Potential supporters for Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. are reflected in his sunglasses as he speaks at a campaign house party in Rye, N.H., Saturday, Sept. 29, 2007. (AP Photo/Mary Schwalm)
Potential supporters for Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. are reflected in his sunglasses as he speaks at a campaign house party in Rye, N.H., Saturday, Sept. 29, 2007. (AP Photo/Mary Schwalm)

With election day less than a day away, I thought City Desk should step into the news time machine (i.e. Lexis Nexis) and take a look at what McCain was up to a year ago this week:

The Post reported on Nov. 5, 2007:

“For the first time in nearly 30 years, there is no breakaway front-runner for the Republican nomination as the first votes of Campaign 2008 loom … In the new poll, a third of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents said they would vote for Giuliani if their state’s primary or caucus were held today. That puts him 14 percentage points ahead of Sen. John McCain (Ariz.)”

A year later, Republican  voters seem to have the same disparate support. A Pew study last month found:

“The vast majority of Republican voters (74%) say McCain would take the country in a different direction, while nearly as many Democratic voters (69%) say he would continue Bush’s policies.”

From the AP on Nov. 4 2007:

“John McCain spent months earlier this year arguing that the United States must combine border security efforts with a temporary worker program and an eventual path to citizenship for many illegal immigrants.

Now, the Republican presidential candidate emphasizes securing the borders first. The rest, he says, is still needed but will have to come later.”

His immigration platform has sounded the same Lou Dobbsian shrill tone ever since. He told a crowd in New Hampshire yesterday:

“[There are not] twelve million handcuffs” to slap on everyone who’s already here in violation of federal law. “I will make my highest priority getting immigration reform done, and that begins with securing our borders,” he said. “But I’ve also got to tell you, these are God’s children.”

Remember his old call for sweeping immigration reform, championing a path for universal legal status? What happened?

A Nov. 8 2007 press release from the McCain Campaign said:

“I am proud to work with each member of this team as we continue to build our growing grassroots organization in the state. Michigan’s community leaders know the challenges our nation is facing. I look forward to working closely with them to address the issues critical to voters in Michigan and across the country.”

Well, shit.