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COLUMBIA, SC — Asked if he is prepared to take on Barack Obama today, John McCain didn’t pause.

“Oh I’m ready,” he told reporters at a press conference in South Carolina. “I’m ready to take to the American people the challenges of the issues we face. Whether it be raising your taxes as Senator Obama wants to do. Something like capital gains where 100 million Americans have an investment or have the government make the decisions on health care or the family or certainly issues such as national security.”

McCain continued his assault on Obama’s foreign policy vision in his second media availabilty in less than four hours.

“Senator Obama continues to say he would sit down and negotiate with the president of Iran who yesterday called the state of Israel a stinking corpse,” McCain said. “That’s a dramatic difference between my view of the relations with a state sponsor of terror that is exporting lethal explosive devices into Iraq killing Americans and I would not give them the respect or the ability to enhance their prestige by sitting down and talking to the head of the state sponsor of terrorism who repeats his country’s dedication to the extinction of the state of Israel.”

The Arizona Senator also commented on the escalating violence in Lebanon, condemning what he feels is Syrian interference in Lebanese affairs.

“The Syrians are obviously playing a role and would like to a reassert or increase their influence in Lebanon and its affairs,” McCain said. “I think that obviously pressure (has) to be brought to bear on Syria, who is the major motivator I think of a lot of their continued effort to gain control of Lebanon and continue the influence they have had for a long period of time. And I would recommend that we of course convene other and work with other nations who have an interest in Lebanon and peace in the region.”