Exploiting the 'McCain Factor'

If you've surfed the conservative blogs and their incandescent comments, you've been inundated by Cassandras convinced that John McCain will be the ruin of the Republican Party.  Others blame conservatives for their late arrival to the Romney party. 

Although past posts on this blog have been severely critical of McCain and his checkered voting record, not to mention his sponsorship of legislation clearly out of the conservative mainstream, there's a fact that many critics fail to recognize:  That is, the reason McCain will probably win the nomination is less the fault of conservatives than it is of the electorate nationwide. 

Thanks to political correctness, which has transformed the act of judging others into a felony, our public education system that has successfully inculcated an entire generation with the alleged virtues of secular humanism, and the omnipresent efforts to feminize our culture, the very notion of 'convservatism' connotes callousness, Darwinian capitalism, and avarice.

That's why even an ostensible conservative like Romney fell prey to health insurance mandates while governor, why Huckabee is off the reservation on trade, and why McCain gleefully advanced his 'cap and trade' bill with Senator Lieberman, which is little more than conservative penance and a tax increase in the guise of caring.  And, therein is how the left adroitly--if cravenly--framed their policy agenda:  You see, if you care about people it doesn't matter whether or not you're adhering to constitutional principles, to fiscal austerity, to a strong defense, which is to say, short-term, emotionally charged messages trump the heavy slog of two-dimensional policies that bring out the best in people in the long-term.

So, when McCain vilifies corporations, as he did in last week's debate, he's betraying a liberal pedigree, but so thoroughly has the media, academia, and the entertainment industry tainted the business world that he can do so with complete impunity.  And, when he chastises President Bush for his position on climate change, he's in perfect lock step with the Democrats who are convinced that man is responsible for every ill facing our planet, with Americans at the top of the list.

However, despite all of this, we shouldn't succumb to the siren song of political resignation because that plays right into the Democrats' plan to win the White House.  In contrast, if McCain wins the nomination, we should exploit the obvious advantages he can leverage:  Independents, which constitute the fastest growing political cohort in America, will flock to him in disproportionate numbers, and Lieberman Democrats (the modern equivalent of Scoop Jackson) will be drawn to his urgent plea to defend American global interests.

In brief, let's recognize why McCain's candidacy has headed to the stratosphere and use it to beat our common enemy, the unequivocally liberal Clinton and Obama platform, which is even more liberal than Senator Kerry's in 2004. 

Despondency and a morose attitude aren't politically attractive, which is to say they don't win elections.  There's much about McCain we don't like, but if he's our fate, let's sharpen him to a razor's edge and prepare for November.