John McCain's 'Straight Talk Express' goes to the air
Aboard the 'Straight Talk Express' -- No one cracked a bottle of Champagne on its nose. No one cut a ribbon. Perhaps that was because the maiden voyage of John McCain’s new campaign plane was missing one vital ingredient: the senator himself.
McCain's new 95-seat Boeing 737-400 left Washington this morning carrying journalists and staffers to Harrisburg, Pa., where McCain had spent the night. The plane, paid for by the campaign (media riders reimburse the campaign for their shares), had been refurbished to re-create an airborne version of the Straight Talk Express bus, McCain's signature campaign vehicle, and replaced a plane leased from Jet Blue.
As always, press rides in the back, Secret Service agents in the middle cabin, and the candidate in first class. To replicate the horseshoe shaped banquette of the bus, where the candidate engages in free-wheeling discussions with reporters, one of the forward cabins has been modified to include a captain’s chair for McCain and a straight banquette for the press. FAA regulations require clear aisles, so a curved bench was out.
The plane's outer shell was repainted, as well, with McCain’s motto "Reform, Prosperity, Peace" on the side and the campaign's Web address -- www.johnmccain.com -- on the blue-and-gold tail. McCain got his first ride for the short hop from Harrisburg to Allentown, Pa., and apparently missed some of the most salient exterior décor.
"I thought it just says 'Straight Talk Express,' " he told reporters who asked how it felt to see his name emblazoned on the tail. "Whoops. I feel wonderful ... Maybe it’s a little added free publicity, I don’t know, at various airports."
There is one thing he’ll miss about his old Jet Blue-leased plane, though, and he’ll be feeling the loss starting Tuesday, when he is scheduled to fly from Indianapolis to Cartagena, Colombia, for a trip that will include a stop in Mexico.
"In interest of full disclosure," said McCain, "you know we used to have television sets on Jet Blue, and I miss out on my fix."
-- Robin Abcarian
Andrew Malcolm's immigrant parents repeatedly stressed the importance of active participation in a democracy. Early lessons included learning the alphabetical list of states by watching televised roll calls of national political conventions. That childhood exposure led to a lifelong fascination with politics, including 40-plus years of covering them and a brief stint practicing them as press secretary to Laura Bush in 1999-2000. A veteran foreign and national correspondent, Malcolm served on the Times Editorial Board and was a Pulitzer finalist in 2004. He is the author of 10 nonfiction books and father of four.
Johanna Neuman is a veteran Washington correspondent for both The Los Angeles Times and USA Today, having covered presidents and politics as far back as Ronald Reagan. A former president of the White House Correspondents Assn., she authored a book on media and foreign policy, “Lights, Camera, Wars.” Most recently she was co-author of the 
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Maybe his $100K in credit card debt could have financed the refurbishment of his plane.
Must be nice to have the campaign take care of the taxes, since he doesn't seem to be able to do that himself.
Posted by: | June 30, 2008 at 07:35 PM
I wonder does everyone have to take off their shoes before they get on the plane ??
Thats what this election is all about, as silly as it sounds.
Obama and his supportes want you to keep taking off your shoes. McCain and his supporters want you to put your shoes back on, AND NEVER TAKE THEM OFF AGAIN.
I know it's silly, but take the time to think about it.
Always having to take off your shoes, or never again having to take them off.
This November the choice is yours.
Keep them on, or take them off for ever.
VJ Machiavelli
http://www.vjmachiavelli.blogspot.com
Posted by: VJ Machiavelli | June 30, 2008 at 09:44 PM
Too bad he didn't paint 5 planes crashing with the words leadership under it. Don't vote for CRASH.
Posted by: Brian | June 30, 2008 at 10:12 PM
The "FORKED-TONGUE RAMBLE" is appropriate!!!
Posted by: ABE | June 30, 2008 at 10:33 PM
Too bad there ain't a daily edition of the old Lawrence Welk program on television. He could watch that as well:
"Wanna-fo, wanna-fo."
Posted by: John Crandell | June 30, 2008 at 10:58 PM
I'm not surprised it didn't occur to him his campaign's url would be advertised on the plane, as he's said he's computer-illiterate.
I wonder if he's ever seen his campaign website?
Posted by: Tom J | July 01, 2008 at 09:08 AM
Hey John,
Are you related to Bob Crandall? Former AA cheif idiot?
Posted by: linda | July 07, 2008 at 06:18 PM