Friday, February 08, 2008
McCain!? Now What?
As depression sets in for conservatives across the nation, we look to the future and wonder.
Let’s be clear: John McCain is no conservative regardless of what he and those seeking political peace in the GOP want us to believe. He is a RINO.
That said, now I must decide what to do in November when I walk into the voting booth. And make no mistake; I will go into the booth. I am, at this point, not sure that I will vote for the office of president. There are multiple candidates local and national that are conservative and qualified and need my vote. Should I stay home, they will be denied that support. I must make the trip to the polls. After that, what do I do? If I vote for McCain, I will be electing a man with whom I have very little in common and so much with which I disagree. Should I not vote, that is the same as giving the Democrat candidate, Hillary or Obama, my vote. Both candidates scare me. But will McCain do any better than Hillary or Obama? There is the rub. McCain is not only so wrong on many issues, he is bull-headedly wrong.
And then it strikes me, like a fast moving Tennessee storm. John McCain has operated for years in the US Senate where there are one hundred little fiefdoms and has no clue how to bring America along. He has not had to. Senators have long believed and history has shown them mostly correct, that their six year terms mean that the average voter will forget their unpopular positions and votes by the next election cycle. The power of the Senate is to form political alliances within the chamber. The power of the presidency is the ability to harness public opinion behind initiatives. Witness how quickly Bush lost his power when he pushed the unpopular amnesty bill against the wishes of the people. His political capital dropped like a stone. Contrast that to the ability of Clinton to stay in office through the impeachment trial. Clinton pretended to be all about the people’s business during that ordeal yet did nothing controversial which might upset public opinion.
If the power of the president is his ability to harness the voice of the people to push through his programs, John McCain is in for a long and ineffectual presidency, if elected. Simply because he has no relationship with the voters and there is no sign that he knows how to build it. It could be a very interesting four years of watching a man who thinks he is so right on every issue as to not need anyone else’s input try to work with two houses of Congress while battling the people at the same time. Add to it the fact the two Democrat leaders in Congress have proven to be the most inept pair God ever allowed to take power.
Bottom line, now what? What will I do when I walk into the booth to vote? I have no idea but I do have many long months to think about it and November is a political eternity away.
Let’s be clear: John McCain is no conservative regardless of what he and those seeking political peace in the GOP want us to believe. He is a RINO.
That said, now I must decide what to do in November when I walk into the voting booth. And make no mistake; I will go into the booth. I am, at this point, not sure that I will vote for the office of president. There are multiple candidates local and national that are conservative and qualified and need my vote. Should I stay home, they will be denied that support. I must make the trip to the polls. After that, what do I do? If I vote for McCain, I will be electing a man with whom I have very little in common and so much with which I disagree. Should I not vote, that is the same as giving the Democrat candidate, Hillary or Obama, my vote. Both candidates scare me. But will McCain do any better than Hillary or Obama? There is the rub. McCain is not only so wrong on many issues, he is bull-headedly wrong.
And then it strikes me, like a fast moving Tennessee storm. John McCain has operated for years in the US Senate where there are one hundred little fiefdoms and has no clue how to bring America along. He has not had to. Senators have long believed and history has shown them mostly correct, that their six year terms mean that the average voter will forget their unpopular positions and votes by the next election cycle. The power of the Senate is to form political alliances within the chamber. The power of the presidency is the ability to harness public opinion behind initiatives. Witness how quickly Bush lost his power when he pushed the unpopular amnesty bill against the wishes of the people. His political capital dropped like a stone. Contrast that to the ability of Clinton to stay in office through the impeachment trial. Clinton pretended to be all about the people’s business during that ordeal yet did nothing controversial which might upset public opinion.
If the power of the president is his ability to harness the voice of the people to push through his programs, John McCain is in for a long and ineffectual presidency, if elected. Simply because he has no relationship with the voters and there is no sign that he knows how to build it. It could be a very interesting four years of watching a man who thinks he is so right on every issue as to not need anyone else’s input try to work with two houses of Congress while battling the people at the same time. Add to it the fact the two Democrat leaders in Congress have proven to be the most inept pair God ever allowed to take power.
Bottom line, now what? What will I do when I walk into the booth to vote? I have no idea but I do have many long months to think about it and November is a political eternity away.
