Claiming McCain “tangled with conservatives before” on taxes and immigration, Shuster didn't note reversals

Written by Andrew Ironside

Published

In a Hardball report on Sen. John McCain's position on the environment, MSNBC's David Shuster pointed to “taxes” and “immigration” as evidence that McCain has “tangled with conservatives before.” But Shuster did not report that McCain has since embraced conservative positions on both of those issues, now supporting the permanent extension of the Bush tax cuts and saying that he would no longer support his own immigration bill if it came up for a vote in the Senate.

During the May 13 edition of MSNBC's Hardball, discussing Sen. John McCain's position on the environment and backlash to that position, MSNBC correspondent David Shuster pointed to “taxes” and “immigration” as evidence that McCain has “tangled with conservatives before” without noting that McCain has since embraced conservative positions on those issues, now supporting the permanent extension of the Bush tax cuts when he originally opposed them and saying that he would no longer support his own immigration bill if it came up for a vote in the Senate.

From the May 13 edition of MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews:

[video clip]

SHUSTER: McCain has long supported environmental protections, and his campaign is betting the loss of conservatives on this will be far outweighed by the new support he gains from Democrats and independents. It's why McCain even took a swipe at President Bush for failing to make progress on the Kyoto global climate treaty.

McCAIN: I will not accept the same dead end of failed diplomacy that claimed Kyoto. The United States will lead, and will lead with a different approach.

SHUSTER: Still, the backlash against McCain and his governmental solution has been fierce.

MARK LEVIN (radio host): Millions of bureaucrats who don't have the foggiest idea what they're doing. And these political hacks -- how does John McCain's service in the military and 24 years in Congress make him an expert on this? It doesn't. And he's not. It's all gibberish.

[end video clip]

SHUSTER: McCain has tangled with conservatives before, most notably on taxes, immigration, and campaign finance reform. The irony with global warming is that McCain is also taking fire now from environmentalists, who argue his proposals would be too little, too late.