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The Republican Party is on the verge of making the mistake of selecting Senior Arizona Senator John McCain as its 2008 nominee. If this occurs, it is almost certain that McCain and the GOP will go down in flames in November.

It is hard to label the Arizona Senator a Republican. He certainly is not a conservative. His image will always take a back seat to the principals his Party. The independent McCain is famously known as a Republican "Maverick." In reality, he will say almost anything to remain popular to members of both parties, and that is why, rather than fighting for key GOP issues, he often sells himself as a sort of healing messiah and shakes hands with he opposition. As an example, the following is a list of legislation he has co-sponsored with some prominent liberal Democrats:

-McCain-Feingold - Limits free speech.
-McCain-Kennedy -Grants amnesty for illegal aliens.
-McCain-Lieberman -Caves in to the 'global warming' crowd and would raise taxes.
-McCain-Kennedy-Edwards - Their "patients' bill of rights" gave more power to trial lawyers.

John McCain is a hero. Five years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam was pure hell! God, I admire how he was able to weather that terrible storm, and I could not be more grateful to him for his service to our country. However, that is not a qualification, nor a requirement to become President of the United States. They are two separate things, and his history as a POW should never shield him from political criticism. It seems to me, however, that John McCain, and many of his supporters, believe it should. And, that is one of the reasons that I must say I do not like John McCain.

Looking back at the 2000 GOP South Carolina Primary, I found McCain to be arrogant and smug in his campaigning, I wondered out loud if he truly hated conservatives then. I think so, and he still does today. The Arizona Senator flips-flops like pancakes. Some of his actions, such as the legislation listed above, are seen as driving a knife in the back of his fellow Republicans. You could almost call him a liar when he calls himself a conservative in his campaign ads.

Only a few months ago, I honestly believed that John McCain was finished, for there was no way that the conservative base of the Grand Old Party would accept him. In a way, that still holds true. Luckily for McCain, that base has been divided among the other candidates: Mike Huckabee grabbed the religious conservatives, Mitt Romney corralled the economic leaning crowd and Rudy Giuliani won over most of the hawks. Without one candidate to unite the conservatives, the Senator became the front runner, and appears unstoppable, since Romney and Huckabee are still in the race, and will continue to split the base.

The only hope for true conservatives, like me, lies on Super Tuesday. The alternative to McCain is Mitt Romney, not Mike Huckabee. My eye sees Romney as a much more viable candidate than Huckabee. There must be a swarm of support for Romney on February 5th across the nation, or the GOP will be finished in 2008. The conservative base will not show up in November, as Republicans will suffer the same fate as they did with Gerald Ford 1976 and Bob Dole in 1996. The swarm could happen. The John McCain media gushing may spark a rush to the polls next Tuesday by conservatives. I am hopeful it will, as I cast my vote for Mitt Romney.

Learn more about this author, Michael Harkins.
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