John McCain the Liberal

Just when I think I might be able to hold my nose and vote for John McCain, as his mother has suggested, he does something to rekindle my utter disdain and prove once again that he is no conservative, as he claims, but a liberal wolf in sheep’s clothing. 

The Arizona senator and Republican nominee’s recent major address on foreign affairs could have easily been given by any Democrat in America.  The speech left me asking, why is it that both major parties seem to always agree, for the most part, on foreign policy?  Can we have a least one party that can believe in American Exceptionalism and put our nation first?

“We cannot build an enduring peace based on freedom by ourselves,” says McCain, “and we do not want to.  We have to strengthen our global alliances as the core of a new global compact — a League of Democracies — that can harness the vast influence of the more than one hundred democratic nations around the world to advance our values and defend our shared interests.”  So Senator McCain believes that we lack the strength to lead the free world, even if that should be our goal.  Apparently he does not believe in Jefferson’s great admonition to steer clear of “entangling” alliances.  Or, at the very least, he fails to see the utter incompetence and uselessness of many alliances.

“When we believe international action is necessary, whether military, economic, or diplomatic, we will try to persuade our friends that we are right.  But we, in return, must be willing to be persuaded by them.”  Persuaded by who?  France?  Germany?  Other members of Socialist Europe?  What if they disagree with us fundamentally on important policy issues that might injure our nation?  So a President McCain could easily be persuaded by, say Germany, to abandon certain programs that might be good for America. 

“If we are successful in pulling together a global coalition for peace and freedom — if we lead by shouldering our international responsibilities and pointing the way to a better and safer future for humanity, I believe we will gain tangible benefits as a nation.”  International responsibilities?  What’s he running for U.N. Secretary General?  Not exactly the next George Washington.

“The United States did not single-handedly win the Cold War; the transatlantic alliance did, in concert with partners around the world.”  This is certainly news to me.  It may technically be true but we spent 99 percent of the money, did 99 percent of the work, and provided all the leadership.  Nations around the globe looked to us for help and nowhere else.

Again and again McCain demonstrates that he is a liberal and does not believe the United States to be, as Lincoln called it, the “last best hope of earth.” 

The rest of his liberal record is no secret. 

He voted against both Bush tax cut packages in 2001 and 2003, the one true conservative policy of this current administration, but only now says they should be made permanent, or at least that was his position during the primary season.

He has taken the extreme liberal position on one of the greatest hoaxes in recent history – global warming.  To combat it, McCain proposed in 2003, along with his good friend Senator Joe Lieberman, a “cap and trade” bill that would limit greenhouse gas emissions, thereby crippling U.S. industry, presumably as other nations, like India and China, increase their production and expand their search for the world’s vast energy reserves.

McCain has also opposed drilling in ANWR, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, to tap a huge reservoir of domestic oil.  Domestic production, along with new refining capability, would lessen our dependence on foreign sources and help drive down costs.  Yet he sides with the Left on these important issues.

Or as he put it in his address:  “We need a successor to the Kyoto Treaty, a cap-and-trade system that delivers the necessary environmental impact in an economically responsible manner.  We Americans must lead by example and encourage the participation of the rest of the world, including most importantly, the developing economic powerhouses of India and China.”  So we will encourage China.  I can tell you how that one will come out.

And Kyoto would have devastated what remains of our industrial base.  Recall in 1997 the Senate passed a resolution by a vote of 95-0 that essentially rejected Kyoto.

“I will establish the goal of eradicating malaria on the continent — the number one killer of African children under the age of five.  In addition to saving millions of lives in the world’s poorest regions, such a campaign would do much to add luster to America’s image in the world.”  But it is the environmental extremists who are solely responsible for the spread of malaria.  This dreaded disease, which killed so many for so long, was almost eradicated from the planet with the pesticide DDT, only until the girly men environmentalists lobbied weak-kneed liberal politicians and had it banned in 1972.  Since then malaria has re-emerged as a major global killer.  Liberal compassion at its finest!

McCain has also proposed closing Guantanamo Bay and treating terrorists, who show no mercy on their enemies, with compassion.  “We must fight the terrorists and at the same time defend the rights that are the foundation of our society,” he says.  But these thugs are not protected by the Geneva Convention, despite liberal claims to the contrary, and are not subject to any special treatment.  I am not suggesting mass murdering them but we cannot give them the same rights we enjoy under our Constitution, as McCain advocates. 

And closing Gitmo?  Terrorists held there eat better than most Americans do, get free Korans, prayer blankets, and are allowed to practice their religion to its fullest, with the exception of Jihad!  We just can’t pour a little water on their heads!

McCain’s economic views are just as screwy and liberal.  He has even stated, on many occasions, that the economy is not his strong suit.  This is not exactly the time for a guy who has no clue what to do in an economic crisis!

At this moment our economy is teetering on recession and very fragile.  And free trade is one policy that has contributed mightily to it, as trillions of dollars have been transported out of this country in the last decade and a half, as our industrial base has deteriorated.  But McCain – Mr. I don’t know much about the economy – still holds tight to free trade.  “Ours can be the first completely democratic hemisphere, where trade is free across all borders, where the rule of law and the power of free markets advance the security and prosperity of all.” 

McCain has also stated that “free trade has been the engine of our economy.”  But if you will look at the data you will find that American free trade has been the engine of China’s economy!  So far free trade has not been proven to benefit our overall economy, only those big corporations allowed to outsource production to foreign nations, laying off their American workers.

McCain believes, as do all liberals and pseudo-conservatives, that it is in our best interest to prosper EVERYONE, which will in turn benefit us!  What about our wealth, which we are losing every day? 

And those that aren’t prospering in Mexico or other Central American nations?  Well McCain will just invite them here to prosper.  Remember this guy tried his hardest to pass an amnesty bill, along with Ted Kennedy of all people, to allow ALL illegal immigrants, some 20 million or more, to stay in this country.  It has been a cause he has worked for all his public life.  Only now does he say that he believes in securing the border first!  Does anyone wanna fall for this garbage?  If he believes in secure borders, coming from a border state, why has he done NOTHING as of yet?  The answer is obvious:  He’s a liar!

And finally we must not forget that McCain is anti-Constitution, no matter what he says.  His McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform bill essentially tore up the First Amendment.  And now he proposes going further and banning all the 527 groups.  He even denounced the Swiftboat Veterans for Truth during the 2004 campaign for attacking fellow Vietnam vet John Kerry.  So if any American citizen feels passionately about a particular political issue and wants to promote that issue through the formation of a advocacy group, a President McCain would prevent him from doing so! 

For true conservatives, this man does not need to be anywhere near the Oval Office.