Ok, not really. But the elderly, out-of-touch, and ill tempered Republican seemed to forget that Spain was an ally, or who the current Prime Minister of Spain was, or what country Prime Minister Jose Zapatero represented. Because there is no other explanation for this exchange, other than McCain really thinks our relationship with a trust NATO ally needs reexamining to determine whether it is a friend or a foe.
“Would you be willing to meet with the head of our government, Mr. Zapatero?” the questioner asked, in an exchange now being reported by several Spanish outlets.
McCain proceeded to launch into what appeared to be a boilerplate declaration about Mexico and Latin America — but not Spain — pressing the need to stand up to world leaders who want to harm America.
“I will meet with those leaders who are our friends and who want to work with us cooperatively,” according to one translation. The reporter repeated the question two more times, apparently trying to clarify, but McCain referred again to Latin America.
Finally, the questioner said, “Okay, but I’m talking about Europe – the president of Spain, would you meet with him?” The Senator offered only a slight variance to his initial comment. “I will reunite with any leader that has the same principles and philosophy that we do: human rights, democracy, and liberty. And I will confront those that don’t [have them].”
You know what I think happened? McCain heard the Spanish language and assumed these were questions about Latin America. Thus, he went into the standard hostile conservative stance towards the socialist governments in Bolivia, Veneuzla, and Cuba. But the questioner referred specifically to the Prime Minister, even mentioning him by name. So that means McCain, the supposed foreign policy juggernaut, who is all knowing and ready to lead, doesn’t know who the leader of Spain is.
Josh Marshall is all over this, so go read him.