The Morning After: Reality Dawns
Super Tuesday came. Super Tuesday went. The Democratic nomination battle will continue. And the other...
Is pretty much over. Time for a dose of reality, friends; or perhaps, as we'll grow very tired of hearing come next November, a dose of Straight Talk™. John McCain will be the Republican nominee for president in 2008. It's time to put aside even the long-shot notions of a brokered convention that some were entertaining as late as yesterday afternoon. Yes, it really is.
For reasons that will be analyzed to death in the coming days, Mitt Romney was never able to make the sale to the broader electorate. As the field narrowed most (though not all) conservative die hards rallied to him. But for whatever reason, they couldn't bring enough more casual Republican voters along with them.
Romney supporters can blame Huckabee all they want, but there's plenty of evidence that the second choice of most Huckabee voters was John McCain, not Mitt Romney. Romney's stump line that it had become a two person race was put to the test yesterday and found wanting. It seems it was more of a "One and two halves which somehow don't add up to a whole" race.
Romney supporters could cite their campaign resources (including their candidate's personal fortune) as the reason their guy deserved to stay in. But Huckabee's supporters could point to a strong regional appeal forming a solid electoral base. In the end it was a wash, as neither was sufficient to truly compete with McCain nationwide, either singly or together.
It's now time for the politically serious to make their way back out of the rhetorical corners many have painted themselves into over the past few weeks. Even the "objectively trustworthy" types can take a mulligan on this one (see?). It's allowed. Politics is an understandably messy business.
Despite the insistence by many that John McCain was "just like the Democrats," it's going to become increasingly clear over the coming months that this is frankly absurd. Watch as Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama battle one another to illustrate how profound the difference would be if America chooses one of them over John McCain in November.
After spending the better part of the last four years arguing that Iraq is the central front in a global war against Islamic jihadism, shouldn't conservatives lend a wee bit of weight to the fact that John McCain might just be the very best candidate we could nominate in terms of dedication to that belief, and competence as a future Commander-in-Chief? After losing control of Congress in large-part due to Republicans who spent money like Democrats in the bad-old-days, and made "earmark" a household word, shouldn't conservatives value a nominee known as one of the most serious and consistent national voices against wasteful government spending? After going into hysterics over judicial nominations in the past four years, shouldn't conservatives care whether the next president would pick future Justices similar to John Roberts, rather than Ruth Bader Ginsberg? After castigating the aborted "Hillary Care" approach to government lead healthcare for over fifteen years now, and as the first wave of the Baby Boom generation hits their senior years, shouldn't conservatives care whether the next president supports a market and individual based, rather than government based, approach to healthcare reform?
I simply can't believe the party that sucked it up and rallied around the "compassionate conservative" two elections in a row, now finds John McCain somehow outside the pale. Sure, he's got a talent for pissing people off from his own side. But in the real world politics has never been about perfection, and I thought it was the Other Party who tended to vote based on feelings rather than reason.
As I've said in the past, and I'll reiterate now, I'll gladly support John McCain for president over anyone the Democrats might choose. The difference is profound, and these are not unserious times (if any really are).
I supported Mitt Romney in my caucus just yesterday evening. I had my say. Now it's time to join back together as a party, because we have more in common than we have apart.
As Mitt Romney looks for a graceful way to end his campaign, and as Mike Huckabee looks for ways to maximize his influence within the party for the future (perhaps even calling in his chips to take the VP spot on the ticket), I'm changing my support to John McCain for president in 2008. Some of you may need to take a little more time. But I hope to see you join me shortly.
Is pretty much over. Time for a dose of reality, friends; or perhaps, as we'll grow very tired of hearing come next November, a dose of Straight Talk™. John McCain will be the Republican nominee for president in 2008. It's time to put aside even the long-shot notions of a brokered convention that some were entertaining as late as yesterday afternoon. Yes, it really is.
For reasons that will be analyzed to death in the coming days, Mitt Romney was never able to make the sale to the broader electorate. As the field narrowed most (though not all) conservative die hards rallied to him. But for whatever reason, they couldn't bring enough more casual Republican voters along with them.
Romney supporters can blame Huckabee all they want, but there's plenty of evidence that the second choice of most Huckabee voters was John McCain, not Mitt Romney. Romney's stump line that it had become a two person race was put to the test yesterday and found wanting. It seems it was more of a "One and two halves which somehow don't add up to a whole" race.
Romney supporters could cite their campaign resources (including their candidate's personal fortune) as the reason their guy deserved to stay in. But Huckabee's supporters could point to a strong regional appeal forming a solid electoral base. In the end it was a wash, as neither was sufficient to truly compete with McCain nationwide, either singly or together.
It's now time for the politically serious to make their way back out of the rhetorical corners many have painted themselves into over the past few weeks. Even the "objectively trustworthy" types can take a mulligan on this one (see?). It's allowed. Politics is an understandably messy business.
Despite the insistence by many that John McCain was "just like the Democrats," it's going to become increasingly clear over the coming months that this is frankly absurd. Watch as Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama battle one another to illustrate how profound the difference would be if America chooses one of them over John McCain in November.
After spending the better part of the last four years arguing that Iraq is the central front in a global war against Islamic jihadism, shouldn't conservatives lend a wee bit of weight to the fact that John McCain might just be the very best candidate we could nominate in terms of dedication to that belief, and competence as a future Commander-in-Chief? After losing control of Congress in large-part due to Republicans who spent money like Democrats in the bad-old-days, and made "earmark" a household word, shouldn't conservatives value a nominee known as one of the most serious and consistent national voices against wasteful government spending? After going into hysterics over judicial nominations in the past four years, shouldn't conservatives care whether the next president would pick future Justices similar to John Roberts, rather than Ruth Bader Ginsberg? After castigating the aborted "Hillary Care" approach to government lead healthcare for over fifteen years now, and as the first wave of the Baby Boom generation hits their senior years, shouldn't conservatives care whether the next president supports a market and individual based, rather than government based, approach to healthcare reform?
I simply can't believe the party that sucked it up and rallied around the "compassionate conservative" two elections in a row, now finds John McCain somehow outside the pale. Sure, he's got a talent for pissing people off from his own side. But in the real world politics has never been about perfection, and I thought it was the Other Party who tended to vote based on feelings rather than reason.
As I've said in the past, and I'll reiterate now, I'll gladly support John McCain for president over anyone the Democrats might choose. The difference is profound, and these are not unserious times (if any really are).
I supported Mitt Romney in my caucus just yesterday evening. I had my say. Now it's time to join back together as a party, because we have more in common than we have apart.
As Mitt Romney looks for a graceful way to end his campaign, and as Mike Huckabee looks for ways to maximize his influence within the party for the future (perhaps even calling in his chips to take the VP spot on the ticket), I'm changing my support to John McCain for president in 2008. Some of you may need to take a little more time. But I hope to see you join me shortly.
Posted by Doug Williams on
Wednesday February 6, 2008 at 1:41pm
