McCain Calls on Bush to Boycott Olympic Ceremonies

April 11, 2008 — -- If you missed him on "The View," Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said it again Thursday: If he were president he would not attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics unless China backed away from its crackdown on protests and protesters in Tibet.

In a written statement, McCain went a step further, this time going beyond his own actions and calling on President Bush to "evaluate his participation in the ceremonies surrounding the Olympics and, based on Chinese actions, decide whether it is appropriate to attend."

"If Chinese policies and practices do not change, I would not attend the opening ceremonies. It does no service to the Chinese government, and certainly no service to the people of China, for the United States and other democracies to pretend that the suppression of rights in China does not concern us. It does, will and must concern us," McCain said.

His latest comment appears to urge the president to stay away not just from the opening ceremony but from any of the Olympic ceremonies. That would go beyond what he said on "The View" when he said, "Unless they change something pretty quickly, I would not go to the opening ceremonies."

In his new statement, McCain elaborated on his reasoning.

"Our relationship with China is important, and we value our ability to cooperate with the Chinese government on a wide variety of strategic, economic and diplomatic fronts," he said. "But the Chinese government needs to understand that in our modern world, how a nation treats its citizens is a legitimate subject of international concern. ... I deplore the violent crackdown by Chinese authorities and the continuing oppression in Tibet of those merely wishing to practice their faith and preserve their culture and heritage."

McCain called on the Chinese to open talks with the Dalai Lama, to release Tibetan monks who have been jailed for protesting and "to allow full outside access to Tibet."

When McCain delivered a comprehensive speech on foreign policy March 26 in Los Angeles, he did not mention the protests that had recently broken out in Tibet.