Having said that the real reason for a response is that I could not disagree with you more in regards to the future of the party. If you do not believe that America is tired of party mud slinging then I am curious where in the world you live. American’s are clearly sick of it and a more conciliatory mood will win out. That is exactly why McCain is the right man for this time and exactly why the tired old Fred Thompsons and Mitt Romneys were so wrong and got so whipped at the poles.

You may have bad memories of Gerald Ford, but the damage Nixon did to the party was mitigated by Ford and there is little chance of anyone being able to do that after the Stobborness of the current administration.

Thanks for the compliments.

As to how I could write so much about McCain’s stubborness without mentioning Bush, it is easy: I was writing a post about McCain, not Bush. McCain is the candidate, not Bush.

As to who is more stubborn, Bush or McCain: I don’t care. I think they’re both stubborn, which I don’t see as their biggest flaw: that would be their bad judgment coupled with their stubborness. McCain may have a lifetime ACU rating in the 80s but if you check his scores over the past fourt or five years – in other words, where he is on the ideological sprectrum NOW – he’s somewhere in the 60s, I believe.

Yes, I am happy with his military background. Despite the Democrats trying to diminish his service I think the guy is a war hero. I once wrote a post for my blog titled “The Greatest Man I’ll Never Vote For.” And despite the post and my obvious distaste for McCain I’ll likely hold my nose and vote for him. I’ve changed my mind from when I wrote that post…because of Obama. I believe Obama is a genuine Socialist, the most extreme candidate to run in my lifetime and a legitimate danger to the nation. McCain is bad, Obama worse.

Conservatives don’t get “outraged”. Phil Donohue gets outraged. Conservatives get pissed.

I don’t think people are sick of interparty fighting. The American people didn’t give a damn that Reagan and the Dems fought as long the result was positive, and it was (largely because Reagan won so often and was right so often.) The American people only bitch about process when the result stinks. They don’t like bad results.

Bottom line, CentFla you seem to think that the Republican party needs to go back to being the party of Gerald Ford and Bob Michel, two wonderful, lets-make-a-deal Republicans. Yeah, boy THOSE were great years. LOL

You’re right, the Republicans will probably lose a lot of seats in the coming election. That’s not because they were too right-wing. Its because they became the colorless suits you seem to think should be the Republican future. Believe me, the coming loss is not because the Republicans were too ideological. Puhleeze. Think about what you’re saying, CentFla

Besides, what are the options? If Obama wins because Conservatives don’t vote, how are we better off?

John McCain is far, far less stubborn that the current President. John McCain has continued to seek input from both sides of the aisle and still land an ACU Conservative score of 82.3%.

ACU

He is not the most conservative Republican in the Senate. He was not the most Conservative Republican running for President this year. But that is exactly why he is the right man to clean up the dreadful mess our party is in. We, as Republicans, need more than ever to create a new paradigm.
John McCain is the man that can do that.

We are in a time of a crisis of debt, what other Conservative can stand so proudly behind his record of lack or earmarks?
What other Conservative has his military background?
What other Conservative has the common sense to be outraged at times?
What other Conservative, quite frankly, has been honest with is for so many years?

America is sick of the fighting between the parties. I know people that frequent this webiste and others like it were outraged by the McCain led efforts to end the filibustering of judeships a couple of years ago. But that is exactly the type of leadership that this country needs and wants today.
I futher realize that many on this site are at odds with his stance on Immigration. But his ability to work with the other party is absolutely necessary to create legislation that will actually accomplish something, much unlike the last four years of lack of leadership on the issue.

If the Republican Party is to survive the Bush debacle things must change and they must change quickly and dramatically. The Republican Brand is in tatters because of the last seven plus years. The party is in danger not only of losing the Presidency but eight Senate Seats and between 20 and 30 House seats. Pursuing the tactics, and issues of the current president is wrong for America and wrong for the Republican Party.

“President Obama, we’ve got intelligence from allied assets, an unarmed Predator drone, and NSA electronic intercepts all suggesting UBL is in a village in the valley marked on this map. It’s in an area where we’ve repeatedly asked Pakistan to go in, and they’ve turned us down, and it is in the disputed border area. Should we destroy the village, or ask the Pakistanis again despite their repeated refusals, leaks to AQ, and their threats to us if we send in ground troops?”

What would Pres Obama do? Would he really give the order to wipe out a village? Would he send in ground troops and risk turning nuclear-armed Pakistan into an enemy instead of a quasi ally? Would he notify the Pakistanis and most likely allow UBL to escape again? I think John McCain would say, blow the shit out of the area, then get ground troops in immediately after, but I think Sen Obama would check the polls, see what his financial backers want, and then try to “talk” to the Pakistanis ala GWB policy.

Somehow, Obama just doesn’t seem like a wartime commander whereas McCain does to me.