May 03, 2008
Things That Make Me Cringe
The man whose instincts seem at times on a permanent collision course with his own party's base is handling his own VP selection process?
Prospects of a bad horror film, perhaps a Frankenstein-like concoction of Lindsey Graham and Joe Lieberman, are presently floating through the nightmares of many a conservative.
Please, let it not be so.
UPDATE: comments closed due to spam.
Posted by Eric Earling at May 03, 2008
09:55 AM | Email This
1.
McCain beat party wisdom to get the nomination (Social Conservatives heads are still throbbing from the beating) so why not?
He at least seems to have found success among the electorate.
Don't get me wrong...I am not sure of the sense of Republicans running sort-of Democrats (and Rossi is leaning into that category)...but it all comes down to being Right (pun intended) or being President.
2. Prospects of a bad horror film, perhaps a Frankenstein-like concoction of Lindsey Graham and Joe Lieberman, are presently floating through the nightmares of many a conservative.
What's the only thing that's better than one decrepit white guy on a Presidential ticket? TWO decrepit white guys!
3. McCain DID NOT "beat" party wisdom to secure the nomination! He was annointed by the press who love him for being so ornery against everyone in the conservative base - helped along by the fact that the Republicans put up the most pitiful crowd of contenders since the Democrats in 1988! The whole primary system in this country should be overhauled - only having a handful of states decide the nominee is horrible! I am truly considering going third party because McCain no more represents my views than Hillary or Obama!
4. ...and I'm sure Ralph & friends welcome you Suzi! :)
5. If , as many of the so-called political experts say, Obama has locked up the Democrat nomination then the natural VP pick for McCain would be Hillary.
Okay, Okay I am just kidding! But there is a twisted logic to it. McCain is about as far left as one could possibly be and still pretend to be a Republican. At least on the surface Hillary is just slightly to his left. It's a strong ticket that would break the back of the Democrats. At the very least it would have them running out the doors of their trendy nightspots shreiking "OMG!, OMG!"
McCain is probably a one term President and then Hillary likely gets her lifelong dream.
A match made in heaven.
Would someone wake me up? I think I'm having a nightmare.
6. Not about the VP stakes, but
Meet the Anti-Candidates!, a pretty scathing indictment of all 3 stooges... and those of us who have allowed them to become the candidates.
No matter which candidates campaign speech you attend, you will hear only how they oppose the positions of the other two candidates. You will hear very little about why you should support them, only why you should not support the others. That's because there is little reason to vote for any of them.
Conservative or liberal,
Right or left,
Republican or democrat,
Thinking or ideological
Sane or insane,
It's not pretty.
7. : shrug : Bush basically did the same thing. Sure, he had a commission, but then he said "Forget it, Dick, I want you to run with me."
I also don't think Lieberman would be a bad pick. He'd be a dangerous one, I grant you that, it would risk social conservatives sitting on their hands, but it would play well with independents.
8. A McCain-Lieberman ticket would probably be pretty darn strong. Most voters don't want hard-line ideology. In a time of war a unity ticket makes a lot of sense.
McCain-Huckabee might make social conservatives feel good but it probably means eight years (well, at least four years) of having a D President.
9. Just come out and say it straight - the only Republican you will support on the VP slot is one that is staunchly anti-immigrant.
It's really a shame that it comes down to that one issue.
10. McCain needs to find a strong VP candidate that not only conservatives could feel comfrotable with, but one that is not so over the top that they would drive away the independent vote (that leaves Hucakabee out). It probably would not hurt if they were a bit younger than McCain as that will surely be an issued raised by the MSM. I really do not feel any of the former candidates fill these ,for lack of a better wordm "qualifications". I think McCain would be smart to pick up someone like Michael Steele as I believe he would be fairly well received by both conservatives and independents.
11. If social conservatives are so short-sighted that they'll risk handing the White House to a liberal Democrat just to spite John McCain, then they deserve the results. It's a shame the rest of us will have to live with them as well.
McCain should pick the VP he thinks will make the best VP. Period.
Personally (not that I expect him to ask what I think), I liked Thompson for VP, but he says he isn't interested.
Oh and as for #2, does Obama's soothing shade of latte confer some special powers on him that I am not aware of? No? Then I think I'll vote for the guy with the most experience. So sorry he is not your preferred color.
12. I have just two words...Tim Pawlenty.
13. A McCain-Lieberman ticket (Republican-Independent) might be just the trick to drive the Democrat Party into the minority for a decade or more, until the baby boomer corruption has passed. And should McCain die in office, President Lieberman would infuriate our European and Islamist enemies.
14. It is not just social conservatives that dislike McCain. McCain better pick a good VP candidate, or he loses. McCain has yet to pick up the support of his base and selecting a Liebermann or Graham will set the GOP back 2 to 4 years just on the down ballot massacre.
Right now I am not voting for McCain. Every week he says something that reminds me why I don't want him to be President or a U.S. Senator. At least he looks and sounds very old, meaning there is a decent chance that his Veep selection may become President in the next term.
15. "I also don't think Lieberman would be a bad pick. He'd be a dangerous one, I grant you that, it would risk social conservatives sitting on their hands, but it would play well with independents."
It would risk more than social conservatives if McCain selects a leftwing, statist U.S. Senator to be his running mate. McCain is pissing off all conservatives, except the statist wing and some of the Natl. Defense wing.
16. " Just come out and say it straight - the only Republican you will support on the VP slot is one that is staunchly anti-immigrant. It's really a shame that it comes down to that one issue." - Doug
It's anti-illegals, not anti-immigrant, and that is not the only issues where McCain is totally off of the reservation.
If McCain picks Huckabee, who meats the anti-illegals qualifications, he still is picking a loser as Huckabee is a big statist himself.
Doug, it is people like you who are killing our party. You moderates have reduced us back to minority party status.
17. On Fox News Sunday, Chris Wallace interviewed Carly Fiorrana, former HP head and McCain Economic advisor. Chris mentioned that Carly is considered by some a VP candidate for McCain. I think this would be a huge mistake because (1) she isn't a Politician, so she hasn't been vetted like the other governors, senators, and house members, and (2) if she was vetted, it would come out why she is no longer head of HP. In the IT world, she was not seen as an effective head for HP. She had mediocre performance and while she highly touted the merger of Compaq and HP, it has not had the success she touted. She was replaced as CEO because HP was underperforming. If McCain wanted business credentials, then he should look to Romney. If he wants female credentials, there are plenty of other quality female Republican politicians. Fioranna is not a risk that McCain should take, period.
19. #3 Suzi,I too felt the disappointed with M-M-M McCain.See I can hardly say it.Put a red,white and blue clothes pin on your nose and vote for McCain.The upside is that you cancelled Duffman's vote!
20. The point of this post is to say that you're genuinely worried that John McCain is choosing his own vice-presidential nominee? really? You think that's weird? You'd rather have leadership-by-committee? Perhaps a televised America's-Next-Top-GOP-VP competition?
Maybe I'm just weird. Maybe I think it's incredibly normal for a presidential candidate to choose their own vice-presidential candidate.. In fact, I'd be extremely worried if they didn't. :|
Also, you seem upset that John McCain is not adhering to conservative orthodoxy... Is this John McCain character new to you? Have you heard or read about him before? He kinda has a substantial record in this regard.... Are you suggesting you want him to completely change his whole style now for the sake of people who have fought him his whole career? Really?
I mean, there are plenty of reasons to criticize John McCain. But to criticize him because he has the gall to stick with the same principals that made him successful... just comes off as excessively naive.