Call For Unity
National Review has published an editorial calling for conservatives and Republicans to pull themselves together instead of fragmenting over John McCain. THe various contributers to NRO and The Corner have certainly been going at each other over McCain for some time now, so the editorial is significant.
The percentage of Americans who consider themselves Republicans has plummeted. Young people voted for John Kerry and have not become more conservative since 2004. Democrats think they just might get a filibuster-proof Senate capable of enacting national health care and confirming liberal justices to the Supreme Court in 2009. So many conservatives have decided that now is a good time to turn on each other in a fight as bitter as it is counterproductive.
Partisans of John McCain say his conservative critics are “deranged.” They say those critics are merely trying to get attention for themselves. The talk-show hosts who dislike McCain, they say, are irrelevant — when they are not saying those hosts will cost Republicans the election and thus endanger the national defense.
The critics, meanwhile, say McCain’s nomination will ruin the party. They say he is not a conservative — and some of them go so far as to argue that neither is anyone who supports him.
Enough. It is not “deranged” to have concerns about McCain’s positions and his political style. Nor is it a betrayal of conservative principles to support him, especially now that he is the all-but-certain Republican nominee. Conservatives can reach differing views of McCain in good faith. Each camp needs to accept that truth.
Please read the entire editorial. My own position is well known. I have serious misgivings with John McCain on a number of issues. But in the big picture it not better to quit the game over those differences. I know that I have commenters who disagree with me, others who hold positions close to mine. We can agree to disagree over a lot of things.
What we cannot do is walk away and let someone who will be infinitely worse for this nation take the White House by default. For all the mythology that has developed around Ronald Reagan through the years, the fact is that he was willing to - and actually did - compromise on many conservative issues. The hard line conservatives did not get their way in all matters when Reagan was in office - but many of them still were able to influence what compromises were made. I think it is a lesson we should not forget, folks.
There you go, fire away.
By Gary Gulrud, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 9:15 am
I read the editorial yesterday and then looked around for a avenue of reply. Hmmm, didn’t find any. I think this just might be emblematic of a chronic centrist issue with the GOP and its mouthpiece(s). On second thought, you know what? They don’t need to explain. I think we’re going to be perfectly copacetic with being excluded. Wakes can be terribly morose.
By feeblemind, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 9:37 am
I don’t want to rehash the do/don’t vote McCain debate. That horse has been flogged to death by now. If you read blogs you know the score. I don’t believe words will reunite the Party at this point. I still believe it will take an outside event to do that.
By Anthony (Los Angeles), Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 9:59 am
There you go, fire away. No fire from me. I wholly agree.
By NortonPete, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 10:38 am
Feeblemind, you make a good point about an outside event. If that event were another terrorist attack that brought everyone together, than one should vote as if that had already happened, because it did and it will occur again.
By syn, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 11:27 am
I’m voting for the troops even if it means I’ll get McCain. At this point my loyality is to the men and women who volunteer to protect and serve my country, I owe no debt to politicans, pundits or parties.
That said; could the reason why young people are moving away from conservatism be due to the fact that they have never known what it is like to live under a high Misery Index? The majority of youth are skatebording their way through life and at some point they’re going to pay the price; life’s hard lessons learned will come sooner than later when the 2010 tax cuts end and all the feel-good, good-feeling words spoken by liberals are not going to feel so good come April 2011.
Gradual tax increase is rather painless however a massive instantaneous tax increase is a real shock to the system; Americans are used to low marginal tax but the standard of living has increased and many people have prospered over the last seven years so much so that the cry ‘tax cuts were for the rich only’ won’t mean very much to those who have moved higher in marginal tax category.
By feeblemind, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 11:52 am
Yes NortonPete. I am thinking terrorist attack, or maybe a Supreme Court decision going against conservatives. There is to be one concerning the 2nd Ammendment in June, I think. HRC stealing the nomination perhaps, or an event no one can see coming at the moment.
By clifto, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 11:58 am
I believe what it would take to reunify the party would be a candidate to the right of either Obama or Clinton.
By martian, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 1:17 pm
Whether anyone wants to admit it or not, John McCain <strong>IS</strong> to the right of Clinton and Obama on the most critical issues - National Defense, Intelligence Gathering, and Judges (both Federal and SCOTUS). At this point, all other issues are secondary to those and all of those areas are threatened by either a Clinton or Obama presidency. Thus, while I don’t agree with McCain on everything (never found a candidate I did agree with on everything), I will vote for him as the lesser of all evils.
By clifto, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 1:42 pm
Don’t pee on my shoes and tell me it’s raining. McCain is on record as being against conservative judges on SCOTUS, and his Gang of 14 activities are legend. He is okay with intelligence gathering as long as we don’t do anything demeaning to anyone (personally, I’d find it demeaning to be held captive). He’s okay with the national defense, again as long as no enemy of the US gets treated in a demeaning way. He is not one iota different in the final analysis; what very few differences there are will be negotiated away quickly in “bipartisan” negotiation. (bipartisan: both sides of the aisle working together to implement liberal policy)
By Gaius, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 1:51 pm
clifto, the on record you refer to is a single, unsourced report by John Fund. While I think Fund is usually reliable, I thought that smelled like a hit piece, especially since McCain voted for Alito and Roberts.
Secondly, the gang of 14 you so decry averted the nuclear option that would have taken away the filibuster for judicial nominations. With Republicans now in the minority, that move looks pretty good.
By Jim, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 2:30 pm
I agree with you. It’s damn simple - DO WHAT’S BEST FOR THE COUNTRY! Vote for McCain.
By Sam, Thursday, 14 February , 2008 @ 10:04 pm
My favored guys both dropped out earlier, so at this point it is either Mr. McCain or one of his presumptive Democratic opponents. Given that choice, I’ll go with Mr. McCain. I have yet to sit out a presidential election and I don’t plan to start this year.