Bush anoints McCain's bid

WASHINGTON — Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., was greeted here Wednesday as the new standard-bearer of a Republican Party he has sometimes battled, winning the endorsement of a president he has feuded with in the past and the embrace — and financial help — of the Republican National Committee.

McCain traveled from Dallas to the White House for a hot dog lunch alone with President Bush in a private dining room off the Oval Office and then formally received the endorsement of Bush, his onetime rival, in a brief appearance in the Rose Garden.

"I'm very honored and humbled to have the opportunity to receive the endorsement of the president of the United States," McCain said as he stood beside Bush, for whom he said he had "great admiration, respect and affection."

Even while Bush called McCain "somebody who won't flinch in the face of danger," Democrats seized on the sunny Rose Garden tableau, charging that McCain would offer voters nothing more than a third Bush term with policies in lock step with the current officeholder.

"John McCain just doesn't get it," said Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, which posted video of the pair's news conference on the Internet.

The McCain campaign has wrestled with the question of how to use Bush, who is unpopular with many voters. But McCain went out of his way Wednesday to express his gratitude for the president's support as he seeks to rally skeptical conservatives behind his candidacy.

The president, for his part, made it clear that he would do whatever was asked to help McCain, who campaigned for Bush in 2004 even after their bitter rivalry in the 2000 campaign.

Bush acknowledged his own low standing with voters and said he would do whatever would help the senator — including campaign against him. "If my showing up and endorsing him helps him, or if I'm against him and it helps him — either way, I want him to win," Bush joked.

Of more immediate benefit to the McCain campaign may be the help of the Republican National Committee. McCain visited its Washington headquarters Wednesday, pointing to one tangible benefit of wrapping up the nomination. It allows him to basically take over the national-party apparatus, which has $25 million on hand and a political staff, while the Democratic National Committee cannot actively support a candidate until one is selected as the nominee.

McCain's most daunting problem is money. He's tangled in a dispute over whether he can skip public financing until September — and avoid the spending limits that come with it.

McCain last year appeared to promise a bank that he'd take federal financing, if necessary, to pay back a loan.

He never took the public money, however. He raised enough on his own to compete and win the nomination, and he now wants to skip the whole federal-financing question so he can raise and spend as much as he can.

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) cannot rule on his request because it doesn't have a quorum. The Democratic-controlled Senate can keep blocking confirmation of Bush's appointees to the commission, thus preventing it from approving McCain's plan. And the Democratic National Committee is suing to prevent McCain from dodging his commitment to play by federal-financing rules.

McCain says he doesn't need the FEC's permission, but a protracted legal fight to raise more money might tarnish his image as a reformer fighting to curb the influence of money on politics.

Even if he's free to raise more money, he likely cannot keep up with either Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton or Barack Obama. McCain raised about $24 million in January and February, but Clinton raised almost $50 million and Obama raised about $86 million.

"We've got a ways to go to catch up with them," McCain acknowledged.

His first hope to counter that is by raising and hoarding money while the Democrats spend theirs fighting each other.

Also, he'll count on the Republican National Committee — with Bush as its star fundraiser — to raise enough cash to air ads for him on its own through summer.

Information from Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times is included in this report.

Huckabee advisers start

laying ground for next bid

WASHINGTON — Advisers to former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee spent Wednesday starting to build a conservative coalition that could propel a future run for the White House, hoping to capitalize on the popularity he gained during his unlikely presidential bid.

Huckabee plans to help Sen. John McCain and Republican congressional candidates win over conservative Christians in the fall, while seeking a national radio show or other forum he can use to expand his influence within the party.

And though Huckabee has said that he doubts McCain would offer him the vice presidential slot on the Republican ticket, he has not denied interest in the job. The head of his campaign's faith-and-values coalition, conservative radio talk-show host Janet Folger, said she is broadcasting the phone number of McCain's campaign office so callers can demand that Huckabee be placed on the ticket.

The Washington Post