[Pilgrim:] Senator John McCain is taking a break from campaign trail next week. McCain, one of the biggest proponents of free trade, will visit Mexico and Colombia. Now, McCain says he's visiting the two countries to show support for our allies in the drug wars and the pending free trade with Colombia. Now, joining me now for more on McCain's trip the best three of the best political analysts in the country. We're joined by "New York Daily News" columnist and CNN contributor, Errol Louis; we are joined by Ben Smith, senior political reporter for Politico.com; and in our D.C. bureau, syndicated columnist and CNN contributor, Diana West, and Diana is also the author of "Death of the Grown-up." Thanks for being with us. We have to start with John McCain. He was in Canada a few days ago. He's now going to Mexico and Colombia free trade, free trade. Why do you think that in an American election Ben, you've covered every primary in an American election, he is spending so much time in foreign countries?
[Ben Smith, Politico.com:] He is unapologetic proponent of free trade, which is unpopular and you know, he is trying to sell it and he's in fact, what he's doing in Latin America is he is trying link it to security and he is saying we have to have free trade with Colombia and Mexico because we need to support our allies and the drug wars as opposed to, the other argument which is it's good for the economy, it's good for exports, because people aren't buying that one.
[Pilgrim:] This is the classic Bush administration defense of the free trade policy with Colombia and Mexico that they link it to the drug issues. Errol, any thoughts on this?
[Errol Louis, "new York Daily News":] Well, I don't think there are all not that many rabid pro free trade groups of voters out there, so if you want to figure out why he is doing it from an electoral standpoint, my guess is that this is a way of trying to get some traction with Latino voters. I don't think it's a particularly smart or effective way of doing it, but that would seem to be the motive. You know, in that, that's a long time practice in New York politics, you go to the home countries of a lot of your foreign-born or foreign- descendent constituents. I think though that it's a waste of time. I think it suggests a campaign that's a little bit adrift. He's got much bigger problems than trying to make nice with Latino voters.
[Pilgrim:] Let me show you what the spokesman from McCain said about the trip. We have a "Senator McCain wants to demonstrate that if elected president the two key trading partners can be assured that they will have a respectful but experienced and focused leader in the White House. Sounds like he is trying to be presidential, Diana.
[Diana West, "the Washington Times":] Yes, I think that's true and I completely agree with Errol's assessment. I think this is an attempt to make inroads into the Hispanic communities and I, again, I also think it is the timing is a bit odd. He does have a lot of ducks to get in a row going into the campaign now, but again, the Hispanic vote it could very well be a swing vote in many states, and he is doing as much as he can to shore up his credentials.
[Pilgrim:] You know, he is also drawing a very sharp contrast with Senator Obama and McCain has said about his free trade agenda, "I am the biggest free marketer and free trader you will ever see." And Senator Obama is calling for a renegotiation of NAFTA, so is this an attempt to put a little distance between his opponent? Ben?
[Smith:] I think what you will hear him say about Obama is that Obama is being irresponsible and Obama doesn't know how the world works and Obama would screw up his, this very important security arrangements and then McCain is the grownup. McCain is the one who can handle these international relations. Diana, do you think this is important to link it to the drug war? I mean, It certainly is two separate issues?
[West:] Well, it is separate, but I mean, these are sources of drugs that come into this country. I think that it is also very interesting to see what Senator Obama says, because now he has also said that some of his rhetoric on NAFTA was "overheated." So I am not really sure where this is going. It is something in progress.
[Pilgrim:] Are we seeing a little bit of flip-flop with Obama or some waffling?
[West:] Oh to, be sure. I mean, this is the very interesting thing that is happening as we see candidates as they always do tacking to the center, we are seeing some extraordinary straddling in Senator Obama's lineup of issues whether it is on the gun rights or whether it is on the negotiating without preconditions or whether it is on NAFTA, indeed, I mean, we are seeing a lot of these things and what is interesting is that we are not seeing the press take him to task on this.
[Pilgrim:] Errol?
[Louis:] Well, the system certainly favors and really calls for this kind of convergence at the center from both candidates and that is what you are certainly seeing. I think is McCain's case, his sort of attempt to put distance between them by being this free trader and traipsing around in Latin America, I think the other shoe is going to drop when as the biggest free trader you will ever see, he stands in front of displaced workers, out of work factory workers in Ohio and in Pennsylvania and in other swing states. And he's going to hear from those guys.
[Pilgrim:] It seems like almost about strategy in that respect. You know, let's take a look, because we have a poll of polls, and this is June 16-25, registered voters. We have Obama at 47 percent and McCain 40 percent and 13 percent unsure. So in the light of, you know, President Bush's low approval ratings and consumer confidence, you have woes in the economy and you see McCain having an already sort of party drag on his campaign so-to-speak. It seems that taking a risky tact like visiting foreign countries seems extraordinarily risky under the circumstances?
[Smith:] Well, he has to do something and he has not really hit a stride going you know, going from stop to stop in the U.S. and yes, I think that you know, he is trying to portray himself as a world leader, and as a man of stature and of principle and is going to say, you know, I disagree with you on this but I'm telling you that I do not disagree and I'm not flip-flopping and trying to draw the contrast.
[Pilgrim:] Yes, but that's stick-to-ittiveness will not be as Errol points out will not really fly.
[Louis:] It's not going to be welcomes in Ohio, it will be welcome
[Smith:] Political strategists will be scratching their heads as they come in the fall wondering why he wasn't spending every minute not out in Latin America, but going to the conservative Republican base and trying to get them behind him. He has not nailed that down. He needs to be talk into evangelicals. He needs to be in small towns. He needs to be as Diana put it, getting his ducks in a row. Well, who knows, I mean, his strength is that he is not capturing the conservative Republican base the way, you know, the way Obama now has to move as the way Senator McCain does not as much because he had the whole primary
[Pilgrim:] But Ben, he is captive to the Republican party line on this issue though.
[Smith:] On trade, yes. To part of the Republican party, certainly.
[Pilgram:] OK. We're going to take a quick break. We'll have much more from our panel. We'll talk about the campaign going forward. Stay with us.