I've been thinking about this for a while now. I have several Republican friends, and they are as immovable as I am. These are good people, but I just don't get their thinking. To me, it seems so simple and obvious. What I realized is that their reactions (as I perceive them) are not as complicated as I would make them.
Imagine how they must have felt, after the last eight years? Looking at the upcoming election... what were the chances that their guy was going to win the White House, following in the footsteps of arguably the worst President in American history? The odds were not good.
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And here came John McCain. Somehow, he grabbed the nomination from the ashes of his all-but-dead campaign. Still, his performance was less than stellar. His oratory skills left much to be desired. He stood in front of that sickly green backdrop and smiled that forced ill-timed smile. He clung to his "war hero" and "maverick" monikers. But all this was dwarfed by the specter that was Barack Obama. This would not be pretty.
So, what’s a Republican to do? Sit it out? Vote the party line, no matter how distasteful? It’s not a happy choice. They were looking for something... anything to give them a reason to be excited -- a reason to hope.
Enter Sarah Palin. And there it was... the excitement that’d been missing. OK, she’s flawed, but what politician isn’t? She’s not experienced. So what. How can anyone really be prepared for that job? And all her other shortcomings? In the words of the inimitable Joe E. Brown, nobody’s perfect.
I had what I would charitably call a "heated discussion" with an old friend over the Republican slate. I knew he didn’t like Bush. He’s a finance professional. While he is pretty conservative, some of his views (women’s rights, abortion, etc.) lean liberal. Foolishly, I thought he would see that Sarah was a disastrous choice. I was wrong. Here’s what I got out it (hint: it's not about Palin).
Obama = a big expensive federal government. I have a good job and health insurance. I don’t want the government controlling my health care, and I don’t want my tax dollars paying for anyone else. Mostly, what I heard is that Obama is the antithesis of the Republican mindset fiscally and socially. In addition to being a big spender, there will be more/bigger social programs and higher taxes. He’ll take away my guns and make me recycle. More government regulation is NOT what we need. We need someone to pare back the government, fix social security and Medicare. Democrats will never do that.
Oh, and he will make nice with the terrorists. Nothing elicits more distain from my friend than treating our enemies with respect and conducting foreign relations with a tempered hand.
He readily admits that McCain doesn’t have executive experience. He neatly dispenses with the subject of experience by saying that no one can ever be prepared to be President.
I thought he would be more receptive because he dislikes Bush so much. So, where’s the disconnect? It seems mainly to be about money. Obama is going to cost me money. That’s what I heard. It doesn’t matter what Obama says. He still thinks it’s going to cost him.
Postscript: Tonight, I was talking to another conservative friend of mine about the election. He actually voted for Gore in 2000, so I thought there was hope for him. Two things he said stood out. One was that he truly believes McCain is moderate socially, and that all this rhetoric is just a means to an end. The second thing was that he had a beef with Obama re: his position on crime & punishment. I couldn't speak to it, because I don't know what his position is... I looked on Obama's website, in the Issues, but don't seen anything about crime. I suspect this is something my friend gleaned from RW talk radio... or maybe just an excuse because he doesn't want to admit the real reason...
So, what's my point? My point is that all these discussions about Palin (her lack of experience, her disceptions, etc) and about McCain (is he more of the same?) don't matter to Republicans. They want their guy to win. And they are willing to overlook a multitude of sins to get there. What Republicans have been able to do is to become incredibly united and to make the election all about Obama. Nothing they hear or read about McCain or Palin is going to make a big difference to them.