MSNBC "Super Tuesday"-Transcript

Interview

MSNBC "Super Tuesday"-Transcript

MS. MITCHELL: And lately, people have been talking about the Republican front-runners, but they have not been talking as much about John McCain. The senator did struggle through the summer with sinking poll numbers, personnel changes, money problems, but in recent weeks new signs of life. The McCain campaign has been showing a real turnaround; his poll numbers slowly improving.

Some of the latest national poll numbers show Rudy Giuliani leading Fred Thompson by seven points, John McCain coming in behind Thompson by seven points, but still ahead of Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich.

Senator John McCain joins me now from San Antonio, Texas.

Senator, thanks very much for joining us.

SEN. MCCAIN: Hi, Andrea. How are you?

MS. MITCHELL: Well, I am fine. Thank you, sir.

I wanted to ask you about what's been going on here in New York City. A lot of people have criticized Columbia University for allowing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak on campus yesterday. Yours was some of the strongest criticism.

What's wrong with freedom of speech?

SEN. MCCAIN: Well, I think that freedom of speech has been selectively exercised by Columbia University. About a year or so ago, there was a Minuteman who had been invited to speak on campus, I think, by the College Republicans. He tried to speak and he was driven off the stage physically. He was deprived of his free speech. The ROTC, the Reserve Officer Training Corps for which we get the bulk of our officers are not allowed to come on campus because they happen to disagree with one of their policies.

Does that mean by allowing the president of Iran they agree with his policies?

Look, there's rank hypocrisy here and to not allow the Reserve Officer Training Corps who provide the men and women who serve in the military, many of whom are serving and sacrificing as we speak, not allow them on campus to try to recruit or discuss issues with young men and women on their campus is just disgraceful and that's a fact.

MS. MITCHELL: Do you think the president pulled his punches? In his speech today at the United Nations, he barely mentioned Iran. He seemed to be trying to sidestep that issue and placate perhaps some of his critics in the General Assembly and emphasize issues on which there was more agreement.

SEN. MCCAIN: Well, I don't know about the president's speech, but he's made it very clear and we have too that it's unacceptable for the Iranians to be manufacturing the most lethal explosive devices and crossing the Iran-Iraq border and killing American soldiers. They're developing nuclear weapons. They are repressing their people brutally. They have taken even Iranian-American citizens as prisoners.

Look, the president of Iran a week or so ago said it best, Andrea, when he said - when the United States leaves Iraq there will be a void and we will fill it and that's certainly what their ambitions are and not to mention this idiotic babble that the president of Iran said in response to the statements about his country's dedication to the extinction of Israel and the idiocy of saying that the Holocaust is not proven. What's that all about?

MS. MITCHELL: I just wanted to also ask you about the divide within the administration about whether or not there should be at least a military option or consideration of taking military action against Iran to stop it from developing a nuclear device, Condoleezza Rice versus Dick Cheney, John Bolton, the former U.N. ambassador, very outspoken.

Where would President McCain come down on that subject?

SEN. MCCAIN: We would exercise far more vigorous economic and other sanctions. Look, at the end of the day, you can't allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon, but there's lots of things we can do, including joining with other European and like-minded nations to get around China and Russia's blocking of anything meaningful in the Security Council and do some very severe sanctions, and I think it can have a significant effect. But at the end of the day, they're going to give a nuclear weapon to a terrorist organization, that is if they develop one, which is the view of most experts and that's not acceptable and we also have to calculate what Israel will do if they are faced with that situation as well.

MS. MITCHELL: Senator, a lot of people believe that the problems you've experienced in your campaign have not just been a matter of organization and the lack of money, but that you have been brought down by the unpopularity of the war.

Is your campaign fortunes, are your campaign fortunes really tied inextricably to the success of the surge?

SEN. MCCAIN: Oh, I think maybe that's probably the case. I wouldn't be surprised if that were a valid judgment. But do you think that I should be concerned about my political future when I see failure in Iraq to bring about genocide, chaos in the region and Americans come back? I've met too many families of those who have lost loved ones in this conflict for me to worry about my political campaign.

I've said on several occasions I'd much rather lose a campaign than lose a war, and by the way, Andrea, I'm happy with where we are. We'll have enough money to compete. The town hall meetings are doing fine and we've got a tough, tough fight against good people, but I'm confident we'll do very well.

MS. MITCHELL: A Giuliani supporter is holding a fundraiser in California and asking backers to donate $9.11. Is it appropriate for supporters of Rudy Giuliani to raise money by trying to trade off of 9/11?

SEN. MCCAIN: Oh, I don't know, Andrea. I'll leave that up to people like you and the American public opinion to decide that. A lot of times your fundraisers come up with interesting ideas, but I'll let others, I'll let others make that decision.

MS. MITCHELL: Have you been taking any cell phone calls from Cindy McCain while you're in the middle of a speech lately? What was that all about? Do you think that was just an accident?

SEN. MCCAIN: I have no clue. I was - when I spoke to that same group I was interrupted by the protestors and I seized the opportunity to tell them that we had just beaten them on the floor of the Senate and I was pleased about that.

MS. MITCHELL: Okay. John McCain. Great to see you again and good luck in San Antonio.

SEN. MCCAIN: Thanks, Andrea.

MS. MITCHELL: And have a good time out there in the campaign.

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