July 13 (Bloomberg) -- Supporters of Republican presidential candidate John McCain today rejected remarks by former Texas Senator Phil Gramm, a McCain economic adviser, who said last week the U.S. is merely in a ``mental recession.''
``I don't think Senator Gramm will any longer be speaking for Senator John McCain, and I think John McCain was crystal clear about that this week,'' Carly Fiorina, the former chairman of Hewlett-Packard Co. who heads Victory '08, the Republican National Committee's arm to win the White House, said on NBC's ``Meet the Press.''
Arizona Senator McCain said July 10 he ``strongly'' disagreed with Gramm, who also said the U.S. is a ``nation of whiners.'' Tucker Bounds, a spokesman for McCain, said today that there's ``no announcement to make'' about the former Texas senator's status with the campaign.
Gramm's comments caused a stir for McCain this week as he and Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, sought to highlight their differences in a week in which both stressed the economy. McCain has proposed extending and adding to President George W. Bush's tax cuts while Illinois Senator Obama says he would roll back many of the cuts that favor affluent Americans while offering relief to the middle class.
South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, a McCain supporter, said Gramm made ``a stupid comment'' that was ``out of line with reality, but it ought to be taken as such, and people ought to move on.''
The question is, ``did the McCain campaign repudiate, and did John repudiate what Senator Gramm said?'' Sanford said on CNN's ``Late Edition'' program today. ``And the answer is, absolutely.''
Nancy Pfotenhauer, a McCain economic adviser, said on CNN that she's heard of ``no change in status'' for Gramm.
``You certainly heard very loudly and clearly Senator McCain say Phil Gramm does not speak for me in this regard,'' Pfotenhauer said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Nadine Elsibai in Washington at nelsibai@bloomberg.net .
