Originally Posted by Ironduke

I believe McCain had an honest conviction in what he was saying, even if he was wrong. What is clear is that Romney was lying about supporting timetables from withdrawal, and used the "specific dates" thing to divert attention away from the real issue, the fact that he supported secret timetables for withdrawal.

McCain is essentially correct, he just handled it badly. All he needed to say was "Mitt Romney supported secret timetables for withdrawal from Iraq."

It's also clear that Romney refused to take a position on the surge until he could gauge which way the wind was blowing, just as it was clear he refused to take a position on illegal immigration until three days before the expiration of this term as governor when he signed an executive order as a showpiece in preparation for the presidential nominee race.