At the toughest moment of his near death experience in the primaries, John McCain said that he “would rather lose an election than lose a war.” He was right to say this.
In 2000 he said “I want the Presidency in the best way…not the worst way. I will not take the low road to the highest office in the land.”
In 2000 John McCain lost an election, but he never lost his honor. One good man simply lost to another good man. He may lose to another good man in 2008. What I know is that he is not willing to destroy his soul or rip America apart to win.
Others are less honorable.
While the temptation here is to focus on Bill and Hillary Clinton, they are on the verge of destroying themselves. I have no interest in creating a sympathy backlash for them. They played the race card in South Carolina, and dealt it from the bottom of a crooked marked deck. They have always placed winning at all costs among doing what is right.
Yet they are, barring a comeback, yesterday’s news. The problems are coming from others, throughout the spectrum.
Some on the right take glee in referring to Barack Obama as “B. Hussein Obama.” This is disgusting. There is no reason to do this unless the goal is to attempt to discredit Barack Obama based on fears of his connection to Muslim murderers.
Saddam Hussein was evil. I supported invading Iraq, capturing him and killing him. I support the same with Osama Bin laden. Barack Obama is merely an American citizen with a middle name that many Muslims have.
Is America ready for a Muslim President? I do not know. Am I ok with that? I do not know. I would have some hard thinking to do on an introspective level. Barack Obama has insisted that he is a Christian, and I accept him at his word. He seems to be a man of integrity, and until and unless he is proven to be a congenital liar like one of his opponents, taking him at his word is all I can do.
Obama has been attacked for receiving the endorsement of antisemite and all around dreadful human being Louis Farrakhan. Saying that Farrakhan agrees with him does not imply the reverse. Obama made it clear that he deplores Farrakhan’s antisemitic comments. The same issue invovles Obama’s controversial pastor, Jeremiah Wright. Pastor Wright supports Farrakhan.
There is no evidence that Barack Obama himself is an antisemite. To imply otherwise without such evidence borders on slanderous. Unless one works for the Jayson Blair Times, where such behavior is self evident, there is no reason to tarnish a man this way.
Another tactic against Obama has been to circulate a picture of him wearing what appears to be a turban. This dirty trick from the Clintons was not to highlight any kind of cultural heritage in a positive way. It was meant to show a Muslim wearing a turban to scare voters. As I have said, some people are better than that. The Clintons are not.
John McCain has honor. He has condemned such tactics.
I want John McCain to be President. I am going to do everything I can to help him defeat Barack Obama, or Hillary if she steals the nomination. I am not willing to sink into the gutter to do so.
So how does one defeat Barack Obama?
By pointing out that he is an empty suit? That could work, but too many people might disagree. That is a legitimate tactic however.
The best way for McCain to defeat Obama is to have a substantive debate on issues. Elections should be about policy. This one actually can be.
Free trade works. Isolationism and protectionism are wrong. John McCain supports free trade. Barack Obama wants to move towards protectionism. Trade deals with South Korea, some Latin American nations, and others, are a boon to America. NAFTA was a success overall. Yes, this is a tough sell in places like Ohio, but it is still right.
Where does Obama stand on the death penalty? This is worth asking. Is he as liberal as Michael Dukakis on this issue? Capital punishment is less powerful an issue than two decades ago, but only because democrats began supporting it.
John McCain supports school choice, including vouchers. Barack Obama is held hostage by teachers’ unions. On education, the democrats want lower standards. They will decry this assertion, but the public schools are a disaster, and liberalism is responsible for this. Liberals will disagree, but it still makes for a legitimate discussion.
John McCain is against gun control. Obama supports it. Sure, school shootings will be trotted out to make the NRA look like the devil’s evil twin, but what plays well on the coasts does not work well in middle America. Gun owners are a major reason George W. Bush won West Virginia twice, after democrats had owned the state for generations. Does Obama believe private citizens have a right to own guns?
McCain supports making the Bush tax cuts permanent. Obama wants to let them expire. This is the same thing as raising taxes. Obama supporters will dispute this, but that is a debate worth having. McCain should clean Obama’s clock with this argument.
McCain supports staying in Iraq to get the job done. Obama wants to immediately withdraw. To paraphrase President Bush, with regards to this disagreement, “Bring it on.” The American people were frustrated, but they will be patient if they see positive results. The surge has worked. McCain backed the war when it was popular, unpopular, and inbetween. Obama has been against it the entire time. This is a substantive disagreement.
There are probably many more examples that reflect what should be the theme of the 2008 election, that John McCain is a conservative and Barack Obama is a liberal.
This does not imply that liberals are bad people. It just means that they are wrong. From Hubert Humphrey to George McGovern to Jimmy Carter to Walter Mondale to Michael Dukakis to Al Gore to John Kerry, liberals lose elections when running against true conservatives. Conservatives win elections over liberals when they avoid betraying conservative principles, especially on taxes.
As for the left, they will be tempted to play the race card again. They will imply that anybody who votes against Barack Obama is automatically a racist. When Hillary implied that voting against her was due to sexism, it was noxious. That line of thinking is still noxious months later. Thankfully enough people looked at Hillary and said, “It is not about women. We just don’t like you specifically.”
The same standard must be applied to Obama, although he is significantly more likable than Hillary. It is not black vs white. It is right vs wrong.
Barack Obama is a good, decent, affable man who could develop into a great Senator in Illinois if he allows deeds to match his soaring and eloquent words. He can fill in that blank slate. He is also not the man to be President on issues, and issues alone.
America is not a racist nation, and the republican party is not a racist party. Republicans must hit back hard against any such charges, since silence is acquiescence. Richard Nixon’s “southern strategy” was 40 years ago. The average republican today wants America to win the War on Terror and lower taxes, while promoting liberty and individual freedom. This is good for all people, black and white.
John McCain is the only person still running for President that is actually ready to do the job. He is tough, smart, and experienced. Oh yeah, and he is a real hero.
Barack Obama is a good person. He is a good speaker. He is not a good choice for President because he is wrong on the issues.
John McCain is right. That should be the debate. John McCain will win the election with honor. I trust him to do so. America will be better off not only for the end result of his victory, but for the means he uses to get to the White House.
eric