WHY IS McCAIN STEALING MUSIC FROM DEMOCRATS? JOHN MELLENCAMP ISN'T FLATTERED

However insecure an overly coifed and prissy candidate may be about his sexuality, injecting that he would "never have a pink house," in the middle of a nationally televised debate about immigration policies, is probably a bad idea. John McCain, who feels nothing but complete scorn and contempt for the small varmint huntin' flip-flopper currently trying to out-Conservative him, has been rubbing it in at live rallies lately by having his campaign crew warm up the audience with John Mellencamp's classic Pink Houses.

Chuckle, chuckle. There's a problem though. Most people who care about John Mellencamp's role in politics are very much aware that he has been an outspoken and heartfelt John Edwards backer, traveling all over Iowa performing at Edwards rallies. Edwards' powerful pro-worker/pro-consumer message dovetails perfectly with what John Mellencamp has been talking about for many years; both are from the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party. Both appeal to hardworking middle Americans looking for a break from the corporate interests McCain has always represented in his Insider political career. Both Mellencamp and Edwards grew up in small towns and Edwards has been using "Small Town" at his rallies for a very long time. He was also using "Our Country," another Mellencamp anthem appropriated by McCain.

It's inconceivable that McCain could have thought that now that Edwards is out of the race, Mellencamp will decide his support will be going to a right-wing corporate shill. Probably he just thought he could get away with stealing the performances and using them to promote his bid to move America in the opposite direction of what the songwriter envisions. Mellencamp isn't having it. He's furious and doesn't understand why someone who is desperately scrambling to establish himself in the eyes of Republican primary voters as a dyed-in-the wool right winger would even want to be associated with a rock star well-known for his very populist ideas. From what I'm hearing, McCain will either stop stealing Mellencamp's music, or the old coot's going to get blasted by sounds he's not going to enjoy hearing from an American culture hero.