Posted on 05/10/2008 5:00:57 PM PDT by pinochet
McCain has recently been making efforts to reach out to all sorts of people not traditionally associated with the GOP. He appeared on the View, the Daily Show, before black civil rights activists in Alabama, etc.
When is he going to make a serious effort to reach out to conservatives? How about promising to appoint strict constructionist judges? How about re-assurances on gun ownership rights? What about reducing the out-of-control spending of this administation? Does he take conservative support for granted? Does he even want them?
Maybe he sees that Obama and his kooky spiritual advisor have totally freaked most Americans. Apparently, he thinks he can build a coalition of RINOS, Independents, and Hillary Clinton Democrats. Those voters, combined with some sullen conservatives who will vote out of party loyalty and "stand by their man" like abused housewives, will be enough to assure him victory.
The media has long praised McCain for repudiating the "wingnuts", as they describe his party's base. If McCain can win without any effort to reach out to conservatives, then he will ignore them completely while in office. The conservative movement of Reagan of 1980-1988, and Gingrich of 1994-1998, is either dead or on life-support.
That is the cold hard truth. The Republican Party no longer needs or even desires conservative support. All they do is hold us down. McCain is smartly building a new coalition of moderates and Hispanics to replace them. The payoff will be a landslide win this November.
Shouldn’t the question be who will do the greatest damage to America not to an ideology? There’s a sense here and elsewhere that an Obama presidency would be so bad that a conservative movement would swell and drive him from office in 2012. Smilar things were said in ‘32 about a resurgent GOP rebounding on the heels of the failing New Deal. What wasn’t realized was that FDR would use tax revenue and borrowing to buy votes for a generation. Obama will do the same and solidify a Dem majority for another generation.
I wouldn't be working FOR Jimmy Carter, I said I'd be working WITH him. Apparently you can't differentiate between for and with.
Sometimes a person you usually disagree with has a cause or position you can agree with. To simply deny working with them on that specific point because of the other positions they have is short-sighted.
I'd say look at what President Reagan said about compromise.
Great comprehension there, Bucky. I never said fans of GWB are not welcome here. It's certainly not for me to decide anyway. I was alluding to those who defend him no matter how far left he turns. Get it yet?
If you object to Bush supporters you may say so but quit telling everyone else what is appropriate or not appropriate for this site.
That statement is the epitome of illogical. Show me where I have ever told anyone what is appropriate and not appropriate on this site. You can't do it, of course. I merely alluded to the horde of minions who defend him, no matter how liberal his policies.
Learn how to read.
” How about promising to appoint strict constructionist judges? How about re-assurances on gun ownership rights? What about reducing the out-of-control spending of this administation?’
He has done all three of these things. That you now question it means you’re either ignorant or a liar.
On the Issues / On The Issues / Issues / Home
Protecting Second Amendment Rights
John McCain believes that the right of law abiding citizens to keep and bear arms is a fundamental, individual Constitutional right that we have a sacred duty to protect. We have a responsibility to ensure that criminals who violate the law are prosecuted to the fullest, rather than restricting the rights of law abiding citizens. Gun control is a proven failure in fighting crime. Law abiding citizens should not be asked to give up their rights because of criminals - criminals who ignore gun control laws anyway.
Gun Manufacturer Liability
John McCain opposes backdoor attempts to restrict Second Amendment rights by holding gun manufacturers liable for crimes committed by third parties using a firearm, and has voted to protect gun manufacturers from such inappropriate liability aimed at bankrupting the entire gun industry.
“Neither justice nor domestic peace are served by holding the innocent responsible for the acts of the criminal.”
-Senator John McCain
Assault Weapons
John McCain opposes restrictions on so-called “assault rifles” and voted consistently against such bans. Most recently he opposed an amendment to extend a ban on 19 specific firearms, and others with similar characteristics.
Importation of High Capacity Magazines
John McCain opposes bans on the importation of certain types of ammunition magazines and has voted against such limitations.
Gun Locks
John McCain believes that every firearms owner has a responsibility to learn how to safely use and store the firearm they have chosen, whether for target shooting, hunting, or personal protection. He has supported legislation requiring gun manufacturers to include gun safety devices such as trigger locks in product packaging.
Banning Ammunition
John McCain believes that banning ammunition is just another way to undermine Second Amendment rights. He voted against an amendment that would have banned many of the most commonly used hunting cartridges on the spurious grounds that they were “armor-piercing.”
DC Personal Protection
As part of John McCain’s defense of Second Amendment rights, he cosponsored legislation to lift a ban on the law abiding citizens of the District of Columbia from exercising their Constitutional right to bear arms.
Criminal Background Checks
John McCain supports instant criminal background checks to help prohibit criminals from buying firearms and has voted to ensure they are conducted thoroughly, efficiently, and without infringing on the rights of law abiding citizens.
Background Checks at Gun Shows
At a time when some were trying to shut down gun shows in the name of fighting crime, John McCain tried to preserve gun shows by standardizing sales procedures. Federal law requires licensed firearm sellers at gun shows to do an instant criminal background check on purchasers while private firearm sellers at gun shows do not have to conduct such a check. John McCain introduced legislation that would require an instant criminal background check for all sales at gun shows and believes that such checks must be conducted quickly to ensure that unnecessary delays do not effectively block transactions.
The Firearm Purchase Waiting Period
John McCain has opposed “waiting periods” for law abiding citizen’s purchase of firearms.
The confiscation of firearms after an emergency
John McCain opposes the confiscation of firearms from private citizens, particularly during times of crisis or emergency. He voted in favor of an amendment sponsored by Senator David Vitter prohibiting such confiscation.
Stiffer Penalties for Criminals who use a Firearm in the Commission of a Crime
John McCain believes in strict, mandatory penalties for criminals who use a firearm in the commission of a crime or illegally possess a firearm. Enforcing the current laws on the books is the best way to deter crime.
Wasteful spending in Washington has gone from irresponsible to indefensible. Right now, even the government reports that one-fifth of programs are receiving failing marks. John McCain will restore the trust that Americans have lost in their government spending their hard earned money wisely.
Eliminating Wasteful Spending:
John McCain Will Stop Earmarks, Pork-Barrel Spending, And Waste. He will veto every pork-laden spending bill and make their authors famous. As President, he will seek the line-item veto to reduce waste and eliminate earmarks that have led to corruption. Unlike Senators Clinton and Obama who have sought a nearly combined $3 billion in earmarks, John McCain has a clear record of not asking for earmarks. Earmarks restrict America’s ability to address genuine national priorities and interfere with fair, competitive markets.
John McCain Proposes A One-Year Spending Pause To Evaluate Programs. He believes that outside of essential military and veterans programs there should be a one-year pause in discretionary spending growth that should be used for a top-to-bottom review of the effectiveness of federal programs.
John McCain Has The Leadership And Courage To Make The Right Spending Choices. Reduced spending means making choices. John McCain will not leave office without balancing the federal budget. He will not do it with smoke and mirrors. When he leaves office, he wants to leave a budget that stays balanced after he is gone, and can weather the occasional downturn and unexpected contingency. John McCain will provide the courageous leadership necessary to control spending, including:
Eliminate Broken Government Programs. The federal government itself admits that one in five programs do not perform.
Reform Our Civil Service System To Promote Accountability And Good Performance In Our Federal Workforce.
Eliminating Earmarks, Wasteful Subsidies And Pork-Barrel Spending.
Reform Procurement Programs And Cut Wasteful Spending In Defense And Non-Defense Programs.
Budgetary Reform To Give Tax Cuts A Fair Chance:
John McCain Will Reform Budgeting To Treat Equally Spending And Taxes And To Stop Damaging Tax Hikes. Congress has unfairly stacked the deck to spend more and raise taxes. If a spending program is on the books, budgets assume that it is on the books forever – and continues to grow – even if the law says it expires. If low taxes are on the books, budgets don’t assume that they last forever. When they expire, those taxes are automatically raised.
Reforming Entitlement Programs For The 21st Century:
John McCain Will Reform Social Security. He will fight to save the future of Social Security while meeting our obligations to the retirees of today and the future without raising taxes. John McCain supports supplementing the current Social Security system with personal accounts – but not as a substitute for addressing benefit promises that cannot be kept. He will reach across the aisle, but if the Democrats do not act, he will. John McCain will not leave office without fixing the problems that threatens our future prosperity.
John McCain Will Act To Control Medicare Growth. The growth of spending on Medicare threatens our fiscal future. John McCain has proposed comprehensive health care reforms that will reduce the growth in Medicare spending, protect seniors against rising Medicare premium payments, and preserve the advancements in medical science central to providing quality care.
John McCain Believes That We Should Not Subsidize The Prescription Drugs Of America’s Most Affluent Individuals. He will propose reforms to reduce the large subsidies in the Medicare drug program.
McCain Says He Would Put Conservatives on Supreme Court
By Juliet Eilperin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 7, 2008; Page A09
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., May 6 — Highlighting an issue he plans to use aggressively in the general election campaign, Sen. John McCain on Tuesday decried “the common and systematic abuse of our federal courts by the people we entrust with judicial power” and pledged to nominate judges similar to the ones President Bush has placed on the bench.
The presumptive Republican presidential nominee said that Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. “would serve as the model for my own nominees, if that responsibility falls to me,” highlighting the gap between Republicans and Democrats on the question of who should sit on the Supreme Court. Both justices have established strong conservative records since Bush appointed them, and the appointment of one more conservative to the nation’s highest court could tip the balance on issues such as abortion, discrimination, civil liberties and private property.
Well said. The last time it happened, it was Carter, who back then wasn't nearly as nutty as Osama.
Then it took a once-in-a-century President, Reagan, to fix things.
There are no Reagans on the horizon in the first quarter of this century.
The cower in a corner because of fear types, must at this minute, cease to call themselves conservatives. I pity all of us.
Surely you can remember that; it was only moments ago.
Hey, it’s your guilt trip, not mine.
Get over it. Ronald Reagan can’t run anymore. Newt is a has-been. Delay, for whatever reason isn’t around anymore. Ron Paul is our answer to Dennis Kucinich. Nobody who graduated from Oachita Baptist Bible College is ever, ever going to be elected President. Fred (my favorite) didn’t have the heart. Mitt was sunk by self-righteous, conservative, evangelicals.
What’s left?
You sit on the sidelines or vote for someone who can’t win, and you get what you voted for, with your so-called integrity in tact. Big deal.
Now I know why Mass is so screwed up.
Your guilt, not mine.
You were caught saying something incredibly stupid and now you’re trying to worm your way out of it.
Put the bong down.
We wouldn’t be discussing this subject if the one issue conservatives hadn’t destroyed the other candidates.
And he is NOT Hillary or Obama, so he must be great.
Political infants are destroying this country.
I’ll be a maverick this year and vote Obama. It’s what McCain would do.
I am glad that I live in a state that has only mail-in-ballots because that way no body can see me puke when I vote for McCain.
I personally think McCain should choose a Hispanic running mate to once and for all bring the Hispanic vote home to the GOP.
I think the USA can survive anything.
“We cannot stand four years of this guy. The country will never recover from it as it takes years and years to undo damage and sometimes it never heals.”
That’s what happens when we select an absurd candidate using an absurd open system. Now it’s time for pay for it.
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