Fox News is, again, right on point.  Maverick's "celebrity" is attributable, in large part, to his breaks with the GOP on a number of issues over the last decade or so.  It was his independent thinking and straight-talk over the last ten years that has attracted some media figures to his side. No misinformation here.

Sadly for Maverick, that's all over now that BO's on the scene, making the liberal msm feel all tingly about him . . . and follow him around to every corner of the earth

Yepper.  The monolithic media, generally speaking, is as fickle as they come. They will jump on a politician's rungs to grab a free trip up the lookie-here-who-I-covering-and-adoring rope of ascent, but as soon as that politician's luster wears off, or another more coveted one pops up, they jump off and start gnawing away at that old rope with a delicious appetite.  

They want sensationalism, controversy, infighting, backbiting, dissent, old political allies now at each other's throats. 

And their bosses also want the Republicans to win. That's the most important part. Nothing else explains the overwhelming scrutiny that Dems get from the media.

I followed your thoughts, though I did not necessarily agree, till first paragraph.

"Sadly for Maverick, that's all over now that BO's on the scene, making the liberal msm feel all tingly about him . . . and follow him around to every corner of the earth"

Do you mean Obama is more maverick than McCain? Or that the media ignores his maverickness because they are liberal? 

What a load.  Fox News got it half-right, which the absolute best they ever do.  They acknowledged the media's love affair with McCain.  +1 Point.  They give him credit for breaking with the GOP in the past.  +1 Point.   But they FAIL to note that his positions have shifted, and so has his base of support (-1 point) and that despite this move the the right, and the utter evisceration of any "maverick" (or even principaled) credentials, the media STILL has a love affair with him. (-1 Point.)  So we're back to ZERO.

As for you blaming Sen Obama for McCain's waning popularity with the press... (WHAT waning popularity with the press?)  This is ridiculous.  IF McCain were losing popularity (and he's not, although he should be) it is because he had moved to embrace the platforms of a party who is increasing reviled by most of America, primarily due to the corruption and incompetence (and often complete lunacy) of the current administration.

If this were about Obama, he'd be mopping the floor with McCain, and Novemeber would be a blue-state-bloodbath.  But it's not.  It's still about Bush's incompetence and Cheney corruption, and the media's refusal to upadte their image of John McCain from the maverick of eight years ago to the right wing meat-puppet he is today.

Yes, Grandpah broke with the GOP...

And now he's flip-flopped on just about every issue he broke from.

When the media is your friend, you get to play both sides of every issue--as Grampy is doing.

Yep, MMFA is once again showing its inventive coverage of a non-story.
McCain is a Maverick (look at McCain-Kennedy for gosh sakes), but because it behooves the Democratic Party to liken McCain to Bush as much as possible (whereby leveraging "bush derangement syndrome") MMFA will deny any differences between McCain and Bush.

That's because there aren't any differences. He didn't earn the nickname McSame by actually acting like a maverick. And Bob Barr agrees...

McSame has also, it would seem, been taking speach and diction lessons from bush. Just a few more lessons and I will not be able to understand anything he says. Now that dementia is out in the open McCain has a golden opportunity to further research for drugs to mitigate the symptoms. I think he is considering gwb as his running mate. McCain has a new nickname: "McFlounder" as a result of all the flip-flopping. I am going to get him up to speed on computers. I am going to send him a Commador and we will go from there. The thought of McCain as president is inconceivable to me but, then again so was the thought of bush in 1999 much less a second term. How can so many be so "blind"? (or is it dumb and blind?)

 "[w]hat the Obama attack ad does not say is that much of McCain's celebrity over the last decade or so is attributed to a liberal media love affair, fond of McCain because he so often breaks with the GOP."

And there ya go. That's why folks [MSM] referred to him as a Maverick. Hey I'm sure once upon a time they used to refer to him as young too ;-)

So sometimes he agrees with Bush, and/or the GOP, sometimes he doesn't.

He really isn't much of a Maverick anymore. He ain't young anymore either.

And he may be flip-flopping here & there, but so is Obama. That's what politicians do.

Jeter,

Sometimes you have a great way to break through all the baloney, and spin, and back and forth, and point out it's just all politics and the nature of every single campaign - ya win some in the media, and you lose some.

Well done. 

Is this where you break into "Wind Beneath My Wings"? Tommy?

No, "You Light up my Life"

Thanks for your above post Tommy, but all I did is state the obvious.

Guess the Colonel is feeling a little blue because none of his Liberal soldiers have told him "well done" in the past 10 minutes or so.

So let's be the good guys here & serenade Mr. KFC with "You're simply the best, better than all the rest...."

There Colonel, feel better :-)

I already felt great. I've been out of the work dungeon most of the day, and haven't been at the computer much, so it just made me feel good to vicariously share in the Tommy/Jeter love. Thank you, both of you!

;0)

Better late than never...

WELL DONE, COLONEL.

<salute> 

Attaboy, Pete !!! 

Considering bush is about ready to invade Russia over Georgia (he thinks it is south of Mississippi), send bush some deep fried chicken brains to double his IQ. I will pick up the tab. At 60, I am not ready to go to basic training. This administration reminds me of the song by Y. Malmsteen: "Liar"

So sometimes he agrees with Bush, and/or the GOP, sometimes he doesn't.

I guess 95 percent can be "sometimes." Let's do it like this: if I bake a pie and cut it into eight slices and proceed to eat 7.5 slices and then my friend came in would he say "hey! you ate some of the pie!" Or he would he say "hey! you ate almost all of the pie!"? 

Don't forget the 'they both do it' part of his argument. That's the fun part for me!

I'm sticking with the principles and the philosophy that I campaigned for president

While it's true, McCain's "maverick" label came from his FORMER breaks with the GOP, it's no longer true. 

There isn't a single issue that McCain differs with the GOP on. He's now in total step with the party line, having given up his "principles and philosophy" in order to get elected. To continue to point out McCain's   FORMER independence WITHOUT noting that's he's made a total reversal, is reporting misinformation. 

I agree. He who breaks with his party on the right issues will have my respect.

Extending the tax cuts, staying for ever in Iraq, giving away ANWR because the oil masters want it, threating to bomb anyone that does not fall in line, do not look like breaking with the party line on important issues.

McCain is, sadly, an extension of Bush.   

As they said in My Fair Lady, "I think she's got it, by george, I think she's got it!"

That's the message that needs to get messaged out whenever there's the stupid question, WITH?

That's what needs to get messaged out whenever the lunatic fringe try to distract us from the topic of the thread.