Matthews claimed McCain "has campaigned brilliantly against Bush" -- but not according to McCain

Summary: On NBC's Today, Chris Matthews asserted that Sen. John McCain "has campaigned brilliantly against Bush," adding, "He won this by basically running against the Bush administration." But when President Bush endorsed him on March 5, McCain said, "All I can say is that on the fundamentals and the principles of our Republican Party and most of the specifics of our shared conservative philosophy, Bush and I are in agreement."

During the March 31 edition of NBC's Today, co-host Meredith Vieira discussed a New York Times article with MSNBC host Chris Matthews, which, as Vieira put it, reported that Sen. John McCain is "having trouble getting the big donors to support him," asking, "Why is that, do you think?" Matthews responded: "[F]or the same reason he has a good shot to win the presidency. He has campaigned brilliantly against Bush," adding, "He won this by basically running against the Bush administration." But when President Bush endorsed him on March 5, McCain said, "All I can say is that on the fundamentals and the principles of our Republican Party and most of the specifics of our shared conservative philosophy, President Bush and I are in agreement."

McCain has also embraced Bush's current Iraq policy. Speaking of his endorsement on March 5, Bush stated that McCain is "not going to change when it comes to taking on the enemy. He understands this is a dangerous world." After Bush's statement, McCain said: "Thank you, sir. I don't have anything to add." Indeed, McCain's campaign website states: "Ultimately, Iraq's future lies in the hands of its people, government, and armed forces, and strengthening them is an essential requirement for bringing U.S. troops home from Iraq. Until Iraqi forces are ready, however, a precipitous U.S. withdrawal would condemn Iraq to civil war and intervention by its neighbors and energize al Qaeda and other jihadists across the globe."

McCain also supports making Bush's tax cuts permanent. While McCain voted against the final version of President Bush's $1.35 trillion tax-cut package in 2001 and, in 2003, voted against legislation to accelerate the tax reductions enacted in the 2001 bill and to cut taxes on dividends and capital gains, in February 2006, he switched positions and voted to extend the 2003 tax cuts on capital gains and dividends through 2010.

Additionally, Matthews stated of McCain: "He can say, 'I'm not for Bush, I'm not for this left-wing crowd that wants to replace him. I'm going right down the middle,' like -- guess who did it? Bill Clinton. That's -- that is clearly the McCain strategy right now." In fact, in a February 7 speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference, McCain stated, "My record in public office taken as a whole is the record of a mainstream conservative." He also said in the speech: "If I am so fortunate as to be the Republican nominee for president, I will offer Americans, in what will be a very challenging and spirited contest, a clearly conservative approach to governing." Furthermore, studies of McCain's voting record have ranked him among the most conservative members of the Senate during the current and the two previous Congresses.

Matthews follows a long line of media figures suggesting that McCain disagrees with or has campaigned against President Bush and his policies without noting some or all of the areas of agreement between McCain and Bush. Media Matters for America has also documented numerous media figures claiming that McCain is a moderate notwithstanding his record and his self-characterization as a "conservative."

From the March 31 edition of NBC's Today:

VIEIRA: Before I let you go, I want to ask you very quickly about McCain. There was an article in today's New York Times saying that he's having trouble getting the big donors to support him. Why is that, do you think?

MATTHEWS: Well, because -- for the same reason he has a good shot to win the presidency. He has campaigned brilliantly against Bush. Look at the numbers. Among pro-choice Republicans -- and there are a lot of them -- McCain wins. Among critics of President Bush, he wins. He won this by basically running against the Bush administration, which positions him to triangulate come in the fall. He can say, "I'm not for Bush, I'm not for this left-wing crowd that wants to replace him. I'm going right down the middle," like -- guess who did it? Bill Clinton. That's -- that is clearly the McCain strategy right now. This is going to be a nail-biter in November, you watch it. You think this thing for the Democrats is still tough; they're going to be clawing and scratching right up until the election day. And by the way, we can't predict who's going to win, except that the economy keeps going down, the Democrats will win.

VIEIRA: All right, Chris Matthews, thanks very much.

MATTHEWS: Thank you. Thank you.

—K.E.