Why McCain, And Not Fred?

I imagine most of us who follow Republican politics are thinking the same thing - Michelle spells it out:

Would you, could you, vote McCain?

Both the media and poll movement favor McCain right now.  I told a few people over Christmas he's currently the guy to watch. With widespread dissatisfaction across the top tier, he's a likely fall back candidate. But would he end up being just another Bob Dole to a Clinton in 2008, especially as so many conservatives have a problem with McCain?

I'm not ready to answer the question, yet and I have another thought depending on how the campaign re-shapes itself in about three weeks - and it will after Iowa and New Hampshire. If Romney folds, and Rudy and Huckabee tank, none of which should be conceded, what if a struggling to get his legs under him Fred Thompson hangs around just enough to be positioned to take up a two man race against McCain?

I think I'd rather back a genuine conservative, as opposed to one in media darling clothing who would likely do nothing but infuriate the Republican base, assuming he ever did get elected.

From all acounts, McCain is broke and so is Fred. They'd be starting on equal footing in Republican primary 2.08 if it came to that and the South is just coming into play.

Comments

[Steven Den Beste]

I'll never forgive him for the McCain-Feingold act.

[Mike]

The one problem with that scenario is that 2 of the three people you list bowing out, will not because they have the money to go a greater distance than McCain and Thompson...Mitt and Rudy have much more money and will stay in the public eye much longer. If McCain can't pull off a NH win, I imagine he'll resort to free (media)campaigning, Fred and Huckabee on the other hand, if they don't show, will be SOL. Rudy's low numbers are amazing though...it would seem a familiar face (McCain) is driving a lot of what's going on.

[Roy Mustang]

Besides illegals issue, Thompson and McCain's voting records are virtually identical.

That being said, I think McCain has gotten the message that we do not want amensty for criminals.

All McCain needs to do is get his buddy Thompson to run as his VP to shore up his conservative credentials.

[Tregonsee]

McCain-Feingold is still a huge problem for movement Conservatives, as is his grandstanding disruption of Frist's effort to invoke the constitutional option on judicial appointments, contempt for Evangelicals, and late conversion on the illegal alien issue. FDT does not have any of these skeletons in his closet, and should he be in the race by the time they get to my state's primary, he will get my vote.

I can and will vote for McCain in the general election, but fortunately voting machines only record the vote, not the enthusiasm with which it was cast.

[Yoda]

Damaged judgment, Hanoi Hilton did. Unsuitable for oval office, he is.

[seekeronos]

McCain reminds me of a really bad cold I once had... very phlegmy and it stuck around for an unbearably long time... but eventually, it went away.

Hopefully he tanks and leaves some room for Fred to move on up.

[Roy Mustang]

McCain-Feingold: Stupid but genuine attempt at campaign finance reform. God awful piece of legislation that McCain (after seeing the results) should be ashamed of.

Gang of 14: Myers was scarified for Alito. I would have made this trade too. Save the nuke for when Justice Stevens retires/dies (assuming GOP has won back the Senate by then).

[TheSpartan]

"I think McCain has gotten the message that we do not want amensty for criminals."

Tell it to Scooter Libby...more like you don't want amnesty for brown criminals.

[Roy Mustang]

So what if Libby committed perjury when he said he didn't have sexual relations with Valarie Plame? What was he supposed to do? Tell the truth?
I think I may be combining two perjury cases into one...

Are you saying most illegals are "brown"? You racist.

[JustADude]

Any one who trusts a poll that close to Christmas time could probably be fooled into attempting to climb a flashlight beam.

[edward cropper]

The one thing most people credit McCain with is his courage in acting out his true feelings. If that is the case, then McCain's true feelings are, suppression of free speech,(McCain-Feingold), open borders, (McCain-Kennedy amnesty fiasco), taxes, (didn't support Bush's tax cuts.)
How could anyone really trust this guy to maintain a conservative attitude if he suddenly has one of his temper tantrums and goes off the deep end.
While I deeply respect McCain's military service to his country, that in reality is not relevant from a solely political point of view.
I can name several military heroes who have shown themselves to be political scoundrels. John Mitchell, John Kerry, Duke Cunningham, John Murtha, Chuck Hegel and Benedict Arnold.
I am interested in what John McCain will do in the White House not on the battle field, since that is no longer an option.
Being an early Goldwater supporter I guess I have been spoiled expecting a political candidate to actually say what they mean and mean what they say.
No on in either party fits that category to day so we are stuck with anyone who may come close. I am still looking.

[seekeronos]

TheSpartan saith:

"--- Tell it to Scooter Libby...more like you don't want amnesty for brown criminals. ---"

Roy Mustang respondeth:

"--- Are you saying most illegals are "brown"? You racist. ---"

"Brown" people indeed. Funny thing how the far-left liberal moonbat fringe can be racist in a way that would make some members of Stormfront.org blush.

[Regina Draper]

Thompson, President, McCain, VP I predict this outcome. I know most think I'm crazy, maybe I am, but I see McCain eventually (I SAID eventually) backing out and backing my guy, Fred Thompson. Wishful thinking? Perhaps, and perhaps I'm just crazy enough to prophesy. (JK) That being said, Fred HAS to be the GOP's nominee, if we can truly call ourselves CONSERVATIVE!!!!!!! McCain would make a fine VP for Fred, they like each other.

[seekeronos]

Heh. I could tolerate a Thompson/McCain ticket, though I'd really like a Thompson/Hunter or a Thompson/Keyes ticket much, much better.

Keyes might be a blustering stuffed shirt, but he'd be great on the stump if he had some good handlers keeping him under tight management. And to borrow a page from TheSpartan's playbook, he is one smart coloured man.

[seekeronos]

Fred's back with his Red Truck! Stop by http://www.fred08.com/ to check it out, or pitch in a few bucks to fill up his gas tank at https://www.fred08.com/Contribute.aspx ...

... and while yer at it, his new ad rocks. Definitely, Fred is heating up.

[TheSpartan]

Seek, "brown" is an accepted even promoted term amongst latino and hispanic communities, pardon me for being in tune with the current lingo.

As for the comment, you guys couldn't refute that so you went straight for a red herring, typical.

[TheSpartan]

If they want a great new ad for Fred they should show him getting a checkup so we can all be shown he actually has a pulse.

[seekeronos]

Fred has a pulse alrighty. But don't you worry your pretty little head over it.

As for your "brown" meme - I've heard it used in reference to Latinos and Mesoamerican native peoples as well as Middle-Easterners, so I've no other frame of reference aside from the obvious reference to skin colour.

Which in the end, really doesn't matter much: if you migrate to this country illegally (i.e. without going through the system) - you are a criminal, and should be dealt with accordingly.

The only reason why the "brown" (Latinos/Mesoamericans) seem to be the most widely represented group among illegal migrants might have something to do with that humongous, unguarded (read: open) border we have with Mexico.

[Fred Beloit]

"..."brown" is an accepted even promoted term amongst latino and hispanic communities..."

Oh, lordy day in the mewnin'. That Spartan is sssooo hip. He knows the internal speechifying of the "latino and hispanic" communities. All y'all so square; you know jack.

But seriously, or at least semi-seriously, class, can you give me an example of an absurdity piled on an irrationality? I'll start: a poll about an Iowa caucus. Your turn.

[TheSpartan]

I can't hear you above the din demanding a fenced border with Canada.

[Fred Beloit]

We're gonna need that fence soon, Spart. They are trying to knock off free speech and free press up there. Ask Mark Steyn.

[Fred Beloit]

By the way, Spart, you wrote: "As for the comment, you guys couldn't refute that so you went straight for a red herring, typical."

Were you talking about yourself or someone else?

[Fred Beloit]

Steyn saga here:

http://www.steynonline.com/content/view/823/36/

[seekeronos]

Funny thing that Canadian fence.

Then again, we don't have millions of Canadians or even Inuit sneaking under cover of night into the USA. It seems that despite a few close brushes with socialism, that Canada gets by just fine.

Mexico on the other hand, has endemic corruption and a dysfunctional economy when compared to the Canadian and the United States standards... and a very significant migration problem of their own, as even poorer OTMs (Lations/Mesoamericans other than Mexicans) are permitted to move through Mexico and expelled through the MX/US border.

So yeah, I'll take the idea of relocating several Nat'l Guard and even regular infantry, Air Cav and armour divisions to patrol the MX/US borders and ensure that legal migration occurs within certain limits at the appropriate ports of entry, and use less force to ensure that enemy alien movement accross the CDN/US border is minimized: because the RCMP and other units play ball with us much more nicely when it comes to regulating migration on either side of that border.

[seekeronos]

(above posted during Fred B.'s comment.)

Off I go to check out Mr. Steyn's always informative writings. :)

[memomachine]

Hmmmm.

I absolutely will not vote for McCain.

And if Thompson signs on as McCain's VP then I won't vote for him either.

[seekeronos]

I won't vote for a McCain presidency either. But a Thompson POTUS with a McCain VP I can accept. McCain will be little more than a hatrack, and might even redeem himself to the base.

However, I don't think that Fred Thompson will pick McCain. If Fred remains consistent with his campaign thus far, Duncan Hunter or Alan Keyes seem like more reasonable choices.

Of course, that is not taking into account the wheeling-and-dealing that will happen at the GOPNatCon this summer... which might very well make a McCain VP very possible on account of McCain's base, if it remains as sizeable as it is now.

[TheSpartan]

Alan Keyes? Would he be going for the crazy vote?

[seekeronos]

"--- Alan Keyes? Would he be going for the crazy vote? ---"

He actually has a lot of sound, conservative principles that he works from. I just think he did a horrible job of marketing himself, and his personal style made him seem a bit hard to approach.

Fred (assuming he picks him as a VP mate) could do an excellent job of grooming him and smoothing out the rough edges - and come 2016, he'd be well seasoned enough to be taken seriously as a contender for POTUS.

And lastly, he's a black man running on the Reagan Republican mold: how cool would that be! He would be a key point of what the Republican party is all about - success for any American who puts his or her best foot forward *regardless* of his skin colour or heritage.

[TheSpartan]

The fact you're touting him as a "black man running on the Reagan Republican mold" proves it wouldn't be "regardless" of his skin color but rather because.

And if you need to rely on Better Dead than Fred to groom him then you've got greater problems than I thought.

[seekeronos]

"--- Better Dead than Fred ---"

Interesting that you have a fear that the Fredmentum might just pick up in Iowa... although being that you are a leftie, perhaps you should be more worried about your girl Hillary getting trounced by Oprahbama.

"--- The fact you're touting him as a "black man running on the Reagan Republican mold" proves... ---"

...it proves that our party (the GOP) is much less beholden to identity politics and race-baiting than the Dems - in fact, the GOP *is* the party of liberty and equal opportunity -- for those people with the drive to succeed.

[TheSpartan]

Even Ken Mehlman admits the GOP has a horrible record on race.

As for Hillary v. Obama, I don't have a dog in the fight...I haven't decided who I support yet. Either way I'd be more comfortable with any of the Dem candidates than any of the repub candidates.

[seekeronos]

On Dan's OP:

"--- Both the media and poll movement favor McCain right now. ---"

Yup, the MSM and the pollmeisters that they control are totally in "Anybody but Fred" mode. They are running scared until the results of IA caucus and the SC primary are in.

"--- Even Ken Mehlman admits the GOP has a horrible record on race. ---"

Dunno about that, but as far as I can see, the Dems have done much worse (1950s/60s resistance to desegregation, continual love for identity politics which serves more to hem people into convenient racial pigeonholes and fed off the entitlement teat rather than appealing to them to reach beyond them and become prosperous through hardwork and applied intelligence) although occasionally one encounters the country club mentality - but this malady affects elites regardless of political affiliation.

"--- Either way I'd be more comfortable with any of the Dem candidates than any of the repub candidates. ---"

Kinda figured that would have been a foregone conclusion you'd like any Dem candidate over the GOP offerings. :P

[TheSpartan]

Mehlman admitted the GOP adopted a "Southern Strategy" in order to court white votes at the expense of Black civil rights...and as far as the Democratic Party, certainly you're right about the 50's and 60's but it's also true that many of those southern dems were the target of the courtship of the "Southern Strategy" to begin with. To think the democratic party of the 50's and 60's bears much resemblance to the party of today is ludicrous.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-07-14-GOP-racial-politics_x.htm

[Fred Beloit]

""Some Republicans gave up on winning the African-American vote, looking the other way or trying to benefit politically from racial polarization," Mehlman said at the annual convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. "I am here today as the Republican chairman to tell you we were wrong."

Mehlman asserts Republicans were wrong.

Now it is Julian Bond's turn to admit the National Association for the Advancement Colored People has only favored the advancement of leftist colored people and supported the decline of conservative colored people. Don't you agree, Spart?