Sell It Somewhere Else, McCain

Fred Barnes (gee what a shocker) writes about John McCain's efforts to re-package himself for the conservative grassroots. But McCain's problem is ... John McCain:

Mr. McCain will have to take the initiative to repair the relationship, and he appears ready to do just that.

At least two characteristics make McCain unacceptable, no matter how much he tries to spin himself into a conservative now. He first opposed issues around the war and Bush's tax cuts because of lingering animosity towards George Bush, resulting from the 2000 campaign. He's proved himself a man unable to stand on principle, especially conservative ones, when his emotions are involved. That makes him politically untrustworthy, at best.

The second big problem is the media image as a maverick McCain cultivated for selfish reasons, because the press, and particularly the electronic media, loved slobbering over an alleged Republican consistently happy to attack the base and even his own Republican President. First and foremost, John McCain is about John McCain - and it shows.

Add in his well-known liberal positions on taxes, voting to raise them fifty-some times, his true liberal position on Immigration, one he admits to not having given up, and you end up with a last minute flip-flopping candidate with the image of a maverick that suggests his newly discovered Conservative positions are not ones conservatives can trust.

Once McCain gets what he wants and needs from conservatives, their votes, and due to his advanced age, he's already speculated about no second term, the liberal maverick will be free to do as he pleases as President. He'll have nothing to lose. And what John McCain wants is unacceptable to the base.

Rudy and Romney may have issues with the base. What they lack is McCain's selfish, and selfishly created, legacy of distrust. Obviously the media, particularly The Weekly Standard, aren't going to get over their McCain fixation until he actually fails to win the nomination.

Oh well, it'll be a glowing political obituary when that happens, if nothing else.

Comments

[Roy Mustang]

McCain is known as a mavrick because, despite being a loyal Reagan foot soldier, he came out against Reagan's troop deployment to Lebanon.

You can decide for yourelf whether that was good to go against Reagan in that situation.

FYI, a truly selfish person would have taken the offer to be released from torture camp before everyone else. It seems like you're more against his personality and what you deem to be his motives than his policies.

[Nipperdj]

McCain has a money problem that could be the most insurmountable problem of all. He is low on funds and Florida requires ALOT of money.

At this stage, the institutional money givers (read PAC's) have already given what they will to his primary funds. Any institutional group that hasn't given to him yet, will be either waiting to see Florida results, or they are ideologically opposed to funding his campaign.

He can go in search of individual donors via email, direct mail, internet or event fund raisers. Right now event fund raisers are pretty much off the table (the reasons for this are many but trust me on this one). Direct mail is expensive and low yield in such a short time frame. That leaves email solicitations and online donations. Many who would would respond to such an outreach have already given and tend to be very ideologically oriented.

McCain has a very narrow ideological group to himself and I don't see there being a great swell of new support. He will bring in some money but not as fast nor in the amounts that he needs. So he has a money problem. Pushing his message in Florida will require MSM cooperation and positive polling. He won't be able to buy the air time otherwise.

More of my McCain analysis and some personal observations (I worked in Arizona with alot of the Republican establishment) is at horsepuckeyalert.blogspot.com

[larry smith]

It seems to me that everyone seems be overlooking the fact that McCain only got to this point on an opportunistic gamble that Huckabee could pander himself a victory in Iowa. His gamble paid off, and he showed his true colors in NH. He has been progressively shedding that skin since NH, and give him credit has snowed alot of Republicans in the process. I believe the snow job will end in the baumy climate of Florida though. Unless Rudy folds uo his tent, which is highly unlikely, Romney will take him out in the time still left. A week is an eternity for McClean. In his dreams he wished the vote was tomorrow, because time is his worse enemy right now, no pun intended.

[tally]

at least i know where mccain is coming from, romney is the one i don't trust at all. however, i'm sticking with rudy for now.

[Greg Neubeck]

Having meticulously planned their coveted return to the White House for several years now, the Clintons will certainly not exit the scene with grace or dignity. This is the political duo that honed "The Politics Of Personal Destruction" into an artform; and, most certainly will not tolerate, who is in their mind, the "upstart Obama" to derail Hillary's pre-choreographed coronation.
With regards Slick's comments on Obama's Iraq record; and, the draft dodger's false accusation of flip flopping on the Iraq issue against Obama: It was actually Hillary who was the serial flip-flopper on this issue. Obama to his credit, as a matter of conscience, refused to deny American troops the funding for the bullets and equipment that they required to survive in ongoing combat. Hillary, on the other hand, with no such compelling principles, was one of only two U.S. Senators who voted to deny funding for essential equipments for our troops who they had "previously" voted to commit to lethal combat. A despicable breach of trust with the young men and women laying their lives on the line in defense of our Nation. Obama made the classical rookie error of not responding to Slick's false accusation, which he could have easily turned to Hillary's well deserved detriment
Barrack and his supporters best be prepared for the "Political Lynching" that will rival anything previously witnessed in Presidential politics.
Slick and Hilla-the-Hun, the Perpetual Victim, have repeatedly demonstrated a vicious mud-slinger demeanor that is unprecedented whenever their political dynasty has been threatened in the past. Just ask anyone of their innumerable victims.

Greg Neubeck

[jjshaka]

His good friend is Chuck Hagel- nuff ced'

Oh, and he seriously considered being Kerrys Veep in 04.

There is a reason the media shills for him and slams Mitt Romney.