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Sunday, February 3, 2008

Six Reasons Why John McCain is OK with me

As I write this, Super Tuesday is just hours away. As an Obama supporter, I will naturally be looking to see just how much his recent momentum can push back on the Clinton political machine. Additionally though, I will be looking closely at the Republican results. At this juncture, it looks like John McCain will be the big winner - maybe even enough to lock up the GOP nomination. In the interest of "reaching across the aisle" I will present a list of reasons (in no particular order) why I would be OK with that.

1. He's better than the other GOP candidates. With the exception of Mike Huckabee, John McCain is less crazy, less of an ideologue and has more real life experience than anyone else in the GOP field. Although I disagree with much of what he wants to do - I think he will actually change his policies and ideas if the result are disappointing. How good would that have been in a President that last 8 years?

2. He would be an improvement, as far as Republican Presidents go. I have been around to really see and understand Republican Presidents Reagan, Bush1 and Bush2. I feel John McCain would be so much better than any of those three. First of all, he is not wed to an ideology like Reagan and Bush2 were. He is a conservative for sure, but he does not try to deny reality in order to make his ideas fit. Many times in his career when logic, experience and circumstances called for a diversion from text book conservatism, Mcain has shown a willingness to change paths. That alone would put him head and shoulders above any recent GOP President.

3. He might pick Huckabee for VP. I am one of those folks who like Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee. Huckabee, has been doing very well with a group of voters that give Mccain a bit of trouble. He also has been helping McCain win primaries by syphoning votes away from Mitt Romney. Because of loyalty and the electoral necessity of getting evangelicals to the polls in November, McCain would be smart to choose Mike Huckabee as his #2.

4. Radio talk show hosts hate John McCain. The Rush Limbaugh's of the airwaves have caused so much damage to this country. They have poisoned the minds of so many good people and lowered the political discourse in a way that lead to the disaster of the George W. Bush presidency and the embrace of long discredited policies. If these forces can be neutralized in any way - it can only be a good thing for the United States.

5. He is willing to reach across the aisle. John McCain is hated so much by people who believe that compromise is a weakness. He knows it is not only a sign of strength but an absolute necessity to have a successful democratic government. So, while those who clearly are working for a one-party state oppose him, as a co-founder of this website I have to applaud anyone willing to work with people of different political beliefs.

6. He would probably lose the general election. I think that only Mike Huckabee has a chance of beating the Democrats this year. If McCain chooses Huck as his VP it will help to become more competitive but it probably won't be enough to put him over the top. Looking at it today, I would predict that John McCain would suffer the similar fate of Bob Dole - a beloved war veteran seen as too old by voters to take over the reigns of power. So while I have great respect for the man, as a Democrat his probable loss is appealing. (Got to be honest)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Good post.