I'll NOT STAY HOME!
If you're like me, you're probably sitting around somewhere in the dark, trying your best to avoid all forms of media coverage of the 2008 presidential primary season. Maybe for the first time in years, you eschewed the weekend talk shows, even Fox News. And except for the crossword puzzle or the sports section, you probably refused to even open your Sunday. Yes, if you're anything like me you are sick of seeing headlines touting the inevitability of a John McCain nomination and tired of hearing how conservatism is dead and that its adherents had just better realize it and roll over. You've had it with pundits, liberal and conservative alike, who pompously quote polls like bad Shakespearian actors in an effort to influence, rather than report so-called popular opinion. How the devil did we get here? We knew this election cycle was going to be a new experience, since Dick Cheney declared years ago that he was not interested in moving up the presidential ladder, but we thought we were in good shape. Going into the 2006 mid-term elections, GOP fortunes were still bright; George Allen seemed poised for re-election to the Senate and probably the 2008 presidential nod. Then came Macaca-gate and the sickening spectacle of a proud conservative bowing in the face of liberal hand-wringing and pressure. Had Allen simply good-naturedly shook off the whole controversy -- a la Ronald Reagan's "the bombing begins in five minutes" gaffe -- or refused to apologize as did George W. Bush in the "Clymer" incident, he'd probably be well on his way to the White House right now. Sadly, that is not the case. Instead, we are left with a depressing scenario; a sort of death-watch, waiting for the horribly self-fulfilling prophesies of the media to manifest themselves. And it seems as if -- as they almost did in 2000 when certain networks called Florida for Al Gore in order to depress Panhandle voting there -- they are again basically telling conservatives to stay home, that their votes won't matter. BUT IT DOESN'T have to be that way. While there are still too many moderates in the fold, most Republicans yet realize that the base of the party is grounded fairly well to the right. So much so, that our last presidential loser, Bob Dole, has stepped into the fray asking Rush Limbaugh to go easy on McCain for the good of the party should he gain the nomination. If the power of the right was indeed waning, would Senator Dole feel compelled to issue such a letter? More to the point, why does McCain feel it necessary to put in an appearance with the conservative base at CPAC this week? As for me, I'll support whichever Republican wins the nomination, but Mitt Romney seems to be the one saying all the right things right now. I know he is only a recent convert, yet it is clear that although Romney may be the entity you don't know, John McCain is certainly the one you do. There are, however, those who will refuse to support Romney because he once was, or is still, a liberal. Of course, some of them who are not old enough to actually remember Ronald Reagan would have similarly castigated the formerly-Democratic Gipper himself on certain issues like abortion. These folks would do well to remember the words of the Dutchman concerning the pitfalls of a slash-and-burn approach to politics: Some of the most radical conservatives during the election didn't like it. "Compromise" was a dirty word to them and they wouldn't face the fact that we couldn't get all of what we wanted today. They wanted all or nothing and they wanted it all at once. If you don't get it all, some said, don't take anything. If you got seventy-five or eighty percent of what you were asking for, I say, you take it and fight for the rest later, and that's what I told these radical conservatives who never got used to it. Wise advice from a wise man. Word is that Mitt Romney is making great strides in California, and if he can pick off a few more Super Tuesday states, by the time you read this the race may have evened up. If not, we'll have to live with nominee John McCain and hope that a win for him in November would at least result in a strong national defense and maybe a few crucial and competent judicial appointments. Either way, we should refuse to be beaten down by our betters in the media and hand the White House over to the Democrats; a disaster which would afford us no hope at all. It just may be that the media don't know everything, nor can they predict everything, even if they have ascribed to themselves that mystical power. Conservatives need to look at themselves in the mirror and figure out the consequences of "staying home," either because they've heard the primary race is all but over, or worse, on November 4th. In any case, we can always cheer ourselves up by enjoying a little Schadenfreude at the expense of our opposition. It seems not all Democrats are exactly thrilled with the media's idea of the inevitability of Mr. & Mrs. Clinton's return to the White House either. Misery loves company.
Submitted by smunsey on Wed, 02/06/2008 - 5:47pm.
Just trying to educate. Although there is no True Conservative Canidate, do not opt to stay home. McCain is better than the alternative.....(ie. Hill and Bama). We musst never support socialism in this country. Thomas Jefferson would be rolling over in his grave......! A rational day it is...... Steven P Munsey A+, MCP, IASO Orange Park | Green Cove Springs munsey13@comcast.net Submitted by SoloVoce on Wed, 02/06/2008 - 7:52pm.
Smuncey, One of these days, you really must provide us all with the definitive definition of a (Genuflect when you say this fella) "TRUE CONSERVATIVE." It keeps changing. When one is brought forth & found to have a flaw, someone always comes out to back pedal, do the Texas Two Step as is so appropriate & say that this person is not a, 'TRUE CONSERVATIVE." It seems to be a sliding guide, a relative definition, depending upon the circumstances. Pray tell, do us a favor & enlighten us so that we may all be fufilled, see the "TRUE CONSERVATIVE LIGHT," & finally lack confusion. Conservatives can be such flighty, contrary creatures, depending on their mood. That, or else they are just so full of themselves & other stuff that reality is just a dream so far, far, away. JATFUR. RichK
Submitted by Baxley on Wed, 02/06/2008 - 11:27pm.
Smunsey, I'll give you props for being consistent. As a pretty solid Republican with Independent tendencies, I have been criticized for "sitting on the fence" too much. Guess what - that's where most people live - in the middle. Most of us are more Purple than Red or Blue. There you are on the far Right, but there are others who would call you moderate. Rich, he's pretty solid on the Left, but he too could be called moderate compared to some. Successful presidential candidates, either Rep or Dem, must reside in the middle. They can be slightly a little Right, or a little Left, but brother, if they really want to be POTUS, they better be boringly moderate. When you were hawking Uncle Fred a few months ago, I tried to let you down easy. I voted for McCain, and even mentioned earlier that a McCain-Huckabee ticket was a distinct possibility. Personally, I'm not big on Huckabee, but I will admit abolishing the IRS has a ceratin appeal to me. I think a national sales tax would be ok - don't want to pay it, save your money. Back to Right vs. Left. Being far-anything in politics will always have a narrow appeal. Compromise will always be king. Like it or hate it, it's the way it is. The sooner those morons in the Middle East figure that out, the closer the World will be to Peace. Is that too far left for you? Submitted by SoloVoce on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 8:11am.
Bax, You're on target on this one. One of the worst things, in my opinion, is the politicization of the meaning of the word, "moderate," in a negative way. The same thing can be said about the word & concept of, "compromise." Someone once said that this country was founded on three great principles. Compromise, compromise, compromise. I'll be the first to admit that it should not be a hard, fast permanent rule in everything. But in just about any decision, you will find that some compromise has been made for the greater good. I'm with smuncey on one thing. I don't want to see this country turn into a total social state. On the other hand, there's a part of me that realises that some people need a helping hand at times, either on a temporary basis or maybe longer. It may be only my perception, but it seems that Conservative Republicans seem to be more vehemently against this kind of thinking. I could be wrong. It's been know to happen. I also liken it to giving alms to the poor. Yes, I'm certain I read that somewhere. Would that be "socialistic," thinking, therefore liberal, therefore something conservatives would automatically be against? It's been said many times before, by me & many others before me. The farther away from the center you are, the more difficult it is to see the problem & therefore the more difficult it is to solve the problem. It's really that simple. It is not a political insight. It's just plain common sense brought on by reality. Bax is right @ certain people in the Middle East & other exotic & some not so exotic countries needing to employ moderation & compromise. Actually, it would be a lesson well learned in this country also. JATFUR. RichK
Submitted by Baxley on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 1:17pm.
Rich - I agree that the "conservative" Republicans seem to be on the war path against moderates. I don't listen to Rush at all - what a gas bag - but apparently he'd rather see Kaddafi or Al Sadr be President than John McCain. They are both Conservatives after all. Actually, he's probably just mad he didn't see the writing on the wall. Personally, I'm looking forward to talking some national politics for awhile. Submitted by clayvoter on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 1:39pm.
The Romney campaign just announced they are "suspending" his campaign (AKA dropping out) Who boy.....guess the Mrs. said stop spending our children's inheritance. When I saw the $$$ per delagate each Republican candidate had spent I wondered how long he would keeping raiding the family fortune. I think I am a conservative Republican (whatever that means) but Iagree moderation and compromise is just what our country needs. I stopped listening to the "gas bag" (great moniker Bax) quite some time ago and his McCain bashing confirmed I made the right decision.
Submitted by SoloVoce on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 1:42pm.
Bax, Just saw the news that the Mittster is suspending his campaign. McCain must be grinning from ear to ear. I listen in to Rush Limbo on occasion. Always want to know what the enemy is thinking. Back in the 90's, I used to listen to him because I worked out with a friend of mine & he was a big Rush fan. Personally, I'm with you & consider him a bombastic blowhard. But I do consider the situation from as many sides as I can & can understand his popularity. Doesn't say much for certain segments of society. On my thoughts @ Conservatives & their reaction to moderates. I only wish I knew how they came to that position. Unfortunately, I don't have a historian or political scientist on the payroll. I just find it so unusual. One can ascribe their attitude to a variety of things, I guess. But I would like to find out a definitive answer. It might solve some problems we have with them. Oh well. That's work for another day. RichK
Submitted by Marsha on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 2:14pm.
I think the first thing every American should want is the best man for the job as President. Both parties have things to be proud of and things to be ashamed of and I have always felt to cling to party lines for the sake of the party is not in the best interest of the country. Baxley while we differ on local views based upon your entries in this thread we pretty much agree on them nationally. I consider myself to be an Independent Republican as well. My vote wasn't so much for McCain as it was against Mitt Romney, the hype that he is the true conservative means nothing to me. I was glad I did when I saw his response to Bob Doles attempt to moderate what was building between the two leading Republican Candidates. I think Bob Dole has done enough to be treated with some respect, and his statement sounded like sour grapes which is not something I want to see displayed by a Presidential Candidate. If Huckabee drops out which is likely, and no one else jumps into it I will probably vote for McCain again. The reasons I wouldn't vote for Hillary or Obama have nothing to do with them being Democrats, and if I absolutely had to choose one of them it wouldn't be Hillary. We need the Clintons back in the White House about as much as we need another President from the Bush family. RichK you're right about keeping in touch with the enemy. Rush Limbaugh...is just too full of himself in my opinion. Submitted by SoloVoce on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 3:22pm.
Marsha, Once again, you have entered the breech with the eloquence & restraint always needed on these blogs. McCain would be my first choice on the Rep. side of the aisle. There is just no way I could vote for Huckabee. On the Dem. side, OY! I get a pain in my eye thinking @ it. I think what it will boil down to is that one day, I'm going to plug my USB memory stick into the computer & pull up my files on Hillary & Obama. Get a sheet of paper out & start reading everything I've collected on them, listing what I like & what I don't like. It's not a perfect system, but it beats the heck out of flipping a coing while having a pain in my eye. JATFUR. RichK
Submitted by islander on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 5:59pm.
The following is an excerpt from the Excite portal. It really gives an idea of who and what John McCain is about. From the text of the article, any time the going gets tough, McCain gets going - far away from the tough.
John McCain missed the vote today on the economic stimulus bill. Here is the article. "Voting "no" with Republican leaders would have offended millions of Social Security recipients and the disabled veterans not scheduled to receive rebates. Voting "yes," on the other hand, risked alienating Bush, GOP leaders and conservatives already suspicious of McCain's political leanings. McCain was speaking Thursday before a meeting of the Conservative Political Action Conference, a group that booed him last year in absentia. For McCain, not voting meant not going on the record either way. He has missed all eight Senate roll call votes this year." It looks like anytime he has to stand up and be counted, he isn't even there to stand up, much less be counted. Is this a man we can count on?
Submitted by finder on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 6:56pm.
Is this a man we can count on? As much as I deplore the war in Iraq, this is THE man we can count on to get it done right. I haven't heard a Dem yet that didn't want to just drop everything and run from Iraq like their hair was on fire and their a.. was catchin' (that came from some old song I heard years ago). He might even be the man to give us a strong enough military presence that we don't have to go into Iran. One can only hope. I certainly don't think Hill-Billy or Barkabama are. Even Bush, who got us into this mess keeps waffling on how big a military we need. MikeH
Submitted by islander on Thu, 02/07/2008 - 10:13pm.
A strong military presence? Sure we can topple governments, and execute their leaders, but we can't make a country or its people change the way they do things. I suspect that McCain as President would probably waffle more than George. At least George is the real thing, whether you like him or not. McCain has even the Republicans trying to figure out what he is. He is definitely an angry man. Maybe Americans are angry and he allows them to vent their anger. I think as time goes on more and more people will figure out what he is. Obviously he suffers from PTSS, and still has a lot of pent up rage from being a POW for over 5 years. I have some real issues with him. He plays the middle of the road angle, snuggling up to whomever he sees can give him an advantage, or even leverage. Ask the Arizona people about his stand on immigration. They will tell you outright he doesn't represent them on this issue. For the disclaimer, yes I am a Democrat, and frankly I feel cheated that I don't get to vote for a candidate like Romney in the general election. He certainly would have made me cross the party line, but not McCain. Nope, not gonna do it. It will be more difficult for the really conservative republicans to vote for McCain than it will be for me to vote for the democratic candidate, and I am not too crazy about either of them. People are talking about ...Here are the recent blog postings with the most comments. |
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Smuncey,
Getting a bit forgetful as the years go on? You forgot the mouse ears man. C'mon, get with the program & think of us who read these blogs. I'll give you a pass this time. I'm feeling generous because of the pizza & talk of countries & their cuisines. But please, a little consideration next time. Thanks dude. Carry on. JATFUR.
Make it a rational day.
RichK