What would have happened if McCain had won in 2008? How bad would we as a country could have become?

[Amol S.]

The reason why I am asking is, would it have been bad enough for Hillary to have won in 2016 instead of Trump, if McCain had won a second term?

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Far too many unknowns and assumptions to be made. Nearly impossible to say.

 

[dank69]

In a world ruled by a giant beaver, mankind builds many dams to please the beaver overlord. The low-lying city of Copenhagen is flooded, thousands die. Devastated, the Danes never invent their namesake pastry. How does one miss that?

 

[ivwshane]

Hillary still would have lost and trump still would have won. Why? Because Hillary hate is decades in the making and nothing could change that. Trump would have won because he was the anti establishment candidate, the anti McCain. In fact, I’m sure his margins would have been even bigger than they were in 2016.

 

[HomerJS]

Wonder if the rise of the Tea Party would have been stunted? McCain wasn't all about their radical nonsense. JMC has the last Republican moment of honesty and conscience with this moment...

 

[hal2kilo]

Wonder if the rise of the Tea Party would have been stunted? McCain wasn't all about their radical nonsense. JMC has the last Republican moment of honesty and conscience with this moment...

I think years of BS had already done it's damage by then. Seeing interviews of people in Georgia who voted for that fool Rep. Clyde, who said the Jan.6 insurrectionists were just tourists, and having most of them say they basically didn't care, tells me everything.

 

[Moonbeam]

Look at it from the point of view that everything that happens has to happen exactly as it does, the only variable being whether you believe that good and evil are real or that duality is a delusion of the mind that conceals the fact that everything is absolutely perfect as it is, a state of mind in which the question posed by the OP would not arise.

 

[gothuevos]

Hillary still would have lost and trump still would have won. Why? Because Hillary hate is decades in the making and nothing could change that. Trump would have won because he was the anti establishment candidate, the anti McCain. In fact, I’m sure his margins would have been even bigger than they were in 2016.

Trump would have ran as a Democrat, LOL

 

[Stokely]

Who knows, assuming he'd have won a second term things could have been very different.

McCain was hardly any kind of "maverick" despite his nickname. He was a standard Republican who only showed a bit of spine at the very end when he knew he was dying from cancer and didn't have to appease the voting rubes.

Which makes him much better than Trump in most ways--the one big one where Trump is better is that--for whatever reason--he didn't go putting his military dick down all over the world like another GWB.

 

[fskimospy]

Who knows, assuming he'd have won a second term things could have been very different.

McCain was hardly any kind of "maverick" despite his nickname. He was a standard Republican who only showed a bit of spine at the very end when he knew he was dying from cancer and didn't have to appease the voting rubes.

Which makes him much better than Trump in most ways--the one big one where Trump is better is that--for whatever reason--he didn't go putting his military dick down all over the world like another GWB.

People should remember that the ‘spine’ he showed was to basically vote against the elimination of the individual mandate in the ACA. He then voted for exactly that not long after once other republicans combined it with tax cuts for rich people.

So he was willing to stand up for millions of Americans who needed health insurance but not at the expense of giving more money to the rich. What a hero.

 

[sportage]

Hillary still would have lost and trump still would have won. Why? Because Hillary hate is decades in the making and nothing could change that. Trump would have won because he was the anti establishment candidate, the anti McCain. In fact, I’m sure his margins would have been even bigger than they were in 2016.

Back in 2016 I was shocked by the Hillary hate among democrats and especially among women democrats. I believe that 2016 actually changed a lot of women democrats into trump republicans. My siblings considered themselves democrats until Hillary ran in 2016, when they voted Trump and today are registered republicans. So actually, republicans need to thank Hillary Clinton for drawing so many women away from the democrat party and into the republican party. Talking about 2016, I doubt that a candidate Bernie Sanders or any other democrat candidate for president not Hillary could have driven so many democrats away and into the arms of the republican party. Republicans should build a monument to Hillary Clinton. Seriously, they should.

 

[sportage]

PS. I think the problem with women and Hillary was that women especially young progressive women look at Hillary as the mean evil stepmother. The mother that won't let you date the boys you want to date and always very negative on how you run your life and the decisions you made. Young, working, college educated democrat women simply could not tollerate Hillary Clinton.

 

[Fenixgoon]

Back in 2016 I was shocked by the Hillary hate among democrats and especially among women democrats. I believe that 2016 actually changed a lot of women democrats into trump republicans. My siblings considered themselves democrats until Hillary ran in 2016, when they voted Trump and today are registered republicans. So actually, republicans need to thank Hillary Clinton for drawing so many women away from the democrat party and into the republican party. Talking about 2016, I doubt that a candidate Bernie Sanders or any other democrat candidate for president not Hillary could have driven so many democrats away and into the arms of the republican party. Republicans should build a monument to Hillary Clinton. Seriously, they should.

I have a friend who said he simply "couldn't trust Hillary" in 2016. I wouldn't be shocked to find a large percentage of people who voted trump due to how she's been vilified for so long.
The same friend voted against trump in 2020, not that it made much a difference since he was in Texas.

 

[Amol S.]

I have a friend who said he simply "couldn't trust Hillary" in 2016. I wouldn't be shocked to find a large percentage of people who voted trump due to how she's been vilified for so long.
The same friend voted against trump in 2020, not that it made much a difference since he was in Texas.

Remind them to get a Drivers licence if they havn't and re-apply to be on voter role, if they want to vote in 2024.

 

[ondma]

Hillary still would have lost and trump still would have won. Why? Because Hillary hate is decades in the making and nothing could change that. Trump would have won because he was the anti establishment candidate, the anti McCain. In fact, I’m sure his margins would have been even bigger than they were in 2016.

Not so sure. The Republicans would have had less ammunition to use against Hillary, i.e. the e-mails and Benghazi. It is true though, that Hillary was just not a very likable candidate, and probably still would have lost.

 

[ondma]

Who knows, assuming he'd have won a second term things could have been very different.

McCain was hardly any kind of "maverick" despite his nickname. He was a standard Republican who only showed a bit of spine at the very end when he knew he was dying from cancer and didn't have to appease the voting rubes.

Which makes him much better than Trump in most ways--the one big one where Trump is better is that--for whatever reason--he didn't go putting his military dick down all over the world like another GWB.

This is kind of unfair to McCain. We dont know what he would have done with his "military dick" had he been president. it is just a guess, but after seeing and experiencing the futility of Vietnam, I think he would have been much more prudent than Bush. I also think he would not have surrounded himself with a bunch of neocons like Bush did.

Edit: That part about standing up only after he was dying, true or not, was a really cheap shot.

 

[soundforbjt]

Is everyone forgetting his VP pick?

 

[Jaskalas]

There was an obvious incumbent party backlash that hit Democrats in 2016. And Hillary failed to distinguish herself from the Obama admin, to be able to relate to the pain of the American people suffering under the trickle down economy that Obama failed to act on, failed to reign in. Yes, Republicans created and kept it going. But the incumbent gets the blame. "Thanks Obama" meme and all that. Working class felt betrayed and Democrats were "in power" going into the election.

Public perception does not need to be based on reality, it just is what it is. And it worked in Trump's favor in 2016. A Mccain Presidency would have sapped that and left Republicans holding the bag. That's what the American Presidency is, a game of hot potato.

 

[Jaskalas]

Is everyone forgetting his VP pick?

A good point. The radicalization of the Republican party was already in full swing. McCain picked Palin to appeal to that base. To try and stem the outrage of a moderate like him winning the nomination. Palin VS Hillary would have been one heck of a 2016.

 

[woolfe9998]

Not so sure. The Republicans would have had less ammunition to use against Hillary, i.e. the e-mails and Benghazi. It is true though, that Hillary was just not a very likable candidate, and probably still would have lost.

Hard to say, as that election outcome turned on a dime. Any of a number of variables playing out differently could have flipped the outcome.

 

[ivwshane]

This is kind of unfair to McCain. We dont know what he would have done with his "military dick" had he been president. it is just a guess, but after seeing and experiencing the futility of Vietnam, I think he would have been much more prudent than Bush. I also think he would not have surrounded himself with a bunch of neocons like Bush did.

Edit: That part about standing up only after he was dying, true or not, was a really cheap shot.

You don’t remember his, “bomb, bomb iran…” melody joke? He was pro conflict for sure.

 

[Moonbeam]

I remember Red Dawn liking McCain many many years ago. I couldn't agree.

 

[ondma]

You don’t remember his, “bomb, bomb iran…” melody joke? He was pro conflict for sure.

No, I did not remember that. Anyway, I still think McCain would have surrounded himself with less hawkish advisors than that the bunch of neocons that Bush did. IMO, Bush was basically a puppet of Cheney, Rumsfield and others who felt it was our sacred duty to spread democracy through the Middle East.

 

[Siddhartha]

The reason why I am asking is, would it have been bad enough for Hillary to have won in 2016 instead of Trump, if McCain had won a second term?

Back in 2009, when the economy was headed towards a 1930's type Great Depression, the Republicans suddenly became concerned about deficits and became neo-Hooverians. They were talking about cutting Federal government spending in response to high job lost.

If McCain was supporting that the US if not the world would have suffered a 1930's Great Depression. That would have been bad.

 

[nickqt]

Back in 2009, when the economy was headed towards a 1930's type recession, the Republicans suddenly became concerned about deficits and became neo-Hooverians. They were talking about cutting Federal government spending in response to high job lost.

If McCain was supporting that the US if not the world would have suffered a 1930's Great Depression. That would have been bad.

Bad for some people, absolutely amazing for others.