John Block Reports from Washington

Hello everybody out there in farm country.

The John Block Commentary is brought to you by Wal-Mart Stores and the Renewable Fuels Association -- both regarded with respect, admiration, and appreciation in rural America.

Nothing dominates the news like the race for the White House. We're trying to nail this contest down to 2 people. We aren't there yet.

This week, I want to talk about the Republican candidate -- John McCain -- the John McCain that I know as a loyal supporter of Ronald Reagan, and the John McCain candidate that is criticized for not being conservative enough. The Washington Post last week had a big picture of McCain and a headline that read, "From the right -- he looks too blue." Let's be reasonable. There is no perfect candidate. Wc need to decide which candidate ,viII be the best President and where they stand on the issues we care about.

Here we go:

Farm Policy -- McCain is no big fan of costly farm programs. He understands the politics, but would want to refonn the programs.

Trade -- John McCain is a free trader. And I like that.

Immigration -- the comprehensive immigration bill championed by President Bush was what John McCain wanted passed. He has since emphasized securing the border first, but he has not backed do'm on a path to citizenship for the 12 million illegals here now. That's my position also.

Appointment of Judges -- I am confident John McCain will appoint conservative judges if elected.

Global Warming -- this worries me. We could kill our economy fighting greenhouse gasses 'vvhile China, India, and the developing world do nothing to help. I'm not convinced we're capable of stopping Mother Nature's warming anyway.

Iraq -- it depends whether you want to bring the troops home right away or not. McCain is in it for the long haul. Keep in mind we still have troops stationed in South Korea, Germany, and Okinawa.

Government Spending -- more than anything, you can count on Jolm McCain to ax government spending.

You either like his policy positions or you don't. He says it straight out. When campaigning in Michigan with all the lost automotive jobs, he was honest. He said the jobs aren't coming back. That's more than 1 can say for all the other candidates pandering to the voters. Sometimes, I think John McCain delights in telling us things we don't want to hear. That's probably a good thing. That's John McCain.

Any thoughts you have, E-mail me at jblock@ofwlaw.com.

Until next week, I am John Block from Washington.