McCain keeps momentum while Romney sputters-Rudy Giuliani leaves the race
|
SIMI VALLEY, Calif. (AP) ‘ John McCain appears to be steamrolling his way to the Republican nomination. Mitt Romney can’t seem to catch a break.
Coming off a Florida triumph, the Arizona senator picked up former GOP rival Rudy Giuliani’s endorsement and prepared to secure another high-value nod from California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ahead of Tuesday’s virtual national primary when that state and 20 others vote.
Giuliani dropped out of the race after seven consecutive losses, meaning McCain no longer has to fight with the former New York mayor over the same pool of voters. Both Giuliani and McCain attract moderate Republicans and those calling themselves independents.
In a debate Wednesday night, McCain also put Romney on the defensive over where the former Massachusetts governor stands on continued U.S. military involvement in Iraq. The spat highlighted McCain’s strength ‘ national security ‘ and Romney’s weakness.
“I have never, ever supported a specific timetable for exit from Iraq, and it’s offensive to me that someone would suggest that I have,” Romney said of McCain’s charge last weekend in Florida that his rival favored a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq.
Romney said that the news media had found the allegation to be misleading and questioned why McCain never leveled it in any prior debate.
“Raising it a few days before the Florida primary, when there was very little time for me to correct the record, when the question that was most frequently asked is, ‘Oh, you’re for a specific date of withdrawal,’ sort of falls in the kind of dirty tricks that I think Ronald Reagan would have found to be reprehensible,” Romney said. The debate was held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
Asked last April whether he believed there should be a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops, Romney said U.S. and Iraqi leaders “have to have a series of timetables and milestones that they speak about” in private.
During Wednesday’s debate, Romney said he was not calling for a specific withdrawal date.
McCain calmly replied, “Well, of course, he said he wanted a timetable.” He added: “Governor, the right answer to that question was ‘no,’ not what you said.”
As the discussion continued, Romney grew animated, leaning back in his chair, facing toward McCain next to him and saying in exasperation: “Is it not fair to have the person who’s being accused of having a position he doesn’t have be the expert on what his position is? How is it that you’re the expert on my position, when my position has been very clear?”
McCain countered by saying he had pressed the issue, if not the specific allegation.