McCain's judicial philosophy

In a speech focusing on the kinds of judges he'd appoint if elected president, John McCain gives a preview of the tightrope he'll have to walk as the general election nears.

Published May 7, 2008 11:29PM (EDT)

Here's this week's video for our partners at Current. In it, I talk about a big speech John McCain gave on Tuesday about his judicial philosophy.

As I mention in the video, it was an interesting speech, not for what McCain revealed about his thoughts on judges -- that wasn't a surprise -- but for what it said about the tightrope he'll have to walk as he starts his general election campaign in earnest. On the one hand, he has to keep up his image as a moderate and play to the center; on the other, he has to keep the Republican base happy and motivated. This time around, he played that game by using all the familiar dog whistles about activist judges and the template for justices he'd appoint to the Supreme Court, but I also noticed he never mentioned the word "abortion."


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

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2008 Elections John Mccain R-ariz.