Notes From D.R. | Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene

Chill out!

That’s what I feel like saying to the Republicans who are now loudly proclaiming that they will never vote for either John McCain or Mitt Romney in the general election if one of these men earns the GOP nomination. McCain and Romney aren’t perfect, but Ronald Reagan wasn’t perfect either.

While I understand the complaints about these candidates’ alleged lack of fidelity to conservative principles, the right should remember that McCain and Romney are superior to some of the no-hopes the GOP has nominated in the past. The Arizona Senator and the former Massachusetts governor are head and shoulders above, say, Gerald Ford and Bob Dole. Conservatives could vote for either man in the general election and not feel guilty about it the next day.

I’m not a fan of McCain. I never understood the hype surrounding him in 2000; it appeared that the mainstream media had embraced McCain in the hopes that he would defeat the more conservative George W. Bush in the GOP primary, thus ensuring that the voters could only choose between a “maverick” Republican and a liberal Democrat.

While I hope Romney defeats McCain to become the GOP nominee, I’ll have no problem supporting McCain in the general election if he becomes the Republican champion. Staying home is not an option, especially when Bill Clinton is attempting to run for a de facto third term.

Will McCain appoint non-conservative judges to the Supreme Court? It’s possible that he could give us judges in the mold of GOP appointees John Paul Stevens and David Souter. However, as we saw with Reagan appointees Sandra Day O’Connor and Anthony Kennedy (and would-be Bush appointee Harriet Miers), there is ultimately no true way to guarantee the appointment of conservative jurists to the High Court.

McCain will never fit anyone’s idea of a “movement conservative”; however, it’s hard to imagine him being any worse as President than George H. W. Bush was (and on the whole, H. W. wasn’t that bad).

Romney’s public-sector history has, like his faith, faced near-obsessive scrutiny. It appears that many in the media—and some in the GOP—cannot accept at face value Romney’s embrace of the pro-life position. Romney has already become the most demonized Republican of the last two years, far outpacing President Bush in this respect; the amount of hatred heaped upon him by elements of the left and right has been breathtaking.

Romney has Reagan’s moral character, his intelligence and his gift of eloquence. In theory, that would suffice. In reality, it’s inadequate for some conservatives, who have lambasted him as a fake Republican and accused him of somehow authorizing same-sex marriage in Massachusetts. The rhetorical aggression of the anti-Romney right is somewhat depressing; it’s as though they cannot trust anyone affiliated with Massachusetts government. Romney has the potential to bring true conservatism back to the White House, but thanks to some of his over-the-top critics, that potential might never be realized.

Romney improved Massachusetts by ousting corrupt public officials and working to improve the state’s fiscal climate. He was a can-do governor, an intellectual heavyweight who was despised in many quarters because he demanded accountability from those who preferred to cast blame. His was a dynamic conservatism; his governing philosophy was based on the Reaganesque principles of hard work, wisdom and optimism—principles that are hard to come by in Washington these days.

Romney would make an excellent President; McCain, at the very least, would be an acceptable leader. There’s no logical reason why conservatives should be reluctant to vote for either man in the general election.

While this election bears some similarities to the 1992 contest, it doesn’t necessarily forecast a 1992 outcome. The first President Bush had problems that will affect neither Romney nor McCain. Both men are intelligent, both men are competent, both men are fit to lead. One is certainly more conservative than the other, but either man would do the country proud.

Yes, Romney was once blind before he could see. Yes, McCain has alienated movement conservatives over the years. However, there are times when the future of the country is more important than petty grievances. If McCain becomes the GOP nominee, conservatives have a duty to show up on November 4. The same goes for Romney.

Enough with all this hot air about how neither Romney nor McCain really measures up to the Reagan standard. Reagan would proudly vote for either of these men in a general election. So why won’t you?