RNC Tries to Put Out McCain VP Fire

The blogs are burning up with the news that the McCain campaign has been shopping around the idea of a pro-choice VP. The RNC is trying to put out the fire:

As speculation grows around who John McCain will select as his vice presidential running mate next week, Republican National Committee officials said Tuesday that McCain is no longer considering former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge.

Several sources at the RNC told FOX News that in the last 36 hours, senior McCain advisers and aides have told RNC officials that McCain “got the message” last week that choosing a running mate who supports abortion rights would not be helpful.

GOP pundits had been vocal in urging the presumptive presidential nominee not to pick a running mate who supports abortion rights. Ridge, the first homeland security secretary, was said to be on McCain’s short list, and the only candidate who explicitly supports abortion rights.

Rush Limbaugh had some tough words for McCain regarding a pro-choice VP:

"Now, the drive-bys, when it comes to (Sen. John) McCain, are all excited that he might choose a pro-choice and/or liberal pro-choice running mate," conservative talk radio giant Rush Limbaugh said today.

“This is crap," he continued. "What is this about picking a liberal Democrat or a liberal Republican? McCain has already seen to it that he can walk across the aisle that he’s the top of the ticket. If anybody is going to attract moderates it’s going to be the top of the ticket guy. He’s not going to help himself any additional way, he’s going to hurt himself by putting a liberal or a liberal Republican on this ticket, particularly pro-choice. If they do that, if the McCain camp does that, they will have effectively destroyed the Republican party and pushed the conservative movement into the bleachers."

He also echoed something I said earlier, that a pro-choice candidate would undo any of the good McCain did for himself in the Saddleback Forum.

I think he got the message.