A familiar McCain back on old stomping ground

The Hill
1/7/2009

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), fresh off his disappointing bid for the White House, returned to a familiar role in the Senate on Wednesday, shaking up his own party and reaching across the aisle to Democrats.

In a span of hours, McCain told Republicans in a closed-door meeting they needed to tone down the party’s anti-immigration rhetoric, then appeared at a news conference with his old friend Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) to lead a bipartisan call to crack down on earmarks.

McCain also unveiled a new political action committee, Country First, a grassroots organization that borrows from his campaign slogan and promises to “strengthen our party [and] better define our Republican ideals and message,” according to a letter he sent to supporters. The group’s website went online Wednesday. It was a symbolic day for the senator who is often called a “maverick,” as McCain signaled that the direction he intends to take after suffering a major blow on the national stage is straight out of his old playbook.

For the rest of the story …..