KIRO NEWSRADIO

Michael Ian Black, Meghan McCain call America ‘a sexy bitch’

Jul 19, 2012, 10:09 AM | Updated: Oct 11, 2024, 1:20 pm

...

car camping
What are Michael Ian
Black and Meghan McCain doing driving cross country in an
RV? Well they’re writing a book, silly.
(MyNorthwest.com/Jamie Griswold)

What are the daughter of a former Republican presidential
nominee and a liberal comedian who barely know each other
doing driving cross country in an RV? Well they’re writing
a book, silly.

“America You Sexy Bitch: A Love Letter to Freedom” is the
product of the trip that took comedian Michal Ian Black
and blogger, columnist Meghan McCain from California to
Connecticut, in the hopes of gauging the political climate
across America.

The two differ politically on “like everything,” says
McCain.

Particularly strong sticking points are “health care and
the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.” McCain tells 97.3 KIRO FM’s Ross and Burbank
Show
, “We literally can’t find anything we agree on at
all, except that we disagree on those two issues.”

In an era where party lines seem bolder than ever – McCain
says her father’s chief of staff says “it’s never been a
more toxic climate on Capitol Hill” – the two wanted to
see how the rest of America was feeling.
When politicians can’t seem to find a compromise, can the
rest of America get along?

“If you compromise at all in Washington, or if any
politicians meet in the middle, you’re somehow seen as
spineless or not having an opinion,” says McCain. “I don’t
understand how we got to this place where compromising in
any way and finding a middle ground automatically makes
you weak.”

But the duo found through their RV research that Americans
aren’t as polarized as D.C.

“We found a lot of consensus,” says Black.

“I think we found that people, for the most part, want to
solve our problems, want to get along, want to love thy
neighbors, and don’t necessarily define themselves
primarily by their political affiliation,” adds Black.
“They define themselves by their communities and their
families and their jobs and everything else.”

While there’s no denying the authors’ differences,
[Listen to this on-air exchange]
, they say they are
both optimistic that somehow, someway the country can work
through all this divisiveness.

“I think we’re at a little bit of a breaking point right
now. I think everybody senses this, that either things
have to change or we’re a little bit doomed,” says Black.
“Meghan and I, I think ultimately, are optimists about
America.

And having spoken to the hundreds of people that we spoke
to across the country, it seems that in general, Americans
are still optimistic. They believe in their country far
more than they believe in their leaders, which leads me to
believe that we’re going to kind of figure it out and it’s
going to come from the ground up.”

Listen to full interview with Michael Ian Black and
Meghan McCain:

By JAMIE GRISWOLD, MyNorthwest.com Editor

KIRO Newsradio

Seattle Police Car...

Jake Skorheim and Spike O'Neill Show

‘We are not going to become fully staffed likely in our lifetime’: Rantz warns Seattle police shortage is worsening

Seattle’s police staffing shortage is getting worse, Jason Rantz, warned recruiting challenges and the city’s reputation could impact staffing goals.

16 hours ago

‘Getting sick should not financially ruin you’: Gee backs starting with primary care for everyo...

Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin Show

‘Getting sick should not financially ruin you’: Gee backs starting with primary care for everyone in WA

Gee Scott WA’s debate over universal health care should begin with a principle people can agree on, even if they disagree about how to pay for it. “

16 hours ago

‘We don't have a revenue problem’: Matt McIlwain urges Washington voters to repeal income tax...

Jake Skorheim and Spike O'Neill Show

‘We don’t have a revenue problem’: Seattle venture capitalist urges voters to repeal WA’s income tax

Matt McIlwain, the a director of Madrona, argued Washington needs to rein in spending rather than impose an income tax.

16 hours ago

horse lost Mount Adams...

Jake Skorheim and Spike O'Neill Show

‘If she doesn’t have the instinct to move down, she will not survive’: Owner races winter to find horse lost on Mount Adams

Melissa Hoemann is asking hikers, hunters, and anyone else heading to Mount Adams to watch for her horse, who has been missing since Oct. 7.

1 day ago

AG Brown on noncitizen voting...

Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin Show

‘That’s absurd’: AG Nick Brown slams DOJ’s noncitizen voter claims, says Washington’s tax system is ‘exactly wrong’

Washington Attorney General Nick Brown is pushing back on the DOJ's claim that hundreds of noncitizens are on the state's voter rolls.

1 day ago

WA Supreme Court candidate Sean O’Donnell...

John Curley Show

‘Judges are a check on power’: WA Supreme Court candidate Sean O’Donnell warns against politicizing judicial races

King County Superior Court Judge Sean O’Donnell said a late flood of outside spending against him threatens public trust in Washington’s courts.

1 day ago

Michael Ian Black, Meghan McCain call America ‘a sexy bitch’