Your post sums up a frequent discussion on Free Republic, namely, whether to vote for a Republican who is too liberal to suit you, or vote for a 3rd party/independent as a protest vote.
I have seen many discussions here, where someone will say they prefer an actual Democrat win an election, rather than some “RINO” type Republican.
I haven’t been completely happy with any PresidentiaL nominee since Ronald Reagan but, nontheless, the alternatives I faced in each election made my choices easy. I love to tell my leftist friends that I voted for Nixon in 1972 and, given the same alternative of McGovern, would do so again even with the benefit of hondsight.