Setting aside the fact that 27 U.S. states have essentially chosen the Republican nominee, I feel it necessary to justify who I am voting for. Obviously, the decision has become much easier as my fellow citizens have already decided for me by forcing out five candidates. Someday our political parties will understand that in order to have an equal vote we all have to vote on the same day.
A quick check of Sen. John McCain’s voting record will find that he votes in line with his Republican colleagues 87 percent of the time. However, over the past seven years he has managed to alienate the base of his party represented by the adjective most often used to describe him: maverick.
McCain has been showered with compliments from the media for taking controversial positions on standard Republican Party platform issues. I look left and I look right and every which way I look people are telling me I should recognize the influence McCain could hold by being portrayed as a centrist. Political junkies elucidate, claiming that he will need to pick up independent votes in order to win, and it is important for him to distance himself from President Bush. In sum, it is a good thing that the Republican Party will be nominating a center-right candidate.
For those who follow this reasoning I have only two words: Joseph Lieberman. Sen. Lieberman was the Democratic vice presidential nominee in 2000. He was a major player in the Democratic Party, a man respected by the masses. Today, Joe represents independents. He has no public relationship with the Democratic Party, all because he disagreed with them on one issue.
These same Democrats and Democratic pundits who tell me to respect the positions of John McCain and take lessons from them are the ones who cut Sen. Lieberman from the party with nothing more than a kick in the balls and a slap in the face. By the way, Lieberman has endorsed McCain.
All the while, Democrats have two candidates that fully represent what the party is all about. They make a lot of promises, and probably will not fulfill half of them. But at least they tell Democrats what they want to hear and don’t have to act like centrists. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama can be charged with a lot of things but never with being center-left politicians.
There are plenty of reasons why John McCain doesn’t relate to the Republican base. Right-wing pundits have illustrated many and I will quickly review a few.
Sen. McCain voted against tax cuts in both 2001 and 2003, claiming there was no cut in spending to go along with the tax relief. Unfortunately for him, in his floor speeches he mentioned nothing of cuts in government spending. At one point while on the campaign trail McCain admitted that economics isn’t something he understands as well as he should. First of all, John has nothing to worry about, there is no such thing as a politician who understands economics. Second of all, if there were such a person he would probably substitute proper economic policy with populist economic policy in the name of garnering votes.
McCain then teamed up with the sound conscience of Sen. Ted Kennedy to create an amnesty bill for undocumented (illegal) immigrants. This legislation hinted at border security, but catered more to those who had broken our laws. He proceeded to shove the new laws down our throats despite an overwhelming majority of dissent.
Finally, there’s the senator’s little bundle of pride and joy: Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform. McCain has been working on campaign finance reform for the better part of 10 years. Most of his work has only contributed to a restriction of our First Amendment rights, and hindered candidates who try to bring a solid challenge to sitting representatives. These reforms have done more to restrict our constitutional rights than President Bush has.
Of course today, presidential candidate John McCain pledges to voters that he will cut taxes, reduce spending, protect our border first and elect conservative justices to the Supreme Court. But these are all promises. The day I ever take a politician’s promise to heart will be the day I become a progressive liberal Democrat.
Despite disagreements between myself and Sen. John McCain, and the fact that I don’t trust him with regard to domestic issues, my vote will be cast in his name for two reasons: Iraq and Afghanistan. The Republican Party started something for which they have an obligation to finish, and McCain is the most qualified to do so out of the entire Republican field.
It was John McCain who berated Former Defense Secretary Rumsfeld’s military strategy in Iraq from the start, claiming more ground troops were needed. And he was right. The legacy of 4,000 American soldiers and 80,000 Iraqi civilians depends on John McCain successfully getting us out of Iraq. His leadership, along with that of General Petraeus, must result in our withdrawal from a stable Iraq.
It’s time for the Republican Party to rally around a candidate and stop publicly bashing John McCain, which will only discourage Republicans from voting at all or cause them to vote for the opposing party. Taking into account McCain’s repugnant past it is important to set our priorities straight. Leaving a stable Middle East as soon as possible is paramount.
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