A Pilgrim’s Digression

Although over the past weeks I have written more about the Democratic candidates for President, I have also been paying close attention to the battle within the Republican party. I still listen to Limbaugh and Hannity, when I can, and it is impossible to listen to them and not come away with the feeling that there is something deeply amiss in the heart of the Republican party.

I admit I have never understood the antipathy to John McCain from within the talk radio conservative community. In the end, it may come down to, as Rush Limbaugh said yesterday, that McCain is friendlier to his Democratic rivals, who want to bury him, than he is to his Republican friends. However, that is only a character flaw if, like Limbaugh, one views politics as merely an extension of war, in which one’s opponents are never to be trusted unless they are dead. And even when they are dead, it is necessary to throw some more dirt on their grave occasionally, just to keep them buried.

Frankly, much of the talk coming from Limbaugh and Coulter and Hannity is just crazy, however. I was listening to Fox on XM radio last night, driving back to Washington, and I heard Ann Coulter say something that almost made me veer off the road in shock: “If [McCain's] our candidate, then Hillary’s going to be our girl, because she’s more conservative than he is…I will campaign for her if it’s McCain.”

Now, I don’t believe Coulter. Nor do I believe that when it comes down to it, Limbaugh won’t support McCain for President. If McCain is chosen as the nominee, it will be a real test of whether these people are true to their word or merely paper tigers. Ultimately, Clinton hatred will beat out McCain hatred, in the world of hard-line conservatism. But isn’t it remarkable that someone with McCain’s military background and conservative credentials should be despised because he doesn’t fight the war of partisan politics?

Most of Limbaugh’s complaints come down to McCain co-sponsoring bills with Ted Kennedy, rather than McCain’s actual positions on the war, abortion, spending, and taxes. Yes, some of those bills he has sponsored with Democrats have been progressive in terms of policy, such as McCain-Feingold and McCain-Lieberman. However, this man’s voting record is overwhelmingly conservative, not liberal.

McCain votes his conscience, not with his party. He is an honest man amongst doctrinaire party hacks who value following a leader more than making their own decisions…even if that leader takes them into a war without an exit strategy. Now, don’t get me wrong here, McCain supported the war in Iraq, and he has never wavered on that issue. But he also was calling for more troops for the post-war effort years before Bush came around to the idea of a surge.

The war was begun under false pretenses, without a clear objective that would officially end our effort to democratize Iraq. But there is no doubt in my mind that had McCain been elected President in 2000 rather than George Bush, Iraq would have been less of a debacle–assuming McCain would have invaded in the first place. It would be interesting for some intrepid reporter to ask him that question, by the way: if he had been elected in 2000, would he have invaded Iraq?

I make no secret of liking McCain. I voted for him in 2000. I contributed money to his campaign. He has many of the same qualities that I like in Obama. His history of legislative initiatives suggests that he is a progressive reformer, rather in the same vein as Theodore Roosevelt. He is an underdog who has to fight his party’s establishment, not just for the nomination but for credibility. He is consistently counted down for the count by the pundits, yet he gets back up again. He is a fighter, and his rough and craggy face shows the scars of many a punch he has taken. I could vote for this man again.

Today is a day of judgment for McCain, though. We are about to find out who is the real bull moose in the Republican party: John McCain or Rush Limbaugh. Limbaugh keeps insisting that he has never intended to portray himself as McCain’s real opponent in this primary–even though Limbaugh talks as much about himself and news stories about him as he does about McCain; and he emphasizes his status as McCain’s opponent while simultaneously insisting he isn’t running for office, for example by giving a mock “concession” speech after McCain won in Florida. But Limbaugh’s phony protests of innocence aside, there is no doubt that McCain has been running against talk radio fully as much as Mitt Romney.

When you have someone like Limbaugh doing nasty impressions of McCain, and playing parody songs that demonize McCain, there can be no doubt whatsoever that the talk radio host is trying to influence the campaign. And he may yet succeed in throwing the race to Romney. Just a few weeks ago, my ninety-four year old landlady, who is basically bed bound and spends her day listening to Limbaugh and Hannity and watching Fox News, told me she “liked” John McCain. She had nothing bad to say about any of the Republicans, really.

By last week, she had changed her mind. “I don’t like that John McCain,” she said. “He votes with the Democrats.”

Her response is indicative of how influential radio propagandists can be. If John McCain wins the nomination for President, it may also be a sign of how their influence is waning. Many voters seem to be waking up to the fact that our country cannot withstand another twenty or thirty years of intense partisan warfare. Both Obama and McCain seem to offer an exit strategy from the quagmire of American politics.