Randy Newman was recently asked by Blender magazine to comment on the two Presidential candidates' lists of their top 10 favorite songs. Specifically, he was asked which candidate would get his vote "based solely on this list," to which Randy responded, in a statement that was edited down for the article, that, while he likes Senator McCain's musical choices, "you can't tell anything about a person from the music they like."

Randy went on to offer as an example of this that Hitler's appreciation for the music of Wagner said nothing about his character. Despite interpretations by some to the contrary, this was in no way meant to imply any comparison between the two figures. "I never would equate any living human being with Hitler," says Randy, asserting that interpreting the statement otherwise would be "a ridiculous misrepresentation of what I said."