This morning Governor Mitt Romney delivered an inspiring and moving speech to the conservative base at CPAC. Filled with the kind of conservative philosophical ideology that we conservatives have been craving, it was perhaps the most impressive speech we have heard this election season. Unfortunately, the crescendo of the speech was Romney’s announcement that he will suspend his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. Even through the television, the shock and disappointment of the audience was palpable. With Romney’s withdrawal, we have lost, as Laura Ingraham declared in introducing Governor Romney, the only conservative contender in the race.

As I’ve talked with fellow conservative friends in California about McCain, the general sentiment seems to be, “Here we go again!” What the rest of the nation is about to discover is the sad reality we have experienced here in California with our own “maverick” governor. Senator McCain’s CPAC speech solidified our trepidation about a President McCain. 

Prior to the speech, conservative commentators had stated that McCain would have to really win over the conservatives in order to lock the base and then take that support to the general election—and CPAC was his chance to at least placate the conservatives. In that regard, McCain’s speech was a disaster. He lacked the conciliatory attitude that would have gained at least the good will of his audience. Instead, conservatives heard an “Arnold-esque” speech about how the conservatives should become his type of conservative, that is, according to his unique definition of conservatism. For a definition of conservatism according to McCain, read Anne Coulter’s latest column. 

My experience is that if you have to explain that you’re a conservative to conservatives, you probably aren’t one. The response from the less-than-enthusiastic CPAC audience (there were boos) affirmed this truth. Only time (which is growing short) will tell if Senator McCain can mend fences with the conservative base and win the general election. If McCain is elected, prepare yourself for post-partisanship, DC-style.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 7th, 2008 at 12:00 am and is filed under Blog Posts.