tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post3798349641630242657..comments2024-03-18T19:36:10.480-04:00Comments on Assistant Village Idiot: ElectionAssistant Village Idiothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01978011985085795099noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-89125353869627432352008-06-06T12:05:00.000-04:002008-06-06T12:05:00.000-04:00As Aslan would point out "no one is ever told what...As Aslan would point out "no one is ever told what <I>would</I> have happened." Maybe our line of Presidential succession would have stayed the same with Carter as an anomaly, maybe it would've been wildly different. The important thing to get from this is that the "well, once the other candidate's in office, the Conservatives will rally themselves together and go back to the base" mentality is a bad one. <BR/><BR/>In politics, we should never give ourselves license to ignore a choice, hoping a better one comes along shortly. Every political move is a backlash to something, but we can't count on things to backlash the way you'd expect. McCain is a backlash to Bush - he feels more moderate and less divisive to the average American, he seems honest and plainspoken, and he's got tremendous military credibility. He's a Republican that people can rally behind after Bush.<BR/><BR/>Speaking to Republicans here - you shouldn't wait for a backlash against a Democrat, you already elected a Republican who became the most unpopular President since the advent of modern polling and now you nominated a Republican who seems clearly different than that candidate. If, after McCain is elected, you want a more conservative Republican, then you'll nominate one then, as backlash to our own choices, and <I>that's</I> how you get a more conservative figure in office. But the die is cast, and McCain is your candidate, vote for him. You can't count on all of America to respond to a President the way you would like.Ben Wymanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12491745981357751416noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-88451693258186067402008-06-06T09:10:00.000-04:002008-06-06T09:10:00.000-04:00There might be another comparison: the 1972 Nixon/...There might be another comparison: the 1972 Nixon/McGovern race. I remember it well. I was just 18 and was a delegate for Henry "Scoop" Jackson at my county's convention. It appeared that McGovern had mobilized everybody and that the revolution was about to happen. But in fact he had energized the-already-mobilized, who turned out to be noisier than their numbers warranted. I suspect that to the degree that Obama energizes the radical left, he'll put-off the American people. That's my guess. Carter, you'll recall, convinced most people that he was in fact just like them, conservative (because he was religious). Obama won't be able to pull that off. Having said that, however, the same American people who elected Ronald Reagan twice also elected Bill Clinton twice. So I guess nothing holds. Ignore my comments.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com