I do know enough to know that this presidential election has presented a situation almost unprecedented in American history — it's been more than 50 years since we had an election in which neither the incumbent president nor his vice president was a candidate. One thing I've always found funny is exactly how a candidate becomes a front-runner — in 2004, for example, I don't ever remember hearing John Kerry's name until sometime after the Iowa caucus, when he was suddenly declared the guy (ahead of Howard Dean, who'd been getting the most love to that point).
So it has been thus far this year in the Republican world. Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Fred Thompson, Rudy Giuliani ... all these guys were considered interchangeable parts as potential presidential candidates, with John McCain (who gave W a strong run in 2000) considered mostly an afterthought. Then suddenly, McCain started winning primaries, earned "front-runner" status ... and now it looks like the nomination is his to lose. How this happened, I have no idea.
Of course, I thought all along that McCain was the best guy for the job from the right side of the aisle, if only because I'd given up hope that Ron Paul — the candidate I voted for on Tuesday — had any shot at getting elected and rolling back the government like it needs to be. I've always liked McCain, and he seems like the ideal candidate — war vet with enough savvy to go on Comedy Central and stick it to Jon Stewart (most Republicans typically avoid Stewart as much as they can), plus he's willing to reach across the aisle, listen to the concerns of the other side and work with them. I don't always agree with McCain, but I respect him, and that's a good start for a presidential candidate.
Apparently, that thought process doesn't jive with the nation's most influential conservatives. Most notably, Ann Coulter stated she'd rather vote for Hillary Clinton than McCain, and James Dobson stated he'd rather not vote, if the choice is between Clinton and McCain (couldn't find the link). Maguire — who's a sheep where Ann the Man is concerned — has echoed those same sentiments on his new soap box.
The fact that the MSM is pretty much declaring McCain the frontrunner scares the daylights out of me. McCain will only sell out what's left of the Republican Party and continue (or accelerate) its move to the left. What alternative is left for this country's true conservatives?What's odd is that no one seems to be able to pinpoint exactly why McCain is such a bad choice, aside from the fact that he hasn't taken a beating from political pundits and occasionally attempts to get along with Democrats. So he's not W. Is that such a bad thing?
wlh
1 comment:
After hearing Cecil Hurt today, it sounds as if Gottfried will stick around for another year. He'll probably be preaching "hope" as his message possibly both Steele and Hendrix coming back (as well as Hillman, Pickett, and that solid freshman class). We shall see what happens.
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