Make John McCain President right now, effective January 20th 2009.
Nobody is entitled to be President. Yet if there ever was a man that should be President, it is John McCain.
As Fred Thompson said in the video introduction, when you lived in a box, you do what is necessary to make sure others do not have to live in that box.
Fresh off a triumphant evening featuring Linda Lingle, Rudy Giuliani and Sarah Palin, Cindy McCain took the stage on the final night to offer heartfelt words about her husband.
“Despite our challenges, we are still alive with hope and belief in the individual ability to make things right if only the federal government would get itself under control and out of our way.”
“The hand we feel on our shoulder belongs to Abraham Lincoln.”
“Nobody is better suited to go about serving America than the man I love, the man I have given 30 years of my life, my husband John McCain.”
“His courageous service to America in war and peace leaves no doubt what our forefathers would make of him.”
“Our party arose from a commitment to equality, human rights, and the dignity and equality of all people. We give way to no one and no party in that cause.”
“This is a man who always tells the truth. He is a good man, a worthy man. I know.”
John McCain then took the stage. He is not a natural orator. Heroes often feel uncomfortable talking about themselves as heroes. So while John McCain will never be the greatest communicator, he remains a sincere man of honor and valor who is one of America’s most noble servants.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/09/john_mccains_acceptance_speech.html
He immediately praised President Bush, refusing to be intimidated by the democratic attack lines.
“I am grateful to the President of the United States for leading us in the dark days after the worst attack in American history, and keeping us safe from another attack that many of us thought was inevitable.”
“Laura Bush is a model of grace in public and in private, and the 41st President and his bride of 63 years.”
“Thank you for the opportunity to win your trust. I intend to earn it.”
“To Obama supporters, you have my respect and admiration. We are fellow Americans. That is an association that means more to me than any other.”
“Please don’t be diverted by the static. Americans want us to stop yelling at each other.”
“All you want is for government to stand on your side and not in your way.”
“I am proud to have introduced the next Vice President to the country, but I can’t wait to introduce her to Washington.”
“To the me first, country second crowd, change is coming.”
“I don’t work for a party or a special interest or for myself. I work for you.”
“I fought for the right strategy and more troops in Iraq when it wasn’t the right thing to do.”
“Thanks to a brilliant General David Petraeus and the fine women and men he commands.”
“It matters less that you can fight. What you fight for is the real test.”
“We lost the trust when we valued our power over our principled. We are going to change that and recover the peoples trust.”
“The party of Lincoln and Reagan is going to get back to basics.”
“We believe in judges who administer justice impartially and don’t legislate from the bench.”
“Cutting the second highest business tax rates in the world will help business compete and keep jobs from going overseas.”
“We will help workers find jobs that won’t come back find a new one that won’t go away.”
“Education is the civil rights issue of this century.” “Equal education has been attained, but what is the value of access to a failing school? Let’s help bad teachers find a new line of work. Obama wants schools to answer to entrenched bureaucrats. I want schools to answer to parents and students. When I am President they will.”
“We will drill new wells offshore and we will drill them now.”
“Obama believes we can achieve energy independence without drilling or nuclear power. He knows better than that.”
“It is time to show the world again how Americans lead.”
“We face many dangerous threats in this world. I am not afraid of them. I am prepared for them.”
“I hate war. It is terrible beyond imagination. I will use all available resources, diplomatic and military, to build a foundation for a stable and enduring peace.”
“I have the record and the scars to prove it. Senator Obama does not.”
“I have been an imperfect servant for many years, but I have been a servant first and last. Not a day happened where I didn’t thank God for the privilege.”
“I am not running for President because I have been blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need.”
“Nothing brings greater happiness in life than to serve a cause greater than yourself.”
“With hard work, strong faith, and a little courage, great things are always within our reach.”
“Fight with me. Fight for what’s right for our country. Fight for the ideals and the character of a free people. Fight for our children’s future. Fight for justice and opportunity. Stand up to defend our country against its enemies. Stand up for each other. Stand up. Stand up and fight. Nothing is inevitable here. We are Americans. We never give up. We never quit. We never hide from history. We make history.”
John McCain is a hero. John McCain is a leader.
His opponent is a good decent man. His opponent is also irrelevant.
It is not that John McCain is a better man than Barack Obama. It is that John McCain is better than virtually every opponent.
It is not that John McCain is more qualified than Barack Obama. It is about John McCain being more qualified than virtually anybody and everybody that has ever served or sought to serve.
The left talks about history. Mostly they carp, lie, and complain about history.
John McCain makes history.
America needs leaders. The most giant nation on Earth must be led by a giant.
John McCain is a leader and a giant.
John McCain was there for America. We should be there for him.
John McCain should be President.
eric
Well, of all the Republicans that were running, McCain was my favorite. I think he will dissappoint a lot of his base once in office in that I believe he will put what he believes is in the best interest of the country against the narrow interests of the Wall Street and Jesusland conservatives.
I believe he will probably work well with Barney Frank and Dick Durbin cleaning up the financial markets mess we’re in today. Most of the Wall Street cons will not be happy with that, but the country will be better off.
He can try to lower corporate taxes, which many on the Left, like myself, are just fine with, but unless he works to progressively adjust the MAT, the CGT, FICA, and the top IT brackets, he’s not going to be able to do much. He can’t lower the corporate rates unless he raises at least one or two of those other taxes and he may be unable to cave in on that. We shall see… Hopefully he is just pandering to the Right for now and will move to a more realistic middle once in office.
The GWOT will continue on track with or without McCain, despite the loony, paranoid worries of the Right. Unfortunately, McCain will continue the status quo with the MIC and this will not bode well for our future security, both physical and fiscal. He has to work better with the rising powers in the East and Russia and tone down the chest-thumping lest America become less and less relavent on the world scene. Again, we shall see… And again, hopefully he is just pandering to the Right for now and will move to a more realistic middle once in office.
The state of healthcare and education will undoubtedly remain status quo under a president McCain. This bodes terribly for our future, with both sectors performing very poorly while costs skyrocket. There’s a chance he’ll work well with Teddy Kennedy and George Miller when it comes to education, but I wouldn’t expect any improvement in the sorry state of our healthcare sector.
Our infrastructure is crumbling and John McCain has a terrible record on that. I expect little or no improvements to our phyiscal infrastructure under a McCain presidency. It will be up the likes of Feinstien, Murray, Oberstar and Rahall to force change down McCain’s throat. Good luck with that. Hopefully, once again, the weight of the office will bring pressure on McCain to “do the right thing” when it comes to our bridges and highways, dams and levees, rails and ports. We’re in a very ssorry state right now thanks to years of theiving, laizzez faire GOP incompetence. If McCain wants to truly be like TR, he’ll break with the cons and do something about our physical infrastructure. It’s the kind of Keynesian investment that we could realy, really use right now and for the future.
It’s hard to say how McCain will handle foreign affairs in general, but one thing is for certain – free trade will continue unabated wwith or without him, again in spite of the loony, paranoia of the Right. This bodes horrifically for our future. We are cannibalizing our national treasure and society at a rate that will leave us in permanent ruin well within this century. If the weight of the office truly informs him, McCain will begin to rein in this sleazy, cannibalistic, anti-American system of trade. On this, however, it seems that the course of history is set and the corporatocracy will see it to our eventual downfall.
When it comes to entitlements, expect no change for the next four years. McCain will have no power to do what he wants and the Dems have no intention of giving in to the Right on this issue. At least things won’t get too much worse before his term is over and the Dems can finally get a shot at fixing that mess. There’s only one way to do it, and only the Dems can – raise the FICA cap. I highly doubt McCain would go along with that, but if he did – if he pulled a Nixon/China sort of thing – his place of fame in history would be assured, but I guarentee he would end up be a one-termer as the Wall Street cons would never let him get away with something like that more than once.
Overall, I see some positives and some negatives from a McCain administration. I see a continuing decline of empire. For this reason, I would prefer a president Obama. Unfortunately, I don’t think America has come far enough societally to elect a black man named Obama president of the United States. If Obama was a white man with a name like Fred Smith – with otherwise the exact same background – McCain wouldn’t stand a chance. I am ashamed of my country for this. On the other hand, at least we’re looking at a president McCain and not a president Romney or Allen or some other corporate shill like them. On balance, things could be a lot worse. So, all in all, though I fear for the more distant future of our nation, I beleve for now things will keep rolling along. It could be better, but it could be worse. It’s not a glass half full or half empty, just a glass with slowly less and less fluid in it. For now, I believe we can get along with that – but only for so long.
JMJ
Oh yeah, and when it comes to judicial appointments, expect the status quo of recent years – few vacancies will be filled and there’ll be plenty of fights on the Hill just to get those few filled. Unfortunately, expect the Wall Street cons to be pleased, while hopefully at least the Jesusland cons will be dissappointed.
JMJ
So on foreign policy you are saying we conservatives should just ignore what Barack Obama saying on trade and the GWOT and instead believe he is just pandering to the loonies on the left. I hope you are right on that.
I still cant figure out why the left always insists the answer on entitlements is not to reform the basic business model which is flawed but to raise taxes so we can put off the collapse a little longer. Reagan and congress did that in the 80s and the result 25 years later is we are staring at the same problem again. Back then the big change was adding Civil Servants to the people paying. News flash, now those civil servants hired starting in the 80s are approaching eligibility and the problem is coming back only worse.
On health care and education if McCain maintains the status quo it would be far better than Obama’s plans to make matter much worse and provide much MORE federal government control. Government involvement has caused much of the decline we have seen over the last 50 years
“So on foreign policy you are saying we conservatives should just ignore what Barack Obama saying on trade and the GWOT and instead believe he is just pandering to the loonies on the left.”
I don’t see Obama pandering to people like me at all, assuming that you would consider me a loony of the left. He’s a centrist and always has been. If you think he’s a leftist, then you are completely ignorant both of leftism and Obama. On trade he talks the same talk and walks the same walk as all Free Traders. He talks about making trade fairer and more bilateral than universal, but all pols say that. The same goes for the GWOT. Both he and McCain say they will close GITMO, so there’s no difference there, and I’m glad for that. But in general, just being realistic, I see only a small course change in the GWOT under a president Obama. You can take the Cold War as an historic example: the party in power made for very little difference in the Cold War.
As for entitlements, they are bot businesses, but government programs. Ther’s a huge difference. There’s nothing wrong with the entitlement models found in SS and Medicare – especially Medicare, which is far more cost efficient than private insurance. The only problem with the models are the funding mechanisms. Everyone should pay the same rate on all income. What we have now is a free pass on income for the very wealthy. They are not paying their share. It’s as simple as that. The payroll tax is not only not progressive, as it is a flat tax, but is regressive in that not all income is taxed. Removing the cap would fully fund both Medicare and SS for the foreseeable future.
According to Stephen Goss, the SSA’s chief actuary, lifting the cap while giving commensurate benefit hikes to high-income taxpayers once they retire would cover 93% of the SSA’s projected shortfall in Social Security revenues over the next 75 years. http://www.dollarsandsense.org/archives/2008/0308miller.html
So, believe what you want, but you’re wrong.
And no one is advocating “government control” over healthcare, only an eventual universal insurance funding pool. Private actuaries, claims adjustment, service provision, etc, would remain in place. The system as envisioned enventually would probably look similar to the Swiss FHIA system, which has been very successful. The miserably failed system we have now will eventually have to cede to ssomething new. There’s no doubt about that. We can not continue the way we’re going. Healthcare is a vital universal utility. Market interests should not override this absolutely universally necessity. We are cannibalizing ourselves with the current status quo and we’re the only developed nation on the planet to do so – it hurts our exports, it hurts credit markets, it hurts providers and patients. It’s stupid and personally I think anyone who thinks otherwise has some seriously questionable judgement.
JMJ
Jersey, once again you go around calling people who disagree with you stupid or ignorant while at the same time wearing your own ignorance as if it were a badge of honor.
A “Business Model” is simply the analysis of how your money comes in versus how it goes out and applies to all organizations. The fact is the social security model is based on an assumption of payers to recipients that has not withstood the test of time. Even the analysis you cite doesn’t solve the problem only pushes it out to a later generation. The other problem is it assumes that tax policy does not change behavior which has been proven to be false time and again. If you raise the cap on taxable wages more of those wages will be shifted to otehr forms of compensated which are not subject to the tax. This is what led to the systm of employer paid health insurance by the way. Demographics are the problem or to put it callously not enough babies are being born and people are living too long. A modest proposal to support the current model would be to ban birth control and abortion, encourage smoking and obesity to help on both ends of the spectrum. A better approach would be to reevaluate to the whole model and come up with a system which could sustain itself.
That universal insurance fund will evolve into something like Medicare which is not terribly successful. Having worked in medical billing I can tell you that doctors get such a low percentage of what they charge from Medicare and are forced to accept that as 80% payment that prices for the rest of the patients go up or they refuse to treat medicare patients. The other problem with this kind of a system which we have already seen in the HMO world is limited access to doctors because they are so booked up it takes forever to get an appointment and many practices are closed to new patients. If our healthcare system is the outright failure you claim why is it people are still coming here form the rest of the world for medical treatment. Over all people are living longer and healthier than they were 20 years ago so I cannot see how our system has failed them. Quoting the number of uninsured is meaningless, the real question is how many people are not receiving adequate medical treatment. Many uninsured people wouldn’t be using it if they were insured and the majority of insured people don’t get as much benefit as they pay in premiums (if they did insurance companies would be out of business). Any competent economist will tell you losing game for the consumer. Most people are over insured and in fact the best economic approach would be to have as little insurance as you can and in essence be able to self fund your needs in that area. Of course most of us like the security of that over having to put away that money in savings and the knowledge that if we did have something catastrophic we would be covered. Ultimately insurance is a bet against yourself that something bad will happen to you in most cases you lose that bet year after year.
As far as Obama’s on trade he has not be advocating passage of the Columbian trade agreement, he has said he wants to scrap NAFTA and other trade agreements and renegotiate them (of course he had one of his lieutenants tell Canadian officials he was just pandering). He has advocated to gut the USPATRIOT act, negotiate with terrorists, refuses to acknowledge Iran as a sponsor of terrorism, pulling troops out of Iraq regardless of the situation on the ground. Those are just the tings he has said off the top of my head. I would hardly call that no much difference. You are probably right, that is just pandering and is not what he will do when he gets in office, but I think it would be foolish to vote for somebody based on the assumption that he WON’T do what he says he will.
Snippets from the past.
When in England , at a fairly large conference, Colin Powell
was asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury if our plans for
Iraq were just an example of empire building by George Bush.
He answered by saying, ‘Over the years, the United States
has sent many of its fine young men and women in great
peril to fight for freedom beyond our borders. The only amount
of land we have ever asked for in return is enough to bury those
that did not return.’
You could have heard a pin drop.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference
that included Admirals from the U.S. , English, Canadian,
Australian and French Navies. At a cocktail reception,
he found himself standing with a large group of officers
that included personnel from most of those countries.
Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped
their drinks, but a French admiral suddenly complained that
whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn
only English. He then asked, ‘Why is it that we always have
to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking
French?’
Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied, ‘Maybe
it’s because the Brits, Canadians, Aussies and Americans
arranged it so you wouldn’t have to speak German.’
You could have heard a pin drop.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AND THIS STORY FITS RIGHT IN WITH THE ABOVE…
Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman, arrived in Paris by plane.
At French Customs, he took a few minutes to locate his passport
in his carry-on.
‘You have been to France before, monsieur?’ the customs officer
asked sarcastically.
Mr. Whiting admitted that he had been to France previously.
‘Then you should know enough to have your passport ready.’
The American said, ”The last time I was here, I didn’t have to
show it.’
‘Impossible. Americans always have to show your passports
on arrival in France !’
The American senior gave the Frenchman a long hard look.
Then he quietly explained, ”Well, when I came ashore at
Omaha Beach on D-Day in 1944 to help liberate this country,
I couldn’t find a single Frenchmen to show a passport to.’
You could have heard a pin drop.
“Make John McCain President right now, effective January 20th 2009.
Nobody is entitled to be President. Yet if there ever was a man that should be President, it is John McCain.”
Those were exactly my thoughts, g, as I wiped away the tears after the speech. In fact, I then thought, if Obama had any sense, he would give the election to McCain. There is time enough for Obama to come back and try his hand at it.
I have been no McCain fan. Prior to the convention, I had no use for him, and afer Giuliani fell out of the race, my election slogan was ‘We are so screwed’.
The first inkling I had that McCain was possibly not the compromising, give-in-to-get-along media-pandering loser RINO senator I had come to regard him as, was when he picked Sarah Palin. Astonishment gave way to the certitude that anyone that had the good sense to pick her had to have something more on the ball.
At that point, with my new McCain lenses on, I couldn’t wait to hear his speech to see just exactly who this guy was. And I was not disappointed. To bare his soul in front of the country in such a way….I had nothing to say. Only tears….
My new election slogan “Tired of Washington corruption? Political same ole’ same ole’? Apply four years of McCain/Palin…the only HOPE of change”