John McCain quotes:

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  • A man I admire and respect - Congressman John Lewis, an American hero, made allegations that Sarah Palin and I were somehow associated with the worst chapter in American history, segregation, deaths of children in church bombings, George Wallace. That, to me, was so hurtful.

  • The first pork-barrel bill that crosses my desk, I'm going to veto it and make the authors of those pork-barrel items famous all over America.

  • Barbara Boxer is the most bitterly partisan, most anti-defense senator in the United States Senate today. I know that because I've had the unpleasant experience of having to serve with her.

  • I believe in evolution. But I also believe, when I hike the Grand Canyon and see it at sunset, that the hand of God is there also.

  • But please know, whether you believe campaign contributions are speech or property, that I learned to love very dearly the right of free expression when I lived without that freedom for a while a long time ago.

  • Our political differences, now matter how sharply they are debated, are really quite narrow in comparison to the remarkably durable national consensus on our founding convictions.

  • You know that old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran? Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran.

  • Thank God for our form of government. The media won't let there be any cover-up.

  • My greatest fear is the Iranians acquire a nuclear weapon and give it to a terrorist organization. And there is a real threat of them doing that.

  • Remember the words of Chairman Mao: 'It's always darkest before it's totally black.'.

  • I think that when you look at the great politicians, the two greatest in my view were George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, they certainly had character traits. You also know Abraham Lincoln overcame severe depression problems that he had when he was younger, which gave him the strength and the character later on.

  • I campaigned in 2012 all over this country for months: 'Repeal and replace Obamacare.' That was not the mandate of the voters. If they wanted to repeal Obamacare, the 2012 election would have been probably significantly different.

  • The core political values of our free society are so deeply embedded in our collective consciousness that only a few malcontents, lunatics generally, ever dare to threaten them.

  • And the people who live in the southern part of my state do not have a secure environment. To wit, there are signs that the government put up that say, 'Warning. You are in a drug smuggling area and a human smuggling area.'

  • The abuse of prisoners hurts America's cause in the war on terror, endangers U.S. service members who might be captured by the enemy, and is anathema to the values Americans have held dear for generations.

  • On the subject of Osama bin Laden... we will track him down. We will capture him. We will bring him to justice, and I will follow him to the gates of hell.

  • War is wretched beyond description, and only a fool or a fraud could sentimentalize its cruel reality.

  • I am the son and grandson of Navy admirals, and I was born into America's service, ... It wasn't until I was deprived of her company that I fell in love with America.

  • I think that Joe Biden is qualified in many respects. But I do point out that he's been wrong on many foreign policy and national security issues, which is supposed to be his strength.

  • I am fully prepared to be commander in chief... I don't need on-the-job training.

  • In 2003, I warned of a 'creeping coup' in Russia against the forces of democracy and market capitalism in Russia.

  • In the 21st century nations don't invade other nations.

  • Cindy and I are adoptive parents. We know what a treasure and joy it is to have an adopted child in our lives.

  • Congress and the American people have good reason to fear that we are heading toward another permanent garrison of Americans in a Balkan country where our mission is confused, and our exit strategy a complete mystery.

  • The last thing members of the committee want to do is pass legislation.

  • Men and women serving in the military deserve better than what they're giving - what we're giving them. They don't know what they're going to be doing tomorrow.

  • We will have to wait a little longer to see if Armageddon has arrived.

  • Free trade with Colombia is something that's a no-brainer.

  • The benefit of an open town hall meeting is one that you get to hear a lot of different views, and two it has credibility.

  • I think the American people should know there's already strong influences toward another deployment of American troops in an open-ended commitment.

  • Don't let anyone tell you otherwise - not our political opponents, and certainly not a disingenuous filmmaker, who would have us believe.

  • I said, 'The nice thing about Alzheimer's is you get to hide your own Easter eggs.'

  • Presidential ambition is a disease that can only be cured by embalming fluid .

  • I am all in favor of pay equity for women, but this kind of legislation, as is typical of what's being proposed by my friends on the other side of the aisle, opens us up to lawsuits for all kinds of problems.....This is government playing a much, much greater role in the business of a private enterprise system.

  • I don't think it's bribery; I think it's extortion. Bribery, you know, is when the person that's giving the money does it voluntarily. What it is in Washington is extortion because they all ask for the money.

  • We should be I hope finally realizing what Vladimir Putin is. He's an old colonel, KGB, apparatchik, and he dreams of the restoration of the Russian empire.

  • Under my plan, 85 percent of America will pay no tax or have a flat tax at our lowest rate of 15 percent.

  • ...Sound foreign policy is more than arms control, foreign aid and paying (United Nations) dues.

  • I can only express satisfaction that the Dear Leader is joining the likes of Gaddafi , Bin Laden, Hitler , and Stalin in a warm corner of hell.

  • Russia is a gas station masquerading as a country.

  • I will follow Osama bin Laden to the gates of hell.

  • I'm not running for president because I think I'm blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need. My country saved me. My country saved me, and I cannot forget it. And I will fight for her for as long as I draw breath, so help me God.

  • There's one big difference between me and the others - I won't take every last dime of the surplus and spend it on tax cuts that mostly benefit the wealthy. I'll use the bulk of the surplus to secure Social Security far into the future to keep our promise to the greatest generation.

  • I want to emphasis again, Governor (Thomas) Kean and Congressman (Lee) Hamilton pointed out that congressional oversight also was a major contributor to our failures prior to 9/11 and that has to be fixed as well.

  • Today more people lose their seats in the Politburo in Havana than in the Congress of America, ... We need to have competitive races for the Legislature. ... We have to have a clash of ideas.

  • Just stop at one of these construction sites and look and see who those workers are. They're all Hispanic, ... And I bet you they're illegal.

  • Courage is the enforcing virtue, the one that makes possible all the other virtues common to exceptional leaders: honesty, integrity, confidence, compassion and humility

  • I think conventional wisdom is that time is not on our side. But there are a number of members of Congress who have primaries and when those primaries are done, they may be more inclined to address the issue of comprehensive immigration reform.

  • We know that this nation entered into solemn treaties [with Indian tribes] which have been continuously violated for more than 250 years. It's a disgrace. It's an outrage. We must do everything in our power to keep those treaties. Otherwise, the word of the United States government is no good.

  • I think we also ought to prepare the American public, by way of informing them, that Saddam Hussein has these weapons, continues to attempt to improve their capability, and would not be reluctant to export them to other countries, ... So he presents a clear and present danger.

  • We conservatives can win the ideological battles on a level playing field. Our ideas are better. Given fair elections based on contributions from regular voters, instead of $100,000 checks from business-as-usual special interests, we will prevail.

  • I don't know a politician who enjoys fundraising. The system is such that the American people have lost faith.

  • I am proud to be a conservative ... but I am also proud throughout my life to have attracted the support and the love and affection of people from all over America and all parts of it.

  • The 'Main Street' retailers ... see customers come to the store to locate items ... only to leave and order the items over the Internet just to escape the sales tax.

  • And we are in a strange conundrum. You can kill an American citizen overseas. But according to this administration, if you capture him in the United States, they've got to be read their Miranda rights.

  • I think that Donald Rumsfeld will go down in history as one of the worst secretaries of defense in history. We are paying a very heavy price for the mismanagement - that's the kindest word I can give you - of Donald Rumsfeld, of this war.

  • Subjecting prisoners to abuse leads to bad intelligence because under torture a detainee will tell his interrogator anything to make the pain stop, ... Second, mistreatment of our prisoners endangers U.S. troops who might be captured by the enemy. ... And third, prisoner abuses exact on us a terrible toll in the war of ideas because inevitably these abuses become public.

  • The fact that we did not give the demonstrators in Iran our moral support when a young woman named Neda bled to death in the streets of Iran will go down as one of the great mistakes of the 21st Century.

  • A major announcement. Events are moving fast in my campaign, and yes, it's true that this morning I've dismissed my entire team of senior advisers. All of their positions will now be held by a man named 'Joe the Plumber.'

  • I have said from the beginning that Pat Buchanan left the Republican Party the day he questioned America's involvement in defeating Nazi Germany.

  • I put the Vietnam War behind me a long time ago, and what I wanted to (do) among other things was help veterans also be able to come all the way home as some of our veterans have not been able to do. But I harbor no anger nor rancor. I'm a better man for my experience, and I'm grateful for having the opportunity of serving.

  • He was a superb military officer but he was also an extraordinarily gifted politician. That he was an unusually open, honest and no-nonsense politician did not make him unsuited for the profession, only uncommon. In uniform and in politics Barry's purpose was always the defense of freedom. And nobody before or since managed the task more ably or more colorfully than Barry Goldwater.

  • Being chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee is like being a mosquito in a nudist colony.

  • Russia is a gas station masquerading as a country. It's kleptocracy, it's corruption, it's a nation that's really only dependent upon oil and gas for their economy.

  • Sarah Palin knows more about energy than probably anyone else in the United States of America.

  • You may have noticed that Senator Obama's supporters have been saying some pretty nasty things about western Pennsylvania lately. And you know, I couldn't agree with them more.

  • Because the people of New Hampshire take their responsibilities as citizens of the Republic seriously, they keep it interesting for candidates who, believe it or not, can get a little tired of the mannered, predictable, and unimaginative qualities that typically afflict modern political campaigns.

  • It's a matter of fact that Senator Obama has spent more money on negative ads than any political campaign in history.

  • We can't disrupt polling places anymore, ... It doesn't serve any purpose. It just makes people mad.

  • I'm ashamed that Congress finds billions for pork-barrel subsidies but fails to find money for veterans' health care.

  • Does it make all the difference in the world? No. But there's a great deal of symbolism associated with whether we're going to add $24 billion to the debt in unwanted and unnecessary pork-barrel projects.

  • I think there [are] great economies that can be made starting with a round of base closings, ... I want the president to veto these pork-barrel spending bills which have grown to incredible obscene levels. I believe there are a number of weapons systems that have to be eliminated.

  • I observed a thousand acts of courage, compassion and love [as a POW] and I will always treasure that memory above all others.

  • It seems to me that President Carter has earned his place as if not the worst president in history, the worst president of the 20th Century.

  • I'm not sure, if I were President Clinton, I wouldn't want to be pardoned for something that I believed that I didn't do.

  • Major league baseball players and owners should meet immediately to enact the standards that apply to the minor leagues, and if they don't, I will have to introduce legislation that says professional sports will have minimum standards for testing. I'll give them until January, and then I'll introduce legislation.

  • The only way you approach politics and seek elective office is to move forward. For me to look back in anger or with any rancor would be a mistake.

  • I have no rancor. I look forward, not backwards.

  • The political tactics of division and slander are not our values. They are corrupting influences on religion and politics, and those who practice them in the name of religion or in the name of the Republican Party or in the name of America shame our faith, our party and our country.

  • I think [social media] is fundamentally restructuring the whole nature of information and how it's expressed in America.

  • There's a certain romanticism associated with exploration of space, which is one of the major factors why we'll continue.

  • There is no doubt in my mind that Rudy Giuliani in the Senate will be a leader for the people of New York but also for the people of Arizona and the people all over this country.

  • I was concerned about a couple of steps that the Russian government took in the last several days. One was reducing the energy supplies to Czechoslovakia.

  • You cannot tell the enemy you're going to leave and expect the enemy to not - and expect to succeed. I mean, that's just a fundamental of warfare.

  • The American people want us to stop spending. And so let's just give them some certainty. Let's extend the tax - the existing tax cuts. And then let's give some more tax breaks to small businesses and large. And then maybe the American people will have some confidence.

  • The way you have bipartisan negotiations, you sit down across the table, as we did with Ted Kennedy, as I've done with many other members, and you say, 'OK, here's what I want, here's what you want. We'll adhere to your principles, but we'll make concessions.'

  • I am a Republican. I'm loyal to the party of Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt. And I believe that my party, in some ways, has strayed from those principles, particularly on the issue of fiscal discipline.

  • If we do nothing, we are handing our children a ticking time bomb that will require they pay ever greater payroll taxes just as they are beginning their careers, starting their own families and staking their claim to the American Dream.

  • In prison, I fell in love with my country. I had loved her before then, but like most young people, my affection was little more than a simple appreciation for the comforts and privileges most Americans enjoyed and took for granted. It wasn't until I had lost America for a time that I realized how much I loved her.

  • Katrina did not declare a truce on Iraq.

  • Washington is a Hollywood for ugly people. Hollywood is a Washington for the simpleminded.

  • I've already heard from some military commanders who feel they've been undercut by the vice president of the United States, and there's a lot of justification for their view.

  • I appreciate the decision made by Gov. Brewer to veto this legislation. I hope that we can now move on from this controversy and assure the American people that everyone is welcome to live, work and enjoy our beautiful State of Arizona.

  • As long as there is a war on terrorism going on, we're all going to have to work together.

  • Without trusting government you can't do a lot of things.

  • But I'm still a work in progress. My mother calls me quite frequently with various critiques of my performance on TV and other public events. She's usually pretty severe with her comments.

  • The tea partiers are a great addition. The tea partiers have invigorated a base that has been dormant for a long period of time. We're going to have a broad array of different views in our Republican conference, and I think it might be more interesting than any I've been in in a long time.

  • And, if we lost, then who win? Did Al Qaida win? When on the floor of the House of Representatives they cheer - they cheer - when they pass a withdrawal motion that is a certain date for surrender, what were they cheering? Surrender? Defeat?

  • Our armed forces will fight for peace in Iraq, a peace built on more secure foundations than are found today in the Middle East. Even more important, they will fight for two human conditions of even greater value than peace: liberty and justice.

  • On 'don't ask, don't tell' I was always the same. I said we needed a complete review of the impact on morale and battle effectiveness of 'don't ask, don't tell' before we repeal it. That's my position now. Now they're trying to ram through a repeal without a - any kind of really realistic survey done.

  • Only the most deluded of us could doubt the necessity of this war.

  • Do not yield. Do not flinch. Stand up. Stand up with our President and fight. We're Americans. We're Americans, and we'll never surrender. They will.

  • I don't doubt the sincerity of my Democratic friends. And they should not doubt ours.

  • We cannot forever hide the truth about ourselves, from ourselves.

  • We are taught to understand, correctly, that courage is not the absence of fear, but the capacity for action despite our fears.

  • When you have airplanes with precision weapons, striking hospitals in Aleppo and slaughtering innocent men, women and children, you're committing a war crime. So we need more sanctions against Russia. We should not relax them.

  • Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because her father is Janet Reno.

  • War is awful. Nothing, not the valor with which it is fought nor the nobility of the cause it serves, can glorify war. War is wretched beyond description and only a fool or a fraud could sentimentalize its cruel reality. Whatever is won in war, it is loss the veteran remembers.

  • There is no moral equivalent between that butcher and thug and KGB colonel Vladimir Putin and the United States of America, the country that Ronald Reagan used to call a shining city on a hill.

  • And by the way, I would not only reappoint Greenspan; if Greenspan would happen to die, God forbid, I would do like they did in the movie 'Weekend at Bernie's.' I would prop him up and put a pair of dark glasses on him.

  • Efforts to bring about democracy have hit a wall and are going backwards.

  • I actually think if the American people understood what was going on instead of just being told tidbits by this administration, they would actually be a lot more supportive of the boots on the ground.

  • What if there's another terrorist attack? I cringe at the ideas of our enemies watching this, knowing much like the president we have now. You can do anything you want, you can jerk us around, you can harass our naval ships the way Iran is doing right now, and we're not going to do anything. We're not going to react.

  • Hillary [Clinton] saying we're never going to put boots on the ground in Iraq, we never going to put boots on the ground in Syria petrified me, simply because, why - what if this continues despite out of control.

  • Americans have got to understand that we are paying present-day retirees with the taxes paid by young workers in America today. And that's a disgrace. It's an absolute disgrace and it's got to be fixed.

  • I think where [Donald Trump] loses most hawkish republicans is when he talking about how much he likes [Vladimir] Putin. That should make any person who believe in the American exceptionalism, incredibly uncomfortable.

  • Fear is the opportunity for courage, not proof of cowardice.

  • That's give [Donald Trump] so much attention. And it's so funny. There actually have conflicting opinions on women in combat, in the military. So they have all the issues that stake. I'm more concerned with the VA than anything else.

  • We can't go on forever with 11 million people living in this country in the shadows in an illegal status. We cannot forever have children who were born here - who were brought here by their parents when they were small children to live in the shadows, as well... What's changed, honestly, is that there is a new appreciation on both sides of the aisle, maybe more importantly on the Republican side, that we need to enact a comprehensive immigration reform bill.

  • I think we need to address greenhouse gas emissions. But I try to get involved in issues where I see a legislative result... So I just leave the issue alone because I don't see a way through it, and there are certain fundamentals, for example nuke power, that people on the left will never agree with me on. So why should I waste my time when I know the people on the left are going to reject nuclear power?

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