McCain lavishes praise on prospective VP Tom Ridge
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/08/11/art.ridge.mccain.jpg caption="McCain and Gov. Ridge took part in a National Security roundtable in January."]
ERIE, Pennsylvania (CNN) – Tom Ridge might be a long-shot in the vice presidential sweepstakes, but John McCain certainly holds him in high esteem.
The presumptive GOP nominee, who refuses to discuss the vetting process for potential running mates, heaped praise on his friend and adviser on Monday in Ridge’s hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania.
At one point, a GE employee at a brief town hall meeting here asked McCain what his plans would be for his first 90 days in office.
“Call Tom Ridge to Washington from whatever vacation he is taking and get him to work,” McCain answered, to much applause.
Selecting Ridge, a Catholic and former two-term governor of Pennsylvania, could boost McCain’s chances in this swing state. But Ridge also supports abortion rights, a factor that would likely turn off segments of the Republican base.
McCain said he was “honored” to know Ridge, “who had every opportunity after he graduated from Harvard not to go to Vietnam. He could have found a doctor that would have a given a cert that he bad a bad knee. But instead he went and decided to serve his country during the Vietnam War.
“He came back here to Erie and he decided to be a prosecutor, and then he decided to seek a role, a seat in congress and then of course as governor,” McCain continued. That’s the kind of people this part of America produces. I’m proud to be in his company.”
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Ridge too LIBERAL for GOP base. Good-bye Big Mac, Hello Bob Barr.
Tom, would be bad for the 2nd spot and McCain would be
wrong choice for office. We will have more problem with him
in office and Ridges. We don't need another war in 2009.
Once Pennsylvania finds out that McCain and his lobbyist worked hard to get DHL to outsource to another country, and they got a bunch of money for obtaining it, PA will go the way OH will go, to the blue group. A whole bunch of jobs in OH left the country because of McCain and his lobbyist friends.
LET TOM....BE SEC. ..OF..STATE....
PUT HILLARY IN AS YOUR VICE PRES.......
YOU WILL GET ALL HER 18,000,000 ....VOTES AND A LOT MORE......
BY...BY... O....BOM.....A......
From the point of view of a physician John Mccaine has begun to show signs of pre-senile dementia.In less than two years his symptoms will become more evident.Politics aside the senator is well on his way to being incapacitated very much like our beloved Ronald Reagan.
once again 3rd term Bush!!!!!
Isnt it obvious people
More of the same that's all they know
You know what, I hope McCain wins – and I'm a life long Democrat. Obama and his patriotically impaired wife will never get my vote. The man is so full of himself and so is his wife.
"Better than the ANTICHRIST MORMON Mitt Romney. "
I'm no fan of Romney, saying that about him is just wrong. Please don't lower yourself the Republican standards.
Good choice.McCain's positive image is as a get-to-work kinda guy,and Ridge fits that image too.McCain can't make it or compete with the pop-culture image of Obama,who seems to be suffering from the short attention span of the pop-culture crowd.
All these post really demonstrate how partisan CNN is. Why can't people understand the bennifits of non-partisan media sources, instead of prefering to be fed what they want to hear. And you all post the exact same things.... also it's not intelligent to under exagerate the space Tom Ridge created between him and bush in 04. Also he proved himself in the regan administration to be peace oriented, this is much more important then being part of the Bush administration and becoming frustrated and not returning.
Barr/Huckabee 2008
A real ticket for REAL republicans.
Also, Dick Cheney doesn't like ridge.....
McCain had an affair with Cindy after his wife was disable in a car accident. Why isn't the media in an uproar about that like they are about Edwards' affair?
Hey! Maybe McSame can get Cheney back into his cabinet. Why not Rumsfeld, too? Old times all over again.
Sigh.
Vote whatever party you wish. Just wake up and DON'T vote Republican.
Looks like another Cheney in the making....
McCain told Bush not to criticize China on his trip. He did it anyway.
Dick Cheney doesn't like Ridge.
What a surprise!
Obama has stumbled into a blind date with a nymphomaniac – his luck couldn't be better. All Obama has to do is wait and not do anything tremendously stupid between now and November, and he will win. It doesn't matter who McCain picks for his VP, or who Obama picks. America is tired of Bush and doesn't want four more years of McBush.
McCain can claim he has all the experience in the world. Trouble is he is so darn old he can't remember what he had for breakfast let alone remember anything.
Yawwwnnn........
Nobody is going to change anybodys mind.
We have picked our favorite and the bets are in.
I pray Obama wins. If not, at my age, I figure I only have maybe 15 yrs left of my life sentence on Planet Earth. My children and grandchildren will have the burden and I hope before I go I have a chance to apologize to them. Not for myself, because I know I tried for them.
Obama/Biden
Man. This is will be the War Team if there ever was one.
Democrats seem to want to do as they please and Republicans think they are better than anyone else However, I will have to say, that Republicans are more confident in what they say.
Just Vote for the right man and keep you mouths shut!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So many Democrats are so bitter. It's disgusting to read your disrespectful, and ignorant personal attacks on these decent men. Get over it- you lost the last two presidential elections and you'll lose again. Tom Ridge is a good man and did as good a job in that position as anyone else could have.
McCain also met with the Dalai Lama a couple of weeks ago & they had fantastic things to say about each other. Maybe......
Noooo. The McCain ticket will remain flat because of McCain.
Oh yes, Mike in Syracuse, let's please open that Pandora's box about Edwards. Do you really want to go there?
On the Democratic side, we have a guy who cheated on his ill wife with a woman who wasn't wealthy or considerably younger than he. He also ISN'T the presumptive nominee. Obviously he was thinking with his much-smaller head as opposed to the one with a brain it it.
On the Republican side, we have a guy who cheated on his crippled wife with a number of people, finally picking one considerably younger who had scads of money. Then he applied for a marriage license before his divorce was even final. He wasn't only thinking with the much-smaller head; he was thinking with his wallet. Oh yeah, and he's the presumptive nominee for POTUS.
Now, do you really want to see which one wins the slime ball contest? That's the only vote of mine that McCain will get.