Blumenthal -- Rove, McCain Clashed Over Pick

3 years ago

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Former Clinton adviser Sidney Blumenthal reports that according to his sources, John McCain selected running mate Sarah Palin after Karl Rove pressured McCain to select Mitt Romney instead of Senator Joe Lieberman, McCain's favored candidate.

Blumenthal also argues that the selection of Palin will allow McCain to court social conservatives before the convention. After the convention, when he is officially the nominee McCain will be "freer to move to the center."

Jonathan Martin of The Politico reported last week that Rove asked Lieberman, who ran for Vice President in 2000, to withdraw his name from consideration and was turned down.

According to ABC's Jan Crawford Greenburg, it wasn't until the Sunday before the Democratic National Convention that the McCain campaign finally ruled out Joe Lieberman because, "it would be a disaster for the party and that the base would revolt."

Filed Under: John McCain, 2008 President, Veepstakes, Sarah Palin

Tagged: election, Joe Lieberman, JoeLieberman, John McCain, JohnMccain, Karl Rove, KarlRove, Mitt Romney, MittRomney, president 2008, President2008, Republicans, Sarah Palin, SarahPalin, veepstakes, vice president, VicePresident

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