McCain vs. Spain, Continued

Earlier today, I wrote about the truly odd gaffe made by John McCain regarding the nation of Spain, and whether a President McCain would invite Prime Minister Zapatero to Washington for a White House visit. Spain, of course, has been an ally of the United States' for years. They sent troops to Iraq, and still have them fighting beside American soldiers in Afghanistan. They are NATO members, part of the E.U., and have been a solid partner in the war on terrorism, sharing information and coordinating intelligence with the CIA.

Given all this, it is truly mind-boggling that McCain's advisers can't admit he was simply a bit out of it, and made a mistake by implying that Spain was somehow unfriendly to the U.S., and, perhaps, too much like leftist governments in South America for a president of the United States to invite for a state visit. Instead, his campaign is opting for utterly reckless spin. McCain chief spokesman, Randy Sheunemann gave the following statement today:

"The questioner asked several times about Senator McCain's willingness to meet Zapatero (and id'd him in the question so there is no doubt Senator McCain knew exactly to whom the question referred). Senator McCain refused to commit to a White House meeting with President Zapatero in this interview."

He's already snubbing our allies, and he hasn't even been elected. McCain continues to prove that he'd rather ditch his integrity than lose an election. Stick to those crazy guns! That's one hell of a winning strategy. But go ahead, McCain supporters, tell us all about why we should hate Spain. They have national healthcare, and they take siestas. Worst of all, the country voted in a government because they promised to get Spanish troops out of Iraq. By that criteria, should we also consider snubbing Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Slovakia, The Netherlands, Portugal, Singapore, Norway, Ukraine, Tonga, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Philippines, New Zealand, Thailand, South Korea, and Denmark, who have all pulled troops from Iraq? And why not snub all those countries who didn't want to send troops to fight in Iraq in the first place? If we're going to continue with the "With us or against us," mentality of the Bush Administration, there will be a whole lot of snubbing going on during a McCain presidency.

But even if you buy Sheunemann's mind-boggling spin, why did McCain himself speak so kindly about warming up relations with Spain earlier this year? So, what are we left with? If McCain's comments were an extended gaffe (as I think they were), it's disturbing, but understandable. If they weren't a gaffe, as his campaign now claims, it's downright disturbing. Wasn't foreign policy supposed to be McCain's strong suit?

Once again, you can listen to the entire exchange here. Ask yourself: what would the response be if Barack Obama slighted an ally in the same way? U.S. News & World Report has more.