Rush Limbaugh devoted a significant portion of his radio show today to bashing John McCain. He urged his listeners not to vote for McCain tomorrow.
For weeks, Limbaugh has been on the attack against McCain, branding the Arizona senator a “liberal” and suggesting he would destroy the Republican Party.
Normally, it’s the Democrats who allow extremists to speak for them. Unfortunately, right-wing extremists emboldened by their defeat of the Bush/McCain immigration plan have been out in force lately.
One would think with the prospect of a potential Hillary Clinton presidency looming, Republicans would vote for anyone with an “R” next to their name.
The Democrats have suffered in recent years, because they tend to make the mistake of nominating the most left-wing candidate they can.
Now it looks as though Republican hard liners wish to follow the Democrats down that road. The far-right can’t quit crying about John McCain not being “Conservative enough” which ironically is exactly why he’d be a good candidate.
With the popularity of the Republican party at a low-point right now, it’s critical that the GOP nominate a candidate that can appeal to a wider constituency than just hardcore right-wing Republicans.
McCain is someone who can appeal to moderate conservatives, independents, and moderate Democrats. Rush Limbaugh, Michelle Malkin, and others are doing the Republican party a disservice by continuing the shrill rhetoric against McCain.
Limbaugh in particular really sounds like an idiot when he says stuff like this:
“He’s going to reach out to Democrats in Congress,” Limbaugh said, citing “McCain -Kennedy” and “McCain -Feingold” as examples of McCain-sponsored bipartisan legislation.
If Republicans still controlled the House and Senate maybe one could make that argument, but they don’t. The only way to get anything done is to reach out. As long as he doesn’t negotiate a surrender in Iraq, everything else should be on the table.
The far-right wingers also need to quit howling about McCain’s immigration position. Tom Tancredo, Michelle Malkin, and Rush Limbaugh aren’t the voice of the Republican party. They may not admit it, but there’s quite a few Republicans who don’t share their hard line position on immigration.
The only thing that the constant drum beat about McCain’s so-called “amnesty bill” or as Michelle Malkin calls it, “shamnesty bill” has achieved is to successfully drive damn near every Latino voter out of the Republican party and into Obama’s waiting arms.
Everyone can agree that the borders need to be locked up as tight as possible with a wall, technology, and more Border Patrol. But this rigid insistence that every single illegal alien must return home is both unrealistic and over-the-top.
It’s just not gonna happen, and McCain’s bill which the President supported did need more assurances that it would secure the border first, but otherwise it was a good bill. The majority of Americans support a “path to citizenship” in addition to the fines, and all the rest.
The bottom line is that McCain at his worst is better than Hillary Clinton or any other Democrat. Whether it turns out to be McCain, Romney, or Huckabee, the important thing is for Republicans to stop whining and support the nominee.
-Chris Jones
