the future of the republican party?

[Giant Saguaro]

In a way I hope we run McCain on 2008. Because I want to see what Democrats say and do when they find out he's actually a conservative.

It's not what is said as much as how it's said, I guess, like the old saying goes.

[Giant Saguaro]

Does anyone remember what kind of campaign McCain ran in 2000? It was horrible, literally off the scale bad. He's got a basically conservative record, goes up to New England and talks like a liberal, scares the hell out of everybody, but wins NH and DE or something, and then he's dead in the water. He promises not to negative campaign and then does. Bush pounces on him like a cat crouched in the weeds. McCain doesn't have the intuition or temperment to run a national campaign, but if he runs I hope he learned some lessons from 2000.

Fortunately for McCain, he's remembered as being a lot, a ton better than he came off in 2000, so he probably could mount a run, but he would have to be very careful.

[Giant Saguaro]

In a way I hope we run McCain on 2008. Because I want to see what Democrats say and do when they find out he's actually a conservative.

It's not what is said as much as how it's said, I guess, like the old saying goes.

We know hes a conservative. Its the fact that he's a moderate conservative, not a Santorum type, that the appeal is.

I will agree that he's not a Santorum style conservative. But the fact is that I think regardless, McCain is perceived as being a lot better now than he came off in 2000 and he can easily work that to his advantage. I think that's actually kind of rare that someone can put those kinds of mistakes behind them, but he does face an uphill battle (especially if Bush is re-elected) because he's not a partyline conservative. Would be interesting if the Dems put up a non-partyline candidate and the GOP put up a non-partyline candidate.

For the record, I will support him unless he proves utterly incapable of running a national campaign.