This is to be expected if McCain is going to fully embrace Obama's position on SS...good for McCain for finally seeing reason.

I don't care if it's a reversal.  It's a reversal in the right direction.  It's sort of stupid to criticize someone for shifting towards a view that you think is the right one.

"It's sort of stupid to criticize someone for shifting towards a view that you think is the right one."

Actually, it's pretty intelligent if it underlines the shakiness of  McCain's image of resoluteness.  Also, it compromises him with the right-wing, anti-tax-no-matter-what base.  

Where are the Obama ads pointing out to voters all this not-so-straight talk by McCain? McCain uses ads to shape the voters' perception of Obama. Anything that could be perceived as negative, whether it's true or not, he has used and will continue using because it works. It's not fair but that's politics, hardball politics. The GOP understand this better than Democrats, and are doing well so far at this point in the campaign inspite of their disadvantaged position this election cycle.

All I see is the Obama camp and their surrogates crying foul (basically whinning) everytime one of these negative shots from McCain gets delivered. McCain's reversals - in the right direction or not - should be packaged and used in ways that'll have him be perceived in the worst possible light. I'm sorry but that would level the political perception playing field.

Again, the GOP is doing it and will not stop. If the Democrats don't, we'll lose again as usual. Bill Clinton, love or hate him, matched the GOP hard blow for hard blow and beat them twice. So far, It's the GOP 5 hard hitting ads, the Democrats 5 loud whines. It has kept McCain, as RP put it, "well within the margin of undecideds".

Straight talk now means talking straight to the audience of the moment, and then talking straight to the aims of the next audience and so on and on - say anything do anything now - he has been waiting so long.

I don''t mean it's politically stupid;  I mean it's intellectually/philosophically stupid.  "Flip-flop" attacks are the expression of deeply flawed reasoning that essentially glorifies rigidity and demonizes any change in position, even a change for the better.  Take a step back for a moment and think about whether changing positions in inherently a bad thing.  I sure as hell don't want a President who will stick to his flawed policies because he doesn't want to seem inconsistent.  We have that now and look where it's gotten us.

It is inherent in my criticism of a candidate's positions that I would like him to change those positions.  If I criticize someone's policy and then criticize them when they shift their position toward mine, I'm effectively saying I've effectively said that I'm going to criticize them no matter what.  I made this point a while ago with regard to conservatives criticizing Obama for taking what they viewed as more conservative positions.  The exact same argument applies here.

Another data point for my time of day vs. # of horrific typos chart.  You get the idea

AlanSP is absolutely, positively right (as in "correct") when he says "If I criticize someone's policy and then criticize them when they shift their position toward mine, I'm effectively saying I've effectively said that I'm going to criticize them no matter what. " I completely agree that what is often criticized as "flip-flopping" often is simply a policy reversal based upon new evidence or rethinking the old evidence.

However "flip-flopping"  also sometimes implies to me "changing position for politcal expediency."  So each change in position needs to be evaluated on its own merits, in its own context.

AlanSP, I agree that it's great to see Republican politicians bending to reality occasionally.  But I think this is another case of the bar being so low after GWB that even John McCain can clear it.

The best way to test McCain's new line on taxes is to see how he negotiates with President Obama over the new administration's first budget next year.  In the meantime, McCain has kissed too much right-wing ass to interest me with his heartfelt, personal evolution regarding tax policy.