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McCain's Conservatism Falls Under The Microscope

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Feb 7, 2008 7:28 pm US/Mountain

McCain's Conservatism Falls Under The Microscope

Reporting
Raj Chohan

A growing number of talk radio conservatives have a lot of angst right now over the prospect of nominating Sen. John McCain for president.

If you listen to Rush Limbaugh or Ann Coulter, nominating McCain would practically end western civilization.

That's their opinion, of course, but don't ever forget they make their money entertaining people, not making policy or playing kingmaker.

However, the fact is conservatives have some bonafied criticisms of McCain.

They don't like the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform law; they didn't like the proposed McCain-Kennedy bill on immigration reform which they see as an amnesty bill. And they don't like the fact that McCain voted against the Bush tax cuts.

In short, they don't think McCain is conservative enough for the job.

But as registered Republicans around the country are showing in the primaries, McCain may well be the GOP's best chance of holding the White House, not because he's conservative, but because he's moderate.

Many Republicans and independent voters actually seem to like the fact that McCain doesn't always tow the party line.

According to some polls, voters who like McCain don't always agree with him, but they apparently trust him on issues like national security and fiscal responsibility. And when conservative commentators threaten to support Hillary Clinton over John McCain, you can bet they're lying.

The truth is, if McCain gets the nomination, social conservatives will vote for him because the next president probably gets to pick a Supreme Court justice, and whomever gets that next pick may well decide the future of Roe v. Wade.

Even McCain haters in the GOP don't want a Democrat to make that call. 

Source Articles:

• The Race After Tuesday: While John McCain pulls ahead, the Democratic contest remains close. washingtonpost.com
• Poll gives McCain lead in most states; Clinton & Obama still close blogs.usatoday.com/onpolitics/
• The Exit Polls: Why McCain won S.C. politico.com
• GOP Exit Polls: McCain has work to do with conservatives youdecide08.foxnews.com
• New poll finds McCain reshaping GOP race msnbc.msn.com
• Zogby Poll, January 28, 2008 zogby.com
• Zogby Poll, january 29, 2008 zogby.com
• Fox news poll hotair.com
• McCain Surges in Polls, But Many Evangelicals Wary christianitytoday.com
• Polls: McCain may be benefiting from GOP Iraq anxiety usatoday.com
• McCain pumped by poll numbers newsday.com
• From Goldwater Girl to Hillary Girl anncoulter.com

(© MMVIII CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)