WASHINGTON — A day after winning the so-called Potomac Primary, Arizona Sen. John McCain was handed another victory Wednesday, when he was unexpectedly endorsed by the entire House GOP leadership.
Republican leaders had said Tuesday that they intended to remain neutral, but after an hour-long, closed-door session with the senator, House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio; House Minority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo.; and House Republican Conference chairman Adam Putnam, R-Fla., all fell in line.
“John McCain is an American hero and will make an excellent president of the United States,” Boehner said. “McCain has a solid conservative record as one of the most vocal opponents of wasteful spending, a staunch defender of America’s national security and a strong believer in the sanctity of human life. He is uniquely suited to lead our country forward as we take on the many opportunities and challenges of the years ahead.”
McCain spent much of the session with House Republicans not only receiving their praise but also reassuring them on one key issue: immigration. McCain has been beaten up badly on immigration, participants said he told them.
He said he understands the nation’s borders must be sealed and independently certified as under control before the next president even considers any further steps to give an estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants in the country a pathway to citizenship.
Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, pushed the conversation onto friendly territory, asking McCain what he would do about earmarks — special, home-district projects written into spending bills by both parties.
McCain promised he would end the practice, though earmarks have been a fixture in Congress for decades.
McCain’s trip to the House side of the Capitol was significant, because he has had a prickly relationship with House conservatives for years. In 2004, then-House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., was so incensed that McCain had questioned tax cuts in a time of war that he challenged McCain’s credentials as a Republican.
But Boehner pointed out all of the House Republicans McCain had campaigned for, some of whom had spoken out against him. Boehner praised McCain as a standard-bearer who would help Republicans further down the ticket in November by bringing independents to the GOP.
“Part of our discussion was, we have to re-energize our base,” McCain said. “We have to get everybody unified.”
