John McCain: Ideology and Political Reality

It looks like John McCain will be the Republican Party nominee for the impending race for the White House. His candidacy has created ire within the ranks of staunch conservatives. Their rancor over McCain's supposed lack of conservative values has steadily increased. In particular, conservative talk radio has been relentless in their attacks on him. Ann Coulter's ad hominum attacks have been particularly vicious in nature. She has been working the intellect angle. She has chosen to remind us of McCain's less than stellar academic status at the US Naval Academy. She often goes on to tout the high intelligence level of those conservative commentators in opposition to John McCain. Her satirical attempts to paint McCain as a sort of dunce reek of academic elitism. The true intellect applies academic theory to the realities of the world in which he or she is immersed and modifies it as required to achieve a positive result. I've known several individuals over the years posessed of high intellect who unfortunately lacked the common sense to come in out of the rain. In order to avoid getting soaked, I would advise her to get an umbrella. Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingram and, Sean Hannity have also continued with their daily rants against McCain. Are they now preaching to the choir in order to simply maintain an audience or, are their concerns genuine? Only they can know for certain. The equation is quite simple. McCain is closer to conservative values than either Clinton or Obama. If a conservative approach to governance is of paramount concern for you as a voter then, you need to vote for McCain in the general election.

Conservatives need to separate ideology from reality or, much as they might hate to admit it, they will devolve into the identical twin of the rancorous and unrealistic ideology displayed by the far left. Philosophical ideology and political reality have always been in polar opposition to one another. The true art of governance has been the ability of the individual politician to effectively balance the two polar opposites. The American voter is digusted with the political vicissitudes of Washington D.C. I only need a single fact to prove this point. All you need to do is look at the approval rating for the Congress. Why do many conservatives distrust McCain? The answer is simple; he utilizes common sense, looks at the big picture and crosses the political aisle to achieve legislative results which he believes are good for the country. His ability to walk this tightrope angers many staunch conservatives who are unable to scale the high walls of political unreality in which they now found themselves trapped.

John McCain is not the first politician to achieve such a level of accomplishment and conjoined distrust. Our nation suffered through tremendous turmoils throughout the Antebellum Period. Senator Henry Clay Sr. (1777-1852) from Kentucky is considered by many to be one of our greatest senators. Senator Clay was deeply involved with numerous national issues during this period. Throughout the 1820s, 1830s and 1840s our country struggled with states rights, nationalism and, slavery. Together with Senators' Daniel Webster (1782-1852) of Massachusetts and Senator John C. Calhoun (1782-1850) of South Carolina, Senator Clay formed the "Great Triumvirate". These three statesmen helf divurgent political views however; they were able to transcend their differences and develop political solutions to our nation's problems. The battle over slavery loomed large in the halls of Congress and threatened the very existence of the country. Senators' Clay and Webster were paramount to the passage of the Missouri Compromise of 1820. This act brought Missouri and Maine into the Union and maintained the status quo of 11 free and 11 slave holding states within the Senate. The Tariff Act of 1828 angered many southern states and led to South Carolina's attempts at nullification of federal law. President Jackson wanted federal troops to impose federal laws on South Carolina however, the cooler minds of Calhoun, Clay and Webster kept the use of arms at bay. Finally, in 1833 Senator Clay was instrumental in getting the tariff rates gradually lowered. Later on, they brokered the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850. This act was a bitter pill to swallow for the abolitionist movement however, Senator Webster agreed to it in an attempt to hold the Union together. Calhoun died in 1850 and was soon followed by the passing of both Clay and Webster in 1852. As we all know, our country soon experienced the most traumatic event in our short history. Some will argue that the Civil War was inevitable and that these three statesmen's sole achievement was the delay of the inevitable. I disagree with this point of view. The abolition of slavery, not war was inevitable. We will never know for sure but one can argue that through the bilateral use of reason and ideology, statesmen such as Clay, Webster and, Calhoun could have peaceably ended slavery, solved state's rights and compromised on the country's expansion westward. The recalcitrance of political idealogues on both sides of national issues led to the Civil War.

Conservatives should learn from history. Maybe, like Clay, McCain will also fail to reach the White House but he deserves more than being stabbed in the back by staunch conservatives blinded by their intransigent allegiance to a political philosophy.

De Oppresso Liber