The American Spectator

Quin, you're entitled to your frustration at McCain. But the idea of a.) quitting the war, b.) Big Labor having another attempt at monopolizing the economy, and c.) a liberal determining who the judges are for the next 4 years, strikes me as completely unacceptable. While certainly I'd like to think that the Republican party could put a man in a Reagan mask in the White House and make him sound like Reagan, I accept its unfeasibility.

Conservatives fight in the realm of ideas. They understand the fallibility of government. And the fallibility of some candidates. Those of us who believe in the philosophy subscribe to an idea about trade-offs. Sure, we'd *like* to have someone other than a senator who has had disagreements with the conservative movement. But that's not an option.

McCain provided a speech that wasn't patronizing -- in that sense, unique from many other speeches from candidates attempting to court the conservative vote. In a way I felt relieved. Finally, a candidate who doesn't pretend, and won't misrepresent the movement while in office. It's disappointing he doesn't buy whole-hog into the movement. He doesn't get points for admitting it, but at least we don't have to feign outrage when he fails us the way other sois-conservatives have.