PHOENIX (Map, News) - Republican John McCain was forced to clarify his comments Friday suggesting the Iraq war involved U.S. reliance on foreign oil. He said he was talking about the first Gulf War and not the current conflict.

At issue was a comment he made at a town hall-style meeting Friday morning in Denver.

"My friends, I will have an energy policy that we will be talking about, which will eliminate our dependence on oil from the Middle East that will prevent us from having ever to send our young men and women into conflict again in the Middle East," McCain said.

The expected GOP nominee sought to clarify his comments later, after his campaign plane landed in Phoenix. He said he didn't mean the U.S. went to war in Iraq five years ago over oil.

"No, no, I was talking about that we had fought the Gulf War for several reasons," McCain told reporters.

One reason was Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait, he said. "But also we didn't want him to have control over the oil, and that part of the world is critical to us because of our dependency on foreign oil, and it's more important than any other part of the world," he said.

"If the word `again' was misconstrued, I want us to remove our dependency on foreign oil for national security reasons, and that's all I mean," McCain said.

"The Congressional Record is very clear: I said we went to war in Iraq because of weapons of mass destruction," he said.

It was the second time in as many days that McCain had to clarify his comments. On Thursday, he backed off his assertion that pork-barrel spending led to last year's deadly bridge collapse in Minneapolis.

McCain is a staunch supporter of the Iraq war, although he criticizes the early handling of it by the Bush administration.

His support for the war has drawn attacks from the Democratic Party, and on Friday, McCain defended himself against television ads that accuse him of advocating a 100-year war in Iraq.

The ads, run by the Democratic National Committee and the liberal group MoveOn.org., tie McCain to President Bush and cite McCain's comments that there could be an American military presence in Iraq for 100 years.

"One hundred years in Iraq? And you thought no one could be worse than George Bush," an announcer says in the most recent ad, run by MoveOn.org.

McCain brought up the commercials in Denver, saying they are lies. He doesn't deny saying "100 years" in connection with U.S. military operations in Iraq. But he said he was clearly referring to a possible peacekeeping force and not a centurylong war, as critics imply.

"You have seen an ad campaign that is mounted against me that says I wanted to stay and fight in Iraq and fight for 100 years," McCain told about 300 people at the Robert E. Loup Jewish Community Center.

"My friends, it's a direct falsification, and I'm sorry that political campaigns have to deteriorate in this fashion," McCain said. "Because there's legitimate differences between myself and Senator Obama and Senator Clinton on what we should do in Iraq."

The Democratic presidential candidates want to set a date for withdrawal from Iraq, which McCain argues would lead to chaos and genocide in the Middle East.

"After we win the war in Iraq, and we are succeeding - and it's long and hard and tough, with enormous sacrifices - then I'm talking about a security arrangement that may or may not be the same kind of thing we had with Korea after the Korean war was over," he said.

At issue is McCain's answer, in January, to a question about Bush's theory that troops could be in Iraq for 50 years.

McCain said: "Maybe 100. As long as Americans are not being injured or harmed or wounded or killed, that'd be fine with me, and I hope it would be fine with you, if we maintain a presence in a very volatile part of the world where al-Qaida is training, recruiting, equipping and motivating people every single day."

Comments from Examiner Readers

6:17 PM MST on Sat., May. 10, 2008 re: "McCain clarifies remark about oil, Iraq war"

Examiner Reader said:
it seems everyon that isnt a republican sheep is a liberal.

Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

10:34 AM MST on Sun., May. 4, 2008 re: "McCain clarifies remark about oil, Iraq war"

Examiner Reader said:
personally ,i cant think of anything worse than reliving johns p o w camp memories for four years. think ill vote for nader.

1 agree | 1 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

9:54 AM MST on Sun., May. 4, 2008 re: "McCain clarifies remark about oil, Iraq war"

Examiner Reader said:
i hope if mccain gets elected ,he has a toady hanging around with him,to tell him what year it is,before he opens his mouth without engaging his brainwashed brain.

1 agree | 1 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

1:14 PM MST on Sat., May. 3, 2008 re: "McCain clarifies remark about oil, Iraq war"

Examiner Reader said:
we need mccain, this will give the nation another past time,which is trying to figure out what he's saying from day to day. might replace the crossword puzzel or watching reality shows.

1 agree | 1 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

8:06 AM MST on Tue., Mar. 25, 2008 re: "McCain Says US Succeeding in Iraq"

Examiner Reader said:
Oh please! Freedom? Are we a free nation here? When our government lets gay people marry, stops punishing schools for not reaching test standards because the student-teacher ratio is ridiculously high with students at all different levels in the same room, starts taxing the wealthy, and politicians stop hiding behind their screwed up version of Christianity, then maybe we can start to feel our own freedom here. We are not changing lives in Iraq for the better. We are killing hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis because Bush and Cheney are the ones "addicted to oil" even though they claim the American people are ones addicted to it. Jeff, you are advocating a government that forces American soldiers to stay in Iraq for extended tours which makes us less safe here. Bush is depleting our military by staying in Iraq without an exit plan. Fiver years later and thing are no better than they were. Actually, its a lot worse.

1 agree | 1 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

7:29 PM MST on Mon., Mar. 24, 2008 re: "McCain Says US Succeeding in Iraq"

Jeff Ward said:
Once again liberals like you Liz are not able to see facts but believe what fantasy you want to believe telling lies over and over until it is believed. The war is going well, we need to be there, we are there changing lives and a cruel divtator is no longer. Are you against freedom Liz? Oh wait I forgot. the government you advocate has to keep people in by force. Liberals love dictators. Jeff

2 agree | 2 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

7:23 PM MST on Mon., Mar. 24, 2008 re: "McCain Says US Succeeding in Iraq"

Joshua said:
Response to 6:50-I agree with everything you said except the immediate pull-out. It's less about helping Iraq then it is about helping ourselves. If we leave right away some other dictator will march in there overthrow the government and theres a good chance he will hate America. Imagine if it's an Al Quaeda operative. Then we will face Al Quaeda the country. That would be the worst thing we could do!

1 agree | 1 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

6:50 PM MST on Mon., Mar. 24, 2008 re: "McCain Says US Succeeding in Iraq"

Examiner Reader said:
No, we need to cut and run. Why bother helping a country that doesn't want to help itself. It's been 5 years and they still don't lift a finger to help. Yes, Bush created a huge mess there. But he doesn't give a damn about Iraqi freedom. He doesn't even care about the 4000 American lives lost there. Remember, there was no Al Qaeda in Iraq before we went in there. What was it we went there for? Oh yeah, WMDs and we all know that was a bunch of garbage. He knows that as long as we are in a war, defense contractors are making more money then they could ever need and he and Cheney are making money too with their investments and ties in these companies. How and why do you think Haliburton got the Iraq contracts? Some of you people, Republicans mainly, are so blind. Stop being loyal to a person (Bush) and start being loyal to your country (USA) first.

1 agree | 1 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

6:36 PM MST on Mon., Mar. 24, 2008 re: "McCain Says US Succeeding in Iraq"

Joshua said:
We created this mess and we need to fix it by doing what the Iraqi people say needs to be done because that is what matters most in the war against AL Quaeda in Iraq. The Iraqi people who do not want us there are the ones who are flocking to Al Quaeda. Those Iraqi's who believe that if we left we would be leaving them in a more dangerous country then when we invaded will certainly continue to hate us and will join Al Quaeda. The happy medium seems to be a small contingency of troops with the sole responsibilty of protecting a legitamately elected government and rooting out terror cells. Before we do leave, we need commitment from the Iraqi's to make fighting terrorism a first tier priority in the country, as well as a capital offense. Their benefit from this as well as their assurance from us that we are commited to stabilizing their country is a promise that if things deteriorate once we are gone we will return. Let's stop playing world police and stabilize our own country.

1 agree | 1 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

6:08 PM MST on Mon., Mar. 24, 2008 re: "McCain Says US Succeeding in Iraq"

Examiner Reader said:
Do you, Michael H, trust your current commander-in-chief who has never "been there"? Oh wait, he wore a flight suit that one time when he declared "mission accomplished!" The only thing he's been there for is a bunch of photo ops designed to convince the American people he's "been there" and can be president. McCain is no better. How could he stand next to Bush and accept the endorsement of the man who smeared his name in 2000. Shame on both of them! I wish you well in the middle east, sir. I have never been there and I wouldn't want to be with these clowns calling the shots.

2 agree | 2 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate

7:51 PM MST on Fri., Nov. 23, 2007 re: "McCain visiting troops in Iraq over Thanksgiving holiday"

michael h said:
As a Navy Officer that is being deployed to the middle east, McCain is the only candidate that I trust. He has been there, knows what it takes to win and does what he says without paying lip service to veterans. Keep up the good work John!

77 agree | 70 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree

Report as inappropriate