Dan

Calabrese

Read Dan's bio and previous columns here

November 3, 2008

The Case for John McCain

Not even the most optimistic John McCain supporter should expect that he would make American governance more conservative if he becomes our 44^th president – at least not without winning a second term at the age of 76.

A President McCain would primarily serve as the main check on the otherwise unfettered power of huge Democratic majorities in the House and Senate. And even then, he could check only so much.

McCain says you shouldn’t raise taxes on anyone during a weak economy. That is true. But it is going to happen and he can’t stop it. The Bush tax cuts are set to expire in 2010 unless Congress and the president take explicit action to extend them. The Congress that will be elected tomorrow will not do it, and as president, there is not a thing McCain could do to make them.

The federal estate tax, which is set to fall to zero in 2010, will zoom back up to 55 percent in 2011 unless Congress and the president take action to the contrary. America is about to give Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid even bigger majorities, so this is not going to happen. If you’re nearing the end of your days, don’t take it personally if your kids are rooting for you to bite it two years from now. They love you, but fiscal realities are what they are.

McCain’s health care reform proposal is excellent. It would put purchasing power back in the hands of consumers and ease their dependence on their employers. But it will never see the light of day. No health care proposal that does anything but put the government in charge of the whole ball of wax will go anywhere in the next Congress.

The Republican base frets that McCain is not a true, rock-ribbed, philosophical conservative. They are right, but it hardly matters. McCain as president will be so hamstrung by Congress, it would be absurd to expect him to push anything ambitious that is conservative in nature, even if he were so inclined.

Even so, there are good things that could come from a McCain presidency, and given the options this time around, they are more than enough to argue for his election.

First, McCain will not allow the United States to squander its success in Iraq. The security situation has improved so dramatically there that it can scarcely even be called a war anymore. Rather, we are focused on negotiating a long-term, status-of-forces agreement with the Iraqis. As their political and economic situations stabilize, Iraq stands to become a major supplier of U.S. oil during the period in which we ramp up to exploit our own resources and – as we should – develop alternative fuels.

Not for nothing did a recent poll show Iraqis, if they could vote in the U.S. election, would choose McCain overwhelmingly. Whether you agreed with the decision to invade Iraq or not, we did it, and nothing could be worse at this point than allowing Iraq to descend back into chaos and instability. Iraqis understand which prospective U.S. president will protect their gains.

Second, the world is in many ways becoming more dangerous. Russia is becoming more aggressive and less democratic, and is pursuing a troublingly close relationship with Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. Iran is working at a breakneck pace to develop nuclear weapons. Pakistan is increasingly unstable. North Korea may soon follow suit. At the same time, Eastern Europe is developing nicely economically, and needs the support of the United States to continue doing so.

McCain is not naïve about the nature of the world. He will not be rolled by nefarious rivals. He will not fail to stand by friends, and is not blind to the importance of alliances in parts of the world where they are hard to come by. McCain is too familiar with the horrors of war to want to start one, but he will not be afraid, and will not make the mistake of assuming an external threat must come from someone who has a legitimate beef with the United States.

Third, while McCain will not have much power to positively impact domestic economic policy, he is a spending hawk and is not afraid to confront Congress on the issue, no matter who runs it. Conservatives have long dreamed of a president who was willing to veto the entire federal budget again and again until Congress gets real about cutting it down to size. If anyone might actually have the cajones to try it, McCain’s record in Congress suggests it could very well be him.

More specifically, a McCain veto would be the only thing standing between Congress and a variety of Democratic pet initiatives, from “card check” legislation forcing unwilling workers into unions to the notorious “Fairness Doctrine,” which is aimed at nothing less than the end of conservative talk radio.

The conservative agenda is going nowhere in the next two years, no matter who the next president is. Republicans have a lot of work to do before they can regain majorities in Congress, and if they ever do so, they will have to do a lot more with it than they did the last time they had it. But at least we have the option of putting a man in the White House whose experience and judgment would help keep America safe, and who would skillfully confront global threats while standing up to the worst excesses of Washington at a time when they are likely to be very excessive indeed.
 

John McCain is not without his shortcomings, but for all the reasons mentioned here, he is clearly the best choice this year, and he will have my vote tomorrow.

© 2008 North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

This is Column # DC220. Request permission to publish here.