Winter Doldrums with John McCain

I was listening to Dee yesterday, and she mentioned something about a winter depression, enhanced due to the GOP ride on the Straight to the Left Express. Couple this with Obamamania, and the wildly enthusiastic energy and (blind and uninformed) broad support that he is drawing, and it takes real positive thinking to dig ourselves out of the hole conservatism is now in.

But first, let's talk bluntly about where we are now. In November, John McCain will be the shit sandwich that conservatives must eat, lest a true liberal get in the White House. This gives us no choice that we can really get behind. Any third party candidate will be a game of waste-a-vote, and I can't see any candidate appearing that would be interesting to see in the public discourse. And come the day after the election, there's more likely to be mourning in America rather than "morning in America".

This is because the GOP has shifted, in general, to the left. This is clearly not good. There has always been a more liberal part of the party. This has been good, in a sense, as it means we discuss the issues rather than falling in lockstep with knee-jerk reactions like the Democrats. But for the conservative base to be ignored in large part by the presumed nominee is a sign that we are losing the party.

Now, to his credit, McCain is more conservative than liberal, and if he can become a leader rather than a legislator, pick a solid conservative as his vice president, and, in effect, prostrates himself before the conservative base, then most of us will vote for him despite our better judgment. But as for getting out and enthusiastically supporting him? I don't see it happening, even if he does everything he can to gain our trust. Most of the party establishment has fallen behind McCain, but it will take the conservative base to give him the momentum and energy. And McCain has done enough to piss us off that he might be able to get it. In 2012. If he manages to get elected. And he governs as a conservative.

Okay, that's enough of the negative. Let's look at the positive.

The conservative base is now motivated to find and elect as many conservatives to state and federal positions as possible. After Newt's Declaration, that means conservative Republicans, Democrats, and Independents, as well as our Libertarian brothers and sisters. We will continue to to remind John McCain of every misstep he has made over the last decade. And if McCain doesn't win over the base, we will begin looking for candidates for the next election and resign ourselves to four years of socialism, which will be likely to reawaken conservatism as it did in 1980.

Either way, even in the darkest of times, the light of truth and the words of wisdom that gave conservatism sustenance through the 70's, shone forth in the 80's, still guided the politics of the 90's, and only faded in this decade, shall give us the strength to continue the fight. And fight we shall.