McCain A Conservative, Opposing View

I say No, AP says Yes

Hey folks,

As you know, yesterday morning, I posted a warning to the Conservatives and Independents out there that may want to believe that McCain is a Conservative. I explained all the reasons why I do not believe he is, and wanted to let you know some facts so that you will not be fooled like many were with the Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger. However, dealing with what we have, I said this Yesterday morning.

"Do I agree with him on Global Warming? Nope. Amnesty? Nope. Hindrance of Free Speech? Nope. I bet you I will be calling him out on a great many topics in the future. But part of me, deep down inside, truly believes that he actually means well. That he will do stupid things that may or may not actually damage America in the process, but he will TRULY think it’s for the best. Not for himself as the others, but for the Country.

So I truly believe, right now, at this time, he IS the best person for the job. I can think of MANY more, better choice candidates, but we have what we have. Just do not think for one second that McCain is a Conservative. He’s far from it."

Well, a friend of mine pointed this out. They said "This is interesting. You posted McCain is no Conservative at 5:08am and the AP posted this at 10:22am that he is. Hmm?"

OK first, there is NO WAY that this was in response to my daily article. Absolutely and unequivocally no relationship to it whatsoever. But since I thought it was an interesting opposing view, I decided to use it this morning.

According to the AP - McCain: More conservative than his image

By LIBBY QUAID
Mon Apr 14, 10:22 AM ET

The independent label sticks to John McCain because he antagonizes fellow Republicans and likes to work with Democrats.

But a different label applies to his actual record: conservative.

The likely Republican presidential nominee is much more conservative than voters appear to realize. McCain leans to the right on issue after issue, not just on the Iraq war but also on abortion, gay rights, gun control and other issues that matter to his party's social conservatives.

Now as we get into this a bit, I want you to know that my first gut reaction is that this is nothing more than a hit piece on McCain. An attempt to disenfranchise Independents and the more Liberal Republicans from voting for him. As you know, I'm not a big fan of McCain's, but even while attempting to "prove" that he IS a Conservative, they fail. {Smile} Trust me.

The four-term Arizona senator, a longtime member of the Armed Services Committee, criticized the earlier handling of the war but has been a crucial ally in President Bush's effort to increase and maintain U.S. forces in Iraq.

Besides the war, McCain agrees broadly with Bush and other conservatives on:

_Abortion. McCain promises to appoint judges who, in the mold of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, are likely to limit the reach of the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion. McCain's record is not spotless on abortion: He said once, in 1999, that Roe v. Wade should not be overturned.

His point to his comment had nothing to do with Abortion. His point was he was going to appoint Judges that believe in and will follow the Constitution and not attempt to further Liberal agendas from the bench. But this right here is my point. He has said and done things in the past that contradict his "positions" today.

But that was an aberration in an otherwise unbroken record of opposing abortion rights for women. McCain voted repeatedly to ban federal funding for abortion; he once voted against Medicaid funds for abortion even in cases of rape or incest.

He voted to require parental consent for abortion and voted to criminalize anyone but a parent crossing state lines with a minor to help get an abortion. McCain also supported a ban preventing women in the military from getting abortions with their own money at overseas military hospitals.

As for Parental rights, I agree with him whole heartily on that. So should ANY sane parent.

"I am pro-life and an advocate for the rights of man everywhere in the world," McCain told the Conservative Political Action Conference in February. "Because to be denied liberty is an offense to nature and nature's Creator."

Yup. But he also said that he is against BANING it. Not that he is against Abortion in general.

_Gay rights. McCain opposes gay marriage. True, he does not support a federal ban on gay marriage on grounds the issue traditionally has been decided by states. But McCain worked to ban gay marriage in Arizona. He also supports the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy, and he opposed legislation to protect gay people from job discrimination or hate crimes.

"I'm proud to have led an effort in my home state to change our state constitution and to protect the sanctity of marriage as between a man and woman," he told CNN in March. "I will continue to advocate for those fundamental principals of our party and our faith."

But he will not ban it at the federal level, leaving it up to the States to decide. Remember what I was talking about with Arnold?

_Gun control. McCain voted against a ban on assault-style weapons and for shielding gun-makers and dealers from civil suits. He did vote in favor of requiring background checks at gun shows, but in general he sides with the National Rifle Association in favor of gun rights.

"In General" {Laughing} So their problem is that he is not Lib enough against guns. I agree that Gun-Makers have no legal responsibility when some idiot shoots someone. But some Libs out there do. Just like some want insane legislation allowing Alcohol Producers to be liable for some idiot that drinks and drives. What about the car companies? If they did not make the car, the drunk would not have been able to drive it while drunk. Idiots.

When the Supreme Court held arguments last month on Washington, D.C.'s handgun ban, McCain said it was "a landmark case for all Americans who believe, as I do, that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to keep and bear arms."

It does.

His conservatism could be a problem for McCain — particularly if this November's contest is as close as recent presidential elections, which were decided by independent-minded voters in the center of the political spectrum.

Which is the point of this article.

But he might avoid this problem to the extent people know him as an independent-minded politician. And many do view him that way.

"People see him as a centrist. They don't see him as a conservative," said Andrew Kohut, president of the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

"In fact, they put him pretty close to themselves, in terms of ideology, and put President Bush way to the right of themselves," Kohut said.

In a national Pew survey earlier this year, voters placed McCain in the middle, where they placed themselves, when asked to judge the ideology of Bush and the presidential candidates. They placed Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama far to the left.

And voters who back Clinton and Obama are open to McCain.

Nearly a third of Clinton supporters said they would back McCain if Obama becomes the Democratic nominee, and more than a quarter of Obama supporters said they would back McCain over Clinton, according to Associated Press-Ipsos polling released Thursday.

That's not it folks. They WILL switch sides and vote for him, much like they did against the Republican Congress in 06 because they want to make a point. If they think that the DNC steals their vote and awards the nomination to someone that LOSES the popular vote, they said they would vote for McCain. NOT because they want to. Nor because they like the man. They will do so out of anger and frustration of the DNC.

Democrats are trying to change the perception of McCain. The Democratic National Committee insists that McCain's election would amount to a third term for Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.

"All he offers is four more years of the failed Bush economy, an endless war in Iraq and shameless hypocrisy on ethics reform," DNC Chairman Howard Dean said last month.

All about the War.

Whatever the general image of McCain, the Christian right is deeply suspicious of him despite his many conservative positions. McCain has clashed with its leaders. He called televangelists Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell "agents of intolerance" and has often worked against them.

As a LIBERAL. That is the point. Not that I'm a big fan of either of these two guys. The point is, McCain has not just worked against the Christian Right, but that he has worked against what many Conservatives see as moral issues.

He splits from the right over research which extracts stem cells from human embryos in an effort to develop treatments for Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and a range of other diseases. Conservatives object because human embryos are destroyed; McCain supports the research.

Because he is ignorant on the subject. As is anyone that supports this FAILED research. Many other areas in stem cell research DO show promise. But I have talked about that extensively here. Embryonic Stem cells have produced NOTHING. But that research has been linked to Abortion rights. This is why this failed research is defended passionately.

His record offends not only social conservatives but many fiscal conservatives, too. He pushed to limit the influence of money in politics through campaign finance reforms that, critics say, stomp on the constitutional right to free speech.

It does.

He backs a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, which many of his party's most conservative members oppose.

Amnesty.

Polls indicate McCain has the same level of GOP support as Bush had at this point in 2000. But some insist he still isn't reaching out to rank-and-file conservatives who are needed to lick envelopes, make phone calls and knock on doors in states where the election is likely to be close.

On the right and across the political spectrum, McCain's image, rather than his positions on issues, seems to form people's opinion of him. Indeed, in choosing presidents, voters often look past issues to character and personality, and most individual issues are unlikely to mean much.

Sad but true. That is why I posted what I did. In Politics, image means EVERYTHING. Look at Obama. He was the Messiah incarnate. Untouchable. Above Politics. Clean and a uniter. NOW? The image has been tarnished. The FACTS of who he really is are coming out. I told you about his idiotic comments insulting small town America on Sunday. It was and continues to be BIG news yesterday and most likely, for the next few days. Couple that with His Reverend, his friendship with terrorists, his questionable real-estate dealings, his "image" is changing.

Arnold had a Conservative image in California. Not anymore. This was the whole point to me posting what I did about McCain. So you would not be fooled.

But one broader issue could figure prominently in November — the tumbling economy and consequent job losses, home foreclosures and soaring energy prices.

Those could prove troublesome for McCain, and not only because he acknowledges he's no economic expert.

"We are surely in a time of deep economic insecurity for a majority of the American people," said Curtis Gans, director of American University's Center for the Study of the American Electorate. "That has always led to two things: somewhat higher turnout, and votes against the party in power."

"We are also in a deeply unpopular war," Gans said. "Where there are these differences, and strong differences, they could be in the Democrats' direction."

So THREE times the war is mentioned. They want you to see McCain as nothing more than another Bush. That he may be. President Bush is NO Conservative either. But then again, they also may be trying to convince Republicans that he IS a Conservative so that they DO vote for him. Maybe some think that since their side is completely whacked and they have really no chance at this point in wining, maybe they WANT McCain in, knowing that he really is one of them in disguise. Just a thought.

But I will stick to what I said yesterday.

"So I truly believe, right now, at this time, he IS the best person for the job. I can think of MANY more, better choice candidates, but we have what we have. Just do not think for one second that McCain is a Conservative. He’s far from it."
Peter

Sources:
AP - McCain: More conservative than his image