Preznit McCain: Look Who’s Presumptuous Now

[Cross-posted at Firedoglake.]

While Obama has been working to dispel the McCain-inspired notion that he is somehow "presumptuous", McCain himself, by thrusting himself into the Georgia mess, has been busy making sure everyone sees him as "President McCain".


But even the Washington Post isn’t sure this is such a hot idea:

The extent of McCain’s involvement in the military conflict in Georgia appears remarkable among presidential candidates, who traditionally have kept some distance from unfolding crises out of deference to whoever is occupying the White House. The episode also follows months of sustained GOP criticism of Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, who was accused of acting too presidential for, among other things, briefly adopting a campaign seal and taking a trip abroad that included a huge rally in Berlin.

"We talk about how there’s only one president at a time, so the idea that you would send your own emissaries and really interfere with the process is remarkable," said Lawrence Korb, a Reagan Defense Department official who now acts as an informal adviser to the Obama campaign. "It’s very risky and can send mixed messages to foreign governments. . . . They accused Obama of being presumptuous, but he didn’t do anything close to this."

And apparently, that November thing is just a formality:

Asked about his tough rhetoric on the ongoing conflict in Georgia, McCain began: "If I may be so bold, there was another president . . ."

He caught himself and started again: "At one time, there was a president named Ronald Reagan who spoke very strongly about America’s advocacy for democracy and freedom."

So evidently that ad he ran awhile back crowning himself president was no joke.