So did I...
Posted on 03/01/2008 3:04:41 PM PST by Oshkalaboomboom
John McCain could officially wrap up the Republican presidential nomination Tuesday, and he'll celebrate in Atlanta on Thursday.
As the GOP establishment in Georgia begins to align behind the presumptive nominee, trouble still lingers among some conservative voters who doubt McCain's bona fides.
Those skeptical voters ultimately could determine McCain's fate. Do they stay home? Do they vote Democrat instead?
Tom Nesbitt is not sure what he's going to do. A retired postal worker from Turner County, the 66-year-old Republican voter said he's "disgusted" with his party in general and McCain in particular.
"I have not yet decided whether I will, at the last moment, vote for McCain, sit this one out or, out of complete disgust for the Republican Party's lack of consideration, vote for another candidate," Nesbitt said.
McCain, an Arizona senator, is expected to pass the delegate threshold to secure the nomination after Tuesday's primaries in Ohio and Texas. Although former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee remains in the race, McCain has a lock on the top slot on the ticket.
Huckabee won Georgia's Feb. 5 primary, in part because of his strength among evangelical voters, many of whom look at McCain with dismay.
Still, some say conservatives' ire toward McCain has been exaggerated and that he has been unfairly painted as a moderate or liberal by the media or by those who simply don't like him.
In Georgia, at least, it seems unlikely that apathy among conservatives toward McCain could trigger a Democratic victory. Georgia last went for a Democrat for president in 1992 and has been trending Republican ever since.
Besides history, McCain has other reasons for optimism in Georgia.
First is Thursday's $1,000-a-plate reception at the Westin Buckhead with host Gov. Sonny Perdue, who did not endorse a candidate in the primary. Joining Perdue on the host committee are nearly every top elected Republican in the state, including Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, who also did not endorse in the primary, and House Speaker Glenn Richardson (R-Hiram), who backed McCain after first choice Rudy Giuilani dropped out.
McCain also has the support of Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss. The state's two Republican U.S. senators endorsed their Senate colleague late in the primary campaign, while most U.S. House members went for Huckabee or Mitt Romney. Chambliss is on the ballot in November, too, and it will benefit him to have a strong presidential candidate above him, so Chambliss will be expected to work to bring conservatives back into the GOP fold.
Alec Poitevint, who led McCain's Georgia campaign, said there's no question the GOP will unite behind McCain.
"Absolutely," Poitevint said, "he's a proven leader in a difficult time. And he's the right man to be president now, and I think our people in Georgia understand that."
The primary season is over, he said, and Republicans typically put aside their differences for the good of the party in November.
Shawn Davis, who led Huckabee's Georgia campaign, agrees.
Huckabee will eventually give way, Davis said, and the Arkansan's supporters will back the nominee.
"We believe to win in November it's imperative to have a conservative on the ticket," Davis said. "Once Governor Huckabee releases his 51 delegates to McCain, presumably after his last stand in Texas (on Tuesday), you will see all Georgia Republicans unite strongly behind John McCain."
Some conservatives' anger toward McCain lingers.
A recent report from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life found that 78 percent of white, born-again Protestants voted for George W. Bush over Democrat John Kerry in 2004. But, wrote John Green, Pew's senior fellow in religion and American politics, McCain "may have some trouble achieving that level of support from white evangelicals given that a majority of them preferred other candidates in the primaries."
If the race is close, a drop in support from such a key component of the Republican base could be damaging.
Exit polls taken from the Georgia primary give McCain reason for concern. He lost badly to Huckabee, and in some cases to third-place finisher Romney, among those who identified themselves as either somewhat conservative or very conservative. Among Republican voters who said they chose a candidate who shares their values, McCain got 15 percent, compared with 51 percent for Huckabee and 31 percent for Romney.
Don Neunaber, a physical therapist in Lilburn, looks at his choices in November and is conflicted.
"I haven't yet decided whether I can vote for McCain," Neunaber said. Note the use of the word "can." It's not "whether I will vote" for McCain. It's "whether I can" vote for him. That difference indicates a deeper, more personal level of frustration.
Neunaber finds the choice excruciating.
"I am faced with a real dilemma as a Republican," he said. "I am stuck between adversaries."
Such strong feelings stem from a series of frustrations and perceived betrayals. Neunaber specifically mentioned McCain's support for the failed immigration bill that many conservatives considered amnesty for illegal immigrants.
In the face of loud and angry response from many voters, McCain backed off his support for the measure. But, Neunaber said, McCain later told a television interviewer that he would sign a similar bill if elected president.
"He's playing to conservatives, trying to move to the conservative side, but he's not that much of a conservative when it comes down to it," Neunaber said.
Others criticize McCain for his sponsorship of campaign finance reform they say stifles the political power of pro-family groups. Others, such as the powerful Club for Growth, don't like his economic policies.
Helen Slater of Marietta, a secretary at Lockheed Martin Corp., voted for Romney in the Feb. 5 Georgia primary. Romney dropped out shortly after finishing third here. Slater will vote for McCain in November.
"Although he certainly is not my choice for the Republican nominee, I still feel like he is the lesser of three evils," she said, noting that the other two "evils" would be Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
Jim Beck, chairman of the Georgia Christian Coalition, said more and more Republicans displeased with McCain will come to the conclusion that McCain is the best option available to them.
"You're already seeing it," Beck said. "Based on our e-mail traffic, some Huckabee people are waiting (to publicly back McCain) out of respect for him. At the end of the day, you have to pick between imperfect people."
McCain was not Beck's first choice. That becomes less important in November, he said.
"Look at the alternative," he said.
Plus, Beck said, McCain could gain independents and moderates to offset any loss of conservatives.
"McCain offers appeal to swing voters that would not have been the case with Huckabee or Romney," Beck said.
In the end, however, "I don't think McCain will turn off the base," Beck said.
Nesbitt, the Turner County Republican, would disagree.
"I am totally disgusted with them all, and have decided to call myself an independent, and will think twice before ever voting Republican again," he said.
...no one to gather ALL of the produce that goes to stores (California has a tremendous amount of farmland, more than most people believe)
Didn't catch that in the first read
Theya are Illegal invaders....got it....c r i m i n a l s
The message you send is -I will tolerate socialism.
If you can’t see a difference between Obama and McCain, then having an intelligent discussion with you is hopeless.
Yes, I can see the difference, Obama didn't have anything to do with authoring: McCain/Finegold, McCain Kennedy, McCain/Liberman. I also don't believe Obama had anything to with the gang of 14. The bottom line here is I expect a marxist/socialist to be a marxist/socialist. What I don't expect is a Navy Officer, and a conservative by his own admission, to betray almost all of what I believe in as a conservative, consistently, and at the worst possible times. As if he couldn't wait to do the deeds. So don't give me that kind of attitude.
Pot-smokers are c r i m i n a l s too, do you want to lock them up too??
Well, this is certainly going to change my mind about McCain. NOT!
FYI, I never had a candidate but I would have voted for more than half of those running in the primary. McCain, however, didn't make the cut. McCain, as a Republican, can do more damage in advancing the liberal agenda than a democrat facing strong opposition.
You can whine and call others names all you want. I doubt it will do you much good.
What a bizarre reply. We're talking about an invasion and you equate it with pot smokers? Sheesh
They need to go home and fix thier own country, after all they are so proud, waving they're flag and all in our streets
IIRC we set a pretty good example of how to accomplish that
How? Hasn't McCain already said that he'll only serve four years? We won't be able to vote him out, the "maverick" will live at the Kennedy compound and there will be nothing we can do about it.
We melted down the Congressional phone lines over amnesty and all we got from Bush is that he's pretending to build a fence that may be completed in about six years on another President's watch. Thanks for nothing!
I am resigned to 4 years of Obama/Clinton/McCain (pick any one). If McCain does happen to get elected, he better pick a good young VP because I doubt the old goat lives another four years with all his health issues. He also better pick a conservative because anything else will be defeated in 2012.
This guy's a real genius.
Some also asserted that the support of a home-state senator from the opposition party could help deflate opposition to Babbitt from other Republicans.
I just can't keep from giggling, every single time I see one of these "what, oh whatever shall those stubborn, wascally conservative voters DO, come November?" articles. Really and truly, I can't.
The pro-amnesty, anti-1st amendment, I-don't-care-who-or-what-he-is-just-so-long-as-he-has-an-"R"-after-his-name party RIMOs and bluestockings have spent the last month or two shrilling and spluttering at all the rest of us, non-stop, about how "insignificant" we conservatives are in the greater scheme of things, electorally-speaking; and about how they don't even really need our loathsome, worthless hinders anyway, gosh darn it, 'cause of all the zillions and zillions "moderates" and otherwise "unaccounted for"-type voters they robotically keep insisting are huddled out there, all of 'em just champing at the proverbial bit to cast their votes on behalf of some sour, perpetually dyspeptic old crank whose single greatest, lifelong dream is to transform the entire U.S. into a gigantic, coast-to-coast bedroom community on behalf of his beloved Mexican overlords.
Don't need us, kiddies? Fine, then. Lovely. Cool beans.
In that case, then: kindly stop mewling and sniveling over the prospect of us not voting for your annointed RINO sockpuppet of the season... okay?
Seriously. 'Cause... like... it just ends up making you look all desperate and needy, and stuff.
Just sayin', is all.
(Obvioualy, none of this was directed towards you, Oshkalaboomboom.) ;)
I think it more important to keep this country safe. I think it’s more important to not pay more in taxes. I think it’s more important that we have a judicial branch that interprets law, not make it up based on their personal beliefs.
I don't believe McCain will do any of this. He will put the terrorists in our court system. He was against tax cuts "for the rich". Really, how can you trust him about anything?
Exactly, thank you, you made my point.
“an invasion”...I think any country in the history of the world who has REALLY been invaded would love this kind of invasion: cheap labor, those willing to do horrible work for average to below average wages.
Answere the question though...would you ‘round them up?’. And if so, how?
I sent money to McCain. Believe me it was the toughest political contribution I ever made. They made sure it was triple legal.
Uh, dude! They aren't citizens!
Look, these immigrants are already here. Are we going to ‘round them up’ and send them back?
So, you condone non-enforcement of existing law? Ain't you a peach!
Death beats illness. I so hate the idea of either Hitlery or Obama Hussein in the WH, I would hold my nose and close my eyes and vote for McLame, much as it pains me. National Security is my # 1 issue and perhaps we can pressure McLame with a massive campaign to secure the borders first. He just claimed that he would do so. Does he keep promises? Both Hitlery and Obama promised to open the borders for anyone and everyone and the Nation is truly cooked if either one does.
So did I...
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