McCain has an ad/web video out using comments by Democrats that appear to praise him.
Howard Dean responds: "The John McCain of 2000 wouldn't even consider voting for the John McCain of 2008."
And John Kerry responds: "The real question is what happened to the John McCain we used to know and why he changed overnight into a George Bush nominee with a Karl Rove campaign."
Ben Smith
More, after the fold.
Update (for those who can't play the video):
Daschle: "He can work with Democrats on key issues."
Biden: "I would be honored to run with or against John McCain ."
Kerry: "He is a courageous, patriotic American who stands up for what he believes."
Dean: "Nobody has to guess at what he’s thinking,"
Feingold: "I love John McCain . He’s a great guy."
snip
Then the ad shows Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama testifying before a Senate committee that the "right approach" to climate change legislation is one that begins with a plan offered by McCain and Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman , I-Conn.
It closes with Obama’s primary rival, Hillary Rodham Clinton , D-N.Y., saying "I know that Sen. McCain has a lifetime of experience that he will bring to the White House, and Sen. Obama has a speech he gave in 2002" — a reference to the speech Obama delivered against the Iraq war when he was a state senator in Illinois.
CQ Politics: Kerry Rips Former Pal McCain for Ad Citing Praise from Dems
Yeah, I know that Clinton's statement was unhelpful at the time, but I expect her to slam McCain later today. (Update: I hope, but I'd rather praise Dean, Kerry and Biden than get caught up in the past about Clinton. Unity wins.)
Here's John Kerry's full statement:
"The McCain campaign is determined to give their Paris Hilton ad a run for its money in the desperation department, and they’ve succeeded only in shining a light on the fact that the John McCain of today is unrecognizable from the John McCain of just a couple years ago," Kerry wrote.
"The real question is what happened to the John McCain we used to know and why he changed overnight into a George Bush nominee with a Karl Rove campaign. The new John McCain supports the Bush tax giveaways for the wealthy he once denounced, opposes his own immigration bill, flip-flopped on torture, and runs negative ads after calling for an honorable campaign," Kerry's statement read.
abcnews: Who's that Praising McCain?
And Howard Dean:
"John McCain a maverick? The John McCain of 2000 wouldn't even consider voting for the John McCain of 2008.
The American people are learning that the John McCain of 2008 represents more of the same failed policies we've gotten from George Bush for the past eight years. Senator McCain is clearly in the tank for Exxon and big oil, for keeping our troops stuck in Iraq for decades to come, and for an economic policy that puts tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations above relief for hardworking families.
John McCain has changed: he's taken the low road, leveling false, negative and misleading attacks against Barack Obama. John McCain is no more a maverick within the Republican Party than Dick Cheney is. He's just more of the same."
abcnews: Who's that Praising McCain?
Update: Here's Biden kicking some McCain ass:
"The John McCain of 2008 is not the maverick of 2000. On the most urgent national security challenges we face - Iraq, Iran and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan -- there is no day light between George Bush and John McCain. He has embraced President Bush's failed policies and will continue them. It's unfortunate he's changed so much in just eight years."
msnbc: First Read
The low road express, that's John McCain.
Why do I think this is going to rebound on him and he'll wish he'd never made this ad? The John McCain of 2000 would not vote for the John McCain of today! Snap. What a perfect theme.
Update: DNC web video smackdown:
The following is the script of "Maverick No More:"
TEXT: John McCain ...Maverick No More.
Senator Joe Biden: "But stylistically and substantively, there is no daylight between George Bush and John McCain. They are joined at the hip."
Senator John Kerry: "John McCain has changed in profound and fundamental ways that I find personally really surprising, and frankly upsetting. He is not the John McCain as a senator who defined himself quote as a ‘maverick’ though questionable. This is a different John McCain."
Senator Tom Daschle: "On Iraq, on the economy, on tax policy, on domestic policy, across the board. He is espousing the Bush policies. He’s changed a lot since 2001."
Senator Hillary Clinton: "But in the end, after eight devastating years under President Bush, Senator McCain is simply offering four years more."
DNC Chairman Howard Dean: "You know, the John McCain of 2000 wouldn’t’ vote for this John McCain. We don’t need another four years of George Bush. What he’s proposing is four more years of George Bush’s economic policy and its ridiculous and its unfair the American people."
TEXT: Let’s Let President Bush Have the Final Say
President Bush: "Its been my honor to welcome my friend John McCain as the nominee of the Republican Party. I wish you all the best. I'm proud to be your friend."
And Link to You Tube. It's been easier to watch on You Tube. Some glitch today with embeds.