dishonest, moral-less closed-minded ideology and way of thinking and living first hand. Tolerance and respect is now exclusive to the right, there is not a shred of it anywhere to be found on the left. The truth and facts cannot be altered, they are what they are.
I like Meghan McCain. She is intelligent and is a breath of fresh air.
Senator and Mrs. McCain did a great job raising her.
I don't always agree with Megan, but I like her attitude. Plus she's a cutie. You can be a republican without being a religious zealot, partisan hack, or pervy criminal. Apparently Megan is not dickish enough for the current republican party.
Well, Sen McCain finally admitted something correct for once. At least his daughter is willing to look at both sides of a subject.
Sure McCain throw your daughter under the bus!
I have a feeling that Meghan will be another "Ronny Reagan" ...... Reagan's youngest son, who is a .......... liberal!
Meghan is headed towards the SANE ....... Left........ and WE WILL WELCOME HER!
Meagan is a very refreshing new face to the GOP. The would do well by listening to her.
John, I suggest you read Meghans book when it's done and learn from your daughter. She's obviously more in touch than you.
A 24 year-old writing about the future of the republican party, what a joke or even better, a disgusting thought. Next she will be treating us with her new found advantages of being in love with a black lesbian from North Korea, but, that is at least a little closer to her style.
I do not know what to make of this Meghan Melee. She is obviously diametrically opposed to everything her parents stand for.
If she continues to be a beam of light for the republican party, I just may dust off my card and join them again.
She makes the party seem, well, alive again. It makes it seem like a more modern party and not the party of powder faced, old white, wiry... ancient men.
Way to go Meghan. Your mother did a great job with you!
Maverick father Maverick daughter! No surprise there!!
You are the angel Meghan, you just speak the way it is. No meandering, just cracking the egg right on! Your father must be very proud of you. Keep it up young lady!!
Obama 2012!!!! Megan McCain 2016!!!!!!
sen mccain you would have done better if meghan would have been on your ticket
Maybe if you had tried, you might have stood a better chance in the Presidential Race last year. LOL
I wonder if a left-wing parent would feel the same about a conservative daughter. Somehow, I doubt it......... she would probably be dis-owned, or worse.
He'd be smarter if he did
So mccain is hedging his bets for re-election. Daughter is trying to make sure his re-election is a loss.
That's because Meghan has brain and John, well not so much for you. Meghan is one of the FEW Republicans that I have any respect for.
You should because if you had you might be president now. One more thing you wouldn't have Palin hanging around your neck that would have never been her choice.
I love and admire Meghan !!!!
Maybe you don't always see eye to eye with your daughter Senator BUT isn't it great to have at least one intelligent Republican in the family.
Thank God. It's hard to see eye to eye with an iintellectual midget.
The GOP will eventually over time go back to it's progressive roots.....Lincoln, Teddy Rooosevelt, Gen. Eisenhower.......all spent big, and expanded government, but made the country 100x better....look up their accomplishments....
I have listened to Ms McCain several times and I don't agree with her views all of the time either. But I applaud her in speaking out. I wonder what other young person could get the media coverage that she gets, by just being Senator McCain's daughter. I get so tired of the media trying to make the news with controversy, instead of reporting. Marlene in Mich
Yeah, Senator McCain, I didn't see eye-to-eye with my father either, but he listened to me, and I listened to him. You might respect the fact that Meghan is more in touch with her generation that you are, and the fact that the future of the GOP lies in her generation, not yours any longer. She has some good ideas, which might actually rescue your party from complete oblivion. Of course, the party of old white-haired men is threatened when their children disagree with them publically. I'm sure you would prefer to be like Cheney's daughter, but gratefully, Meghan is her person, not a clone.
Now, fade into the background again, please. You are no longer relevant.
To Senator McCain's asset is that he raised his daughter to have opinions and she feels free to express them. Frankly, if she had been running his campaign he might have had a better chance to win. Her ideas and opinions really reach out to the independent voters. i have always voted on a national level as a Democrat, however Meghan might just change that.
Listen to your daughter McCain, she's a lot smarter than you in every respect.
Of course not, she is an adult and she has her own views of the world. Thank goodness Senator McCain and his wife raised their daughter to think for herself. Thank you Senator McCain, for being a good dad.
Maybe if you did think more like Meghan, you would be president. This just goes to show, you shouldn't judge people based on family members.
Meghan, has a rational vision of what the GOP (or whatever conservative based party that takes it place) needs to become.
GOP leadership – please, take a few tips from the young, rational, leaders of the future... the survival of a strong two-party system (which we don't seem to have at the moment), depends on it.
hmmm i like her ideas , is nice to say the truth , and i think she is doing just that ,i like people with open minded,you need not to support your party when the leaders , are not saying the truth. keep it up Meghan
Of course you don't see "eye-to-eye" with your daughter. She's young and fresh with new ideas and you're old and stale with old ideas. McCain, you and your party are stuck in old ways and that is not getting us anywhere in this country. I applaud your daughter for taking a stand against some of your buddies and calling them out. Kudos to Meghan!
Meghan is riding the real "Straight Talk Express"; guess Dad fell off somewhere along the way.
I'm a diehard independent that is begining to like this McCain girl. She is like a freshing wind masking the putrid, maloderous cesspool that is the current version of the Republican Party. But no matter how she tries she can't hide that much stink. Now if only the Democrats could come up with her counterpart we might get somewhere in this country. How can we get rid of the rotten apple in the barrel when the whole barrel is rotten?
When will the real John McCain stand up and back his comments and admit to all his political mistakes and stop making a FOOL of himself? This is becoming a typical way of life for all Republicans,saying things and then reverting to "I was misunderstood". I say to all Republicans please do not mess up the english language like George Bush did.English language is very simple so remember that.
When it is all said and done, and the Republican Party completes it collapse, at least they will have enough radical rightwing churches to accommodate them all. They'll be one big happy, ops, miserable family.
After all a family that bribes together, tithes together.
Does John McCain do any real work as a senator? All we've seen of John lately, are his constant appearances in the news or on talk shows. There are no new talking points for the Republicans, so all we hear are the tired GOP rhetoric and slamming of President Obama and the current government. It will be an even longer 8 years from the party of NO, especially now that we have the second generation McCain's, Cheney's and Palin's. Please make it stop. Vote McCain and Palin out next opportunity and where oh where did Liz Cheney come from?
Wow... not that many people bashing today. Oh that's right... it's Friday. Folks have checks to cash.
He doesn't see eye to eye with anyone born after 1900.
"I don't always see eye-to-eye with Meghan" Gee, it must be because you're a party puppet, Mr. McLame, and not the 'maverick' you keep trying to tell us about. Meghan is the only one making any sense or dealing with reality on the Republican side. However, it'll be a cold day in hell before I ever vote for a Republican after all the damage and betrayal they've done to America.
I think John McCain should listen more to his daughter instead of his paid advisors. She makes more sense than he does.
The republican party should also listen to her and maybe they will not become irrelevant.
Oh, who cares!? The family dynamic is not newsworthy.
Funny, I'm a liberal Democrat (kind of). I used to have a lot of respect for John McCain. He always fought for what he believed in even if I usually didn't agree with it (sometimes I did). Then he ran for president and had to pander to the far right religious zealots and whatnot. You could tell he was really uncomfortable doing it, too, by the way he would squirm and his eyes would kind of dart around. When he picked Palin as his running mate, I thought that has got to be either the most brilliant political strategy ever, or the Republican party will crash and burn. Thank God they crashed. I lost all respect for him during that campaign. Have a nice day. And don't let John fly any more planes.
Oh Daddy, you really do see to eye. Politically you may not, but Megan has become your whip.
Apparently, not many in the GOP sees eye to eye with Meghan either, however it's not her problem, it's theirs.
Republicans would do themselves a big service by paying respectful attention to Meghan McCains views. She is not alone with her opinions.
I'm a Republican. I'm extremely dissatisfied with the direction the GOP has taken over the past 12 years or so. Meghan McCain speaks to my concerns and has good insights as to why the GOP has been destroying itself. It's actually very simple. Behind smaller, less intrusive government is the principle of Liberty. The agenda of the religious right, the culture warriors, and the social conservatives is a direct contradiction of this principle. It is this bedrock contradiction that is tearing apart the GOP, not the people who are exposing it. On the contrary, it is hyper-partisans like Rove and Rush that are exacerbating the problem with their blind and purely negative opposition to the President. Meaghan McCain is right when she says it's time for them to sit down and shut up.