theclosetconservative.com

As of this post, I’ve just finished watching the Republican debate, (with four candidates now that Rudy’s dropped out.) If anyone needed a reason to think Senator McCain is a pompous petulant brat, and you didn’t have the chance to see the debate, please set your dvr to catch the re-feed or look for it on YouTube.

Anderson Cooper, would ask a question about who would be qualified to lead economically, (Romney’s strong suit naturally,) he gave a well thought out answer. John McCain gave a longwinded dissertation of his war record.

Ron Paul provided a measure of comic relief. He reminded me of Phil Hartman (God rest his soul) playing the part of Admiral Stockdale in a sketch with Dana Carvey as Ross Perot. Come to think of it some of John McCain’s grimaces when Governor Romney answered any question are a Saturday Night Live bit waiting to happen.

 I came away from this program more impressed by Governor Huckabee than I wanted to be. But he actually answers questions. When Anderson Cooper asked everyone why they thought Ronald Reagan would endorse them, Governor Huckabee said he couldn’t be that arrogant as to make such an assumption, but that he (Huckabee) endorsed Ronald Reagan. He started speaking about the beloved former President in such a way that when the camera went to Nancy Reagan she seemed on the verge of tears.

Ironically this was the one exchange where Mitt Romney lost me a little bit. When asked the question did he think Ronald Reagan would endorse him, he immediately said yes. He gave a very well thought out answer reverant to Reagan’s policies and ideals. I just wished he had shown the same level of humility that Huckabee did.

One leaves with the impression (in my case hope) that John McCain’s numbers will go down. The Frank Luntz focus group had someone who thought McCain took too many cheap shots. Half favored Mitt Romney. Half liked Mike Huckabee. With one McCain supporter switching to Romney. Someone who did not like Huckabee has now switched.

 Bottom line, if Florida voters had seen this debate, John McCain might not be so smug tonight. Mitt Romney might…might have a chance, and whatever Mike Huckabee’s numbers were before, I’d look for them to come up as well. And if Ron Paul still has the courage to show up, hopefully the next anchor won’t treat him like part of the furniture.

A McCain victory in the Florida primary represents a potential disaster for conservatives and the Republican party. You’ve probably heard this one before but it bears repeating. He has (jokingly or mockingly depending on your point of view) been referred to as every Democrat’s favorite Republican. In order to gain such praise (not to mention party invitations) from the left, you first have to sell out the values of the voters that elected you in the first place. Here’s a few items.

A. McCain Feingold: a liberal favoring ban on the 1’st Ammendmant rights during elections.

B. McCain Kennedy Amnesty Bill for illegal aliens. (If you reward illegal behavior you don’t stop it, you get more.)

C. Gang of 14. The senators that got together to thwart the attempt of Republicans to use the “nuclear option” preventing the filibuster of Conservative Judges.

D. Don’t even get me started on refusal to support the Bush tax cuts. Oh wait! He just experienced a conversion and now wants to make them permanent.

Some clarification needs to be done on C. The nuclear option was referred to that way because in the end, a 51 vote majority as opposed to a 60 vote super majority would be needed to go forward with judges.  A simple majority vote would have allowed that rule change. A change which wouldn’t be needed but for the fact that the Democrats began a filibuster process against any judge that they didn’t like. No such blatant attempt to usurp majority rule in Congress had ever been attempted before. (At least not in the context of judicial nominations.)

Florida voters may wonder what good options there are. Fred Thompson has dropped out. Although some religious conservatives were staunchly opposed to Rudy Giuliani, given his stance on judges, taxes, and national defense, he seemed to offer the most practical choice to all three conservative groups: Religious, economic, and national defense. But if you can believe any of the polling data, he seems to be flatlining.

Therefore the closet conservative must conclude that the best choice for all three of the afformentioned groups is former Massachusetts Govorner: Mitt Romney. After the New Hamshire debate, and the reviews from the Frank Luntz focus group, he seemed on his way to winning that state. However, New Hampshire is an open primary state where Democrats can jump in to mess things up. Florida’s Republican primary is only open to registered Republicans, which means its our best chance to stop the so called “Straight Talk Express” in its tracks. I respect John McCain for his service to our country. As Dennis Miller said on “The O’Reilly Factor” (And I’m paraphrasing) “Anyone who can withstand 5 years in the Hanoi Hilton is made of sterner stuff than we are.”  But being former POW does not entitle him to the presidency. (Particularly worrisome is the fact that he classifies dripping water down a terrorist’s nose as torture.) Mayor Giuliani seems to have more foreign policy credentials than does Govorner Romney, and Romney has changed some of his opinions over the years. But if a gut call means anything, the former Massachusetts governor seems more credible than the sitting senator from Arizona.

The closet conservative is not moved by the opinions of Fred Barnes or Bill Krystol of Fox News Channel and the Weekly Standard. They were McCain cheerleaders in 2000, and still are. It’s also important to remember that they favor the liberal version of immigration reform.

It is the conclusion of this writer that a vote for Govorner Romney in the Florida primary represents the best choice for conservatives. John McCain needs to be stopped now before he gets what Former President Nixon once referred to as “Media Steroids” that would surely be the result of a Florida victory on Tuesday January 29th.