As I look back across the months (that now seem like years) of this election season, I’m left with an ugly sense of what John McCain is. He kind of reminds me of a vicious gossiper, who continually spreads the most vile detritus he can unearth and attempt to besmirch his opponent as though he’s not good enough to be a part of ‘the club.’
While he professes to be a maverick …
Defined as: One who refuses to abide by the dictates of or resists adherence to a group; Being independent in thought and action or exhibiting such independence
I find him to be more of an enigma …
Defined as: One who is puzzling, ambiguous, or inexplicable.
He says if we elect his team, we’ll have two mavericks in the Washington to support us, yet to me it looks like an enigma and a rogue. He claims he’s ethical, yet we all know how ethical he wasn’t during the savings and loan crisis when he was censured for being one of the Keating Five. He claims to be conservative, yet he sends his running mate out on a $150,000 shopping spree for new clothes, styling and accessories. He says he’s all about campaign reform, yet in his own words back in 1993 on the Senate floor he said:
Madam President, the amendment before the Senate is a very simple one. It restricts the use of campaign funds for inherently personal purposes. The amendment would restrict individuals from using campaign funds for such things as home mortgage payments, clothing purchases … and vacations or other trips that are noncampaign in nature. […]
The use of campaign funds for items which most Americans would consider to be strictly personal reasons, in my view, erodes public confidence and erodes it significantly.
Well I guess you were right about that erosion Mr. McCain. It seems that the closer we get to election day, it’s definitely beginning to erode your base. It’s kinda like watching rats leaving the ship before it sails (or in this case … sinks). First, we saw Colin Powell (a devout Republican) desert the ship and announce his support for Obama. Then, we saw the Goldwaters (a seriously devout Republican family from Arizona … McCain’s home state) not only endorse Obama, but at least one of them has actually cast anearly ballot in Atlanta.
Gee … I wonder who will be next?
UPDATE (10-29-08):
Add: Massachusets Gov. William Weld (a supporter of Mitt Romney); former Minnesota Gov. Arne Carlson; Scott McClellan (a former spokesperson for GW Bush); Ken Adelman (prominent foreign policy conservative); Charles Fried (Harvard Law Professor and Solicitor General under Reagan); Charles ‘Mac’ Mathias Jr., former GOP Rep. to Congress from Maryland; Susan Eisenhower; Julie Nixon Eisenhower; Chris Buckley (son of William F Buckley); Michael Smerconish (conservative talk show host); Douglas Kmiec; Lincoln Chafee (former GOP Senator from R.I.); Iowa Rep. Jim Leach.
These are serious men and women who espouse authentic conservative values, who have broken with their histories of supporting Republicans and who have endorsed Obama.