Taking the High Road?

"And as I've said before in response to the annoying McCain platitudes about 'reaching across the aisle' and 'getting things done': When did it become the Republican Party's top priority to 'get things done?' 'Get things done' is mindless liberal code for passing legislation and expanding government. And as McCain's ample legislative record demonstrates, 'reaching across the political aisle' never entails pulling opponents to the right. It always entails selling out the right."

At American Spectator, Philip Klein:

"Some commentators have made the argument that given his age, McCain should pledge to only run for a single term, and set very specific goals for his time in office. To me, this seems like an effort to do so implicitly, while avoiding looking like a lame duck by doing so explicitly. I think what he runs the risk of, though, is making so many ambitious promises that he undercuts his image as a straight talker, and makes it harder to portray Barack Obama as a naive dreamer who resides in Fantasyland."

Former Bush staffer Pete Wehner calls the speech unrealistic:

"My initial reaction is it doesn't work, at least for me -- perhaps because the speech seemed to cut against one of McCain's more impressive qualities, which is that he is a grounded, clear-eyed, realistic man, not given to wishful thinking."

Rush Limbaugh ridiculed McCain's notion of working with (and even appointing) Dems:

"Well, then why you running? Why do we even have elections? Let's just have the League of Women Voters decide. Why do we even have elections then? . . . Some of the Drive-Bys are going to eat this up because he's campaigning as a Democrat."

Earlier, Rush went off on Mac for another speech:

"Senator McCain's embrace of a radical environmental agenda is a perfect example of all that I have been discussing with you about how the Republican Party is abandoning conservatism, abandoning those things and those people that made it victorious . . .

"McCain went out there in Oregon, and he delivered a bang bang environmental speech as far as the left is concerned. If I had been Nancy Pelosi, if I had been Obama, if I had been Hillary Clinton, if I were Algore, I would be doing back flips. If I were the Drive-By Media, I'd go, 'Oh, boy, this is Christmas in May.' But they're still not satisfied. The environmentalist wackos, the Democrats, Algore, still not satisfied with McCain's proposals. McCain's proposals are so far reaching, they are frightening."

Time's Joe Klein finds McCain's vision of a largely peaceful Iraq in 2013 "deeply hilarious":

"And the tooth fairy will spread giggle-juice throughout the land, and the Mets will win the World Series and I will lose 20 pounds while continuing to consume vast quantities of Chinese and Italian food.