Both Senator John McCain and former-Mayor Rudy Giuliani present obstacles to getting my vote that seem to me to be insurmountable. I suspect that there are a large number of people in the conservative & libertarian camp that would agree with me.
An entire book could be written on this topic. No doubt that if there haven’t been already, there will be someday. For me, though, it boils down to a few simple issues that I just can’t compromise on.
Let’s do McCain first, because my list of objections to him are shorter.
- The McCain-Feingold Bill (better known as the Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002). I thought it was completely unconsitutional then, and I still do now. From President Bush’s signing statement:
However, the bill does have flaws. Certain provisions present serious constitutional concerns. In particular, H.R. 2356 goes farther than I originally proposed by preventing all individuals, not just unions and corporations, from making donations to political parties in connection with Federal elections.
I believe individual freedom to participate in elections should be expanded, not diminished; and when individual freedoms are restricted, questions arise under the First Amendment.
I also have reservations about the constitutionality of the broad ban on issue advertising, which restrains the speech of a wide variety of groups on issues of public import in the months closest to an election. I expect that the courts will resolve these legitimate legal questions as appropriate under the law.
I was highly disappointed with President Bush for signing this monstrosity, but McCain deserves as much or more of the blame; his aptitude for political opportunism that comes at the expense of the integrity of the constitution is disgusting. One of the oaths of office (for the Presidency, but also for a Senator) is to protect and defend the constitution from enemies foreign and domestic. McCain chose to be a domestic enemy rather than a defender. Why should I believe that he would act to protect the constitution as president, particularly if it is an inconvenient obstacle to an action that would result in personal political gain?
This issue alone disqualifies McCain completely in my mind.
- McCain takes great pride in his “party maverick” status. Not only is this counterproductive (being elected as the presidential nominee for a major party is tantamount to being named the official head of the party), but it’s cynical and arrogant.
- McCain loves to make himself out to be the “anti-pork” senator, but what results has he actually achieved in that regard? More generally, what has he ever done to help reduce the level of federal spending?
Rudy has another set of issues.
- Do we really want to elect a man who will publicly shame his wife – and unapologetically so – by living with a mistress? I sure don’t.
- Rudy is pro-abortion – meaning that Rudy thinks it’s ok for women to terminate the lives of other people (babies) for the purposes of ending an uwanted burdern, randing in severity from personal inconvenience to long-term health reasons. There are ranges of belief about abortion in the GOP, and even among conservatives, but Rudy is on the extreme fringe of that range.
- He cheered when Proposition 187 in California was struck down by an unelected judge (or judges, I’m not sure which), and lamented the “wave of anti-immigrant sentiment”. Not only does this take on immigration set me agin him, but his approval of such judicial activism and usurpation of power is alarming.
- Does his leadership of New York really suggest that he would be a good president? He took a tough (and the correct) stance on law enforcement. Good for him. He provided much needed steadyness at the time of the September 2001 attacks. That’s great. Those are great things that a mayor did. Do they even make him a great mayor (I don’t know)?
Let me make this disclaimer – I don’t have the time to do a thorough exposition of the various candidates flaws and strengths. I merely write this to point out some flaws of these two particularl presumed candidates that strike me as deal-breakers. Also, before I am accused being a hypocrite, I will readily admit that there doesn’t appear to be much consistency between rejecting Giuliani partially because he lives with a mistriss (which implies a character problem) and accepting Gingrich in spite of his own marital problems. The two situations are different to me (at least, based on my current understanding of the two men). Firstly, because I am supporting Newt as a vice-presidential candidate and the implications in terms of party leadership are different. Secondly, because as I understand it, Rudy is unapologetic about sleeping with a mistriss while still married. Newt has had problems, but they don’t approach that level, as far as I know.
Also, I should point out that both these men have positive qualities about them; it’s just that in my mind, they do not overcome the negatives.