McCain vows unprecedented transparency

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) promised Thursday that his administration “will set a new standard for transparency and accountability,” and vowed to keep Congress and the public apprised of his actions.

In addition, the presumptive GOP nominee said he would invite Democrats to serve in his administration and ask for their counsel on policy issues. McCain pledged that he would “listen to any idea that is offered in good faith and intended to help solve our problems, not make them worse.”

{mosads}The senator said he would “ask Congress to grant me the privilege of coming before both houses to take questions, and address criticism, much the same as the prime minister of Great Britain appears regularly before the House of Commons.”

McCain also vowed that he would not sugarcoat situations or keep the country in the dark about his mistakes.

“I will regularly brief the American people on the progress our policies have made and the setbacks we have encountered,” he stated. “When we make errors, I will confess them readily, and explain what we intend to do to correct them.”

In a major speech outlining what he hopes to accomplish in his first term, the Arizona senator said he anticipates that the U.S. will have won the war in Iraq, reduced the threat of the Taliban in Afghanistan and brought most troops home. McCain also hopes that Osama bin Laden will have been captured or killed and that “there is no longer any place in the world al Qaeda can consider a safe haven.”

On the domestic side, the senator believes his administration, in concert with Congress, can deliver “several years of robust economic growth” that will have returned Americans’ confidence in the economy. McCain also anticipates that healthcare will have become more accessible, great progress will have been made to reduce U.S. reliance on foreign oil and government waste will have been reduced greatly.

“I am well aware I cannot make any of these changes alone. The powers of the presidency are rightly checked by the other branches of government, and I will not attempt to acquire powers our Founders saw fit to grant Congress,” McCain said in a speech in the battleground state of Ohio. “I will exercise my veto if I believe legislation passed by Congress is not in the nation’s best interests, but I will not subvert the purpose of legislation I have signed by making statements that indicate I will enforce only the parts of it I like.”

Lastly, McCain promised that he would not “spend one hour of my presidency worrying more about my reelection than keeping my promises to the American people.

“ There is a time to campaign, and a time to govern,” McCain said. “If I’m elected president, the era of the permanent campaign will end. The era of problem solving will begin.”