While John McCain says he is supporting Connerly's initiative because he opposes "quotas," neither the 1998 initiative that he opposed nor the 2008 initiative that he now supports address quotas.

In fact, "quotas" are already illegal under federal law and have been ruled unconstitutional for years. Quotas have nothing to do with the affirmative action ballot measures.

PBS NOW recently exposed McCain on this fact.

1998: McCain opposes "divisive ballot initiatives" The Associated Press reported John McCain saying, "Rather than engage in divisive ballot initiatives, we must have a dialogue and cooperation and mutual efforts together to provide for every child in America to fulfill their expectations." "McCain condemns initiatives aimed at rolling back affirmative action," Associated Press, February 25, 1998.

 

 

1998: McCain led effort in Senate to defeat proposal to end affirmative action program

Senate Stops Bid to End Road-Work Set-Asides, New York Times, March 7, 1998: But eight hours of debate revealed rifts in the Republican Party over affirmative action, as 15 Republicans joined 43 Democrats in voting to defeat an amendment to end the program. One Democrat voted with 36 Republicans to keep the amendment alive.

Urging its defeat, Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, said, ''As the party of Lincoln, our heritage and destiny is to be a party of all Americans, dedicated to the principles of democracy, limited but efficient government, individual freedom and opportunity.''

Mr. McCain added: ''Unfortunately, discussing the inherent contradictions and shortcomings of affirmative action programs, the danger exists that our aspirations and intentions will be misperceived, dividing our country and harming our party. We must not allow that to happen.''

1999: McCain Supports Affirmative Action

In 1999 when he was running in the GOP Presidential primary against George Bush there is this YouTube video of McCain voicing his support for affirmative action programs.

April 2008: "So all of us are for affirmative action"

On April 22 of this year, CBS News reported McCain saying, "If you're talking about assuring equal and fair opportunity for all Americans and making sure that the practices of the US military are emulated, the greatest equal opportunity employer in America, then I am all for it," he said,  "So all of us are for affirmative action to try to give assistance to those who need it, whether it be African-American or other groups of Americans that need it."

June 2008: McCain "mum" on Connerly Initiatives

McCain's own base has questioned him on this issue with the National Review writing, "Specifically, do you favor the ballot initiatives that have been adopted by California, Washington, and Michigan, and will likely be before voters this November in Missouri, Colorado, Arizona, and Nebraska?"

In April, Pat Buchanan wrote, "With no help from McCain, Connerly is trying to put on five state ballots a Civil Rights Initiative that declares white men are also equal and not to be denied their civil rights because of the color of their skin. And where does McCain stand?"

It's a good question that McCain had refused to answer. As ABC reported on June 20, after "multiple requests" from ABC News, McCain "continues to take no position" on Connerly's initiatives.

July 2008: McCain flip flops on Affirmative Action

During a "This Week" interview with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos John McCain reversed himself on affirmative action and endorsed for the first time a proposed state ballot measure which would end race and gender‐based affirmative action in his home state of Arizona.

Stephonopolous: "Opponents of affirmative action are trying to get a referendum on the ballot here that would do away with affirmative action. Do you support that?"

McCAIN: "I support it, yes."

His campaign has refused to acknowledge what he said about the Arizona initiative.

"But pressed about whether McCain indeed supports the Arizona initiative, the campaign would not answer. In 1998, McCain called a similar ballot measure "divisive.""

Asked about the flip Monday on CNN's Larry King Live, more than 48 hours after he initially pre-taped the ABC interview, McCain said he was still unsure what the 1998 initiative was about and needed to "look it up."

CNN: "You said yesterday that you endorse an Arizona ballot referendum to eliminate affirmative action. Ten years ago you described a similar effort as ‘divisive.' What changed?"

MCCAIN: "You know, I don't know what we're talking about. About 10 years ago. And I'm going to look it up.

As the Arizona Daily Sun looked it up and reported, "McCain does about-face on affirmative action, He now supports a measure to do away with the program, a reversal of his position a decade ago.

McCain vs McCain on affirmative action - what changed?

McCain has always supported affirmative action as practiced by the American military services, yet the proposed constitutional amendment in Arizona would ban the exact kind of affirmative action policies practiced by the military.

McCain and his campaign say he opposes the initiatives because he opposes "quotas" but as the Washington Post and others have pointed out "Quotas are not an issue in the proposals, because the courts for years have been striking them down."

Quota's are already illegal under federal law and have been ruled unconstitutional for years. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that racial quotas were unconstitutional 30 years ago with the Bakke decision. Neither the 1998 measure nor this year's initiative makes any mention of quotas, which the U.S. Supreme Court specifically outlawed in public education in the landmark 1978 ruling.

Will McCain identify the quota's he seeks to ban with his support of the initiative(s)?

The initiatives ban affirmative action programs which McCain has called "divisive" in the past and opposed.

Even if you buy the McCain argument that he has always opposed quotas and that he supports this year's initiative because he opposes quotas, the Washington Times report above shows he actually opposed ballot initiatives "outlawing quotas or racial preferences."

So if he "opposed" ballot initiatives "outlawing quotas" in 1998 and now supports the AZ initiative because he opposes quotas he is actually flip-flopping on quotas and is not consistent.

It's (not) the quotas...stupid

McCain and his campaign are intentionally trying to confuse the issue in an attempt to spin his flip flop as consistent.

McCain has misleadingly tried paint the initiatives as bans on quotas, which they are not. They are bans on affirmative action programs as PBS NOW recently exposed.

As McCain own home state paper, the East Valley Tribune reported this week, McCain now supports eliminating a 7^th grade Mother-Daughter program.

"Arizona State University's Hispanic Mother-Daughter Program, in which nearly every East Valley school district participates. The program recruits seventh-grade Hispanic girls who don't have college graduates in their families.

The girls and their mothers participate once a month in a class at ASU where they learn study skills, test preparation and how to write personal statements and apply for financial aid.

In the 2006-07 school year, nearly 200 girls from East Valley schools participated. The measure could also ban the Summer Bridge Program, which helps Indian seniors prepare for college after graduation."

 Other examples of equal opportunity programs that McCain now supports eliminating in his home state of Arizona:

• Governor's Commission to Prevent Violence Against Women. Because this program focuses on protecting women, it would be eliminated under Ward Connerly's proposal.
• City of Phoenix Teen Parents Program. This program helps teen mothers learn skills so they can get off welfare and provide for their children.
• Arizona State University Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program. This program supports university women as they pursue careers in science and engineering.

While McCain in the past was critical of convicted lobbyist, Jack Abramoff, for profiting off of non-profits, McCain has been silent on Connerly's profiteering.

Based on available information from the 990 forms filed by Connerly with the IRS, between 1997 and 2006, Connerly has lined his own pockets with over $7.6 million from his two tax exempt, non-profit organizations; American Civil Rights Institute (ACRI), 501(c) 3, and American Civil Rights Coalition (ACRC), 501(c) 4.

This includes over $500,000 in salary from 2004 to mid-2006 and $2.2 million in payments that Connerly paid himself just for "speaking fees and interviews."

Connerly's excessive compensation levels from his tax-exempt, non-profit organizations have raised questions in Congress about their propriety.

Even conservatives are on to Connerly's profiteering. The most recent issue of The American Conservative revealed:

In 1998, 22 percent of his nonprofits' revenue was paid to Connerly in salary or to his firm. By 2001, Connerly's salary and the fees charged by Connerly and Associates ate up 49 percent of the nonprofits' combined revenue. Most of the money paid to the firm was listed on tax forms as "speaking fees." In 2006, when Connerly took up a concrete goal in political activism-ending Michigan's affirmative-action policies-the cut of nonprofit revenue paid to him and his firm rose to 66 percent of total receipts, nearly $1.6 million.

As The American Conservative writes, "An IRS spokesman said that he could not comment on a case under investigation."