“Calling all GOP Purists: It’s time to support John McCain”
[Ed. This is another post from my Alexham archives at RedState. I penned this post right before McCain secured the GOP nomination, and the message remains as true then as it does now: It is time for conservatives to rally around Senator John McCain. To a certain extent, this has already happened; but there are still a few holdouts amongst us (Centinel, I am looking in your direction), and this post is being republished here for their consideration.]
I know many of you aren’t thrilled about supporting McCain, and some of y’all have even made blood oaths that you will never vote for “that man.” And trust me. I get it. I know exactly where y’all are coming from. For some, it was McCain’s opposition to President Bush’s tax cuts. For others, it was McCain’s cheerleading for patently unconstitutional campaign-finance legislation. For social conservatives, it was McCain’s support for federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. And for many, it was all of the above, as well as McCain’s propensity for bucking the Republican establishment and cozying up to liberal dems like Ted Kennedy. Understandably, these things have irked many a conservative, including yours truly.
That having been said, the fact remains that there is a method to McCain’s madness. His status as a maverick Republican helped him stand out from the Senate crowd, put him in a position to forcefully challenge then Governor Bush for the GOP nomination in 2000, and almost certainly is the reason behind his securing the nomination this time. So, let’s give credit where credit is due: McCain’s political acumen is pretty damn strong. Indeed, even McCain’s most fierce detractors have to admire the way the good senator came back from the political graveyard, in Lazarus-like fashion, to secure the GOP nomination. These are the attributes of a man who will be a formidable candidate, regardless of who the dems nominate.
But Alexham, what about ideas, principles, and party loyalty? Shouldn’t these things matter?
Hell yes, they matter. Indeed, that is the primary purpose of the GOP nomination process. And Lord knows, I’ve been a purist. Until today, I supported Governor Mike Huckabee solely on the basis of his positions on “Culture of Life” issues. But the time for purity is over. We have a nominee, and it is high time for conservatives to bury any grudges they have against Senator McCain and do everything in their power to help him become the forty-fourth president of these United States.
I realize, of course, that many of you have no intention of supporting John McCain, and no amount of rah-rah “Go Team!” rhetoric is going to persuade you otherwise. Once again, I get it. Lord knows that Senator McCain has torched many a bridge. But let’s get real for a moment, shall we? The Republican brand is about as popular right now as the kid with blue dye next to him in the swimming pool, and that fact isn’t going to change any time soon. The brutal truth of the matter is that John McCain may be our only hope this year. And while many of you no doubt have fantasies about how time in the wilderness will help bring about a restoration of the “Real Republican Party” (as I often did re: Rudy), the reality is that a great deal of damage can be done by a President Obama or Clinton in the next four years. Is that something you’re really willing to risk? Three to four Supreme Court appointments? Major tax increases? Implementation of a radical proabortion agenda? Dialing down the War on Terror? Perhaps you are willing to do just that. But as for me and my house, we will strongly support John McCain for president. He may not be perfect, but he’s a damn fine politician, and he’s light years better than Obama or Clinton.
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