Mike Huckabee has won two more states in his fight to secure the Vice Presidential nomination for the GOP. He won the Kansas caucus securing 60% of the vote. Mr Huckabee also won the Louisiana primary defeating John McCain by 44% to 42%. Mr McCain won Washington state caucus by a narrow margin.
Mr Huckabee has benefited from the support of evangelicals and conservatives in the south. His campaign working on a shoestring has been a stunning success. He is determined to remain in the race even though the odds are stacked strongly against him. McCain has got c724 delegates to 196 for Huckabee.
Speculation abounds as to Huckabee’s real motives. It is probable that he covets the Vice Presidential slot or a post in a putative McCain administration.
Also Mike Huckabee is determined to remain in the race to ensure that John McCain does not ignore the conservative wing of the GOP. Support yesterday for Mike Huckabee is a stern warning to McCain that he has so far failed to mollify conservatives on issues such as tax and illegal immigration. A policy platform based on strong conservative principles is a sine qua non if McCain is to win over the recalcitrant right wing.
McCain has much work to do to shore up the GOP base. He made a good start at the Conservative Convention. He should now go further and select Mike Huckabee as his running mate.
Showing posts with label Conservative Convention. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Conservative Convention. Show all posts
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Thursday, February 7, 2008
John McCain begins the healing process with conciliatory speech to conservatives at Conservative Convention
Today John McCain addressed the Conservative Convention in Washington DC. This speech was carefully nuanced and set clear blue water between him and Clinton/Obama.
His warm tribute to Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee aids the healing process in the Republican Party. He emphasized his determination to unify the party and to run on conservative principles. He stressed that he was a conservative. Liberty is a right conferred by God. A political party must stand for clear-cut political beliefs and cannot be all things to all men. Here he was invoking the legacy of Ronald Reagan. He stressed small government, fiscal discipline, low taxation and the right to life of the unborn. He opposes big government mandated health care. He opposes expensive entitlement programmes. He favours low company taxation. He supports the maintenance of the Bush tax cuts.
He expressed strong support for the surge. He alluded to the problem of illegal immigration. He understood the opposition of conservatives to his stance on illegal immigration. Here he was booed by some of his listeners. However he quickly won over the dissidents. He attacked Senate Democrats for blocking surveillance powers designed to fight Jihadists. He stated that he would reduce big government and reduce taxes. He declared that Clinton and Obama would increase big government and raise taxes. He would appoint judges who respect the rights of the people. He attacked the Clinton/Obama decision to set an arbitrary withdrawal date from Iraq. He warned Iran and stressed his support for Israel.
The speech set the right tone. It had sufficient humility and humour to mollify the doubters. It addressed the major issues from a conservative perspective. It outlined in sharp relief major differences between McCain and Clinton/Obama. It is a major contribution towards the healing process within the Republican Party.
His warm tribute to Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee aids the healing process in the Republican Party. He emphasized his determination to unify the party and to run on conservative principles. He stressed that he was a conservative. Liberty is a right conferred by God. A political party must stand for clear-cut political beliefs and cannot be all things to all men. Here he was invoking the legacy of Ronald Reagan. He stressed small government, fiscal discipline, low taxation and the right to life of the unborn. He opposes big government mandated health care. He opposes expensive entitlement programmes. He favours low company taxation. He supports the maintenance of the Bush tax cuts.
He expressed strong support for the surge. He alluded to the problem of illegal immigration. He understood the opposition of conservatives to his stance on illegal immigration. Here he was booed by some of his listeners. However he quickly won over the dissidents. He attacked Senate Democrats for blocking surveillance powers designed to fight Jihadists. He stated that he would reduce big government and reduce taxes. He declared that Clinton and Obama would increase big government and raise taxes. He would appoint judges who respect the rights of the people. He attacked the Clinton/Obama decision to set an arbitrary withdrawal date from Iraq. He warned Iran and stressed his support for Israel.
The speech set the right tone. It had sufficient humility and humour to mollify the doubters. It addressed the major issues from a conservative perspective. It outlined in sharp relief major differences between McCain and Clinton/Obama. It is a major contribution towards the healing process within the Republican Party.
Mitt Romney withdraws from GOP race with carefully crafted speech on conservative principles
Today at the Conservative Convention in Washington DC Mitt Romney announced his intention to withdraw from the race for the GOP nomination. Romney’s poor performance on Super Tuesday effectively scuppered his prospects as he trailed far behind McCain in convention delegates
Romney’s speech was a tour de force. It was characterised by a clear-cut elucidation of conservative principles. It was arguably the greatest speech that he has ever given.
He emphasized the importance of the family-father and mother- to society. He attacked the culture of death. He emphasized the damage done by abortion to European society. He lambasted the nanny state.
He emphasized the importance of private enterprise and attacked government bureaucracy and excessive pay rates for government bureaucrats. He attacked wasteful government expenditure. He strongly supported McCains stance on the War on Terror. His decision to withdraw was based on a determination not to split the party. He claimed that any split in the party would ensure the election of either Clinton and Obama.
If John McCain is elected President it is likely that he may serve only one term on age grounds. Romney’s pragmatic decision and strong support for conservative principles ensures that he is likely to secure the GOP nomination in the future.
Today marks the first step in the healing process in the GOP and greatly strengthens its prospects of securing the Presidency.
Romney’s speech was a tour de force. It was characterised by a clear-cut elucidation of conservative principles. It was arguably the greatest speech that he has ever given.
He emphasized the importance of the family-father and mother- to society. He attacked the culture of death. He emphasized the damage done by abortion to European society. He lambasted the nanny state.
He emphasized the importance of private enterprise and attacked government bureaucracy and excessive pay rates for government bureaucrats. He attacked wasteful government expenditure. He strongly supported McCains stance on the War on Terror. His decision to withdraw was based on a determination not to split the party. He claimed that any split in the party would ensure the election of either Clinton and Obama.
If John McCain is elected President it is likely that he may serve only one term on age grounds. Romney’s pragmatic decision and strong support for conservative principles ensures that he is likely to secure the GOP nomination in the future.
Today marks the first step in the healing process in the GOP and greatly strengthens its prospects of securing the Presidency.
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