Dobson Slams McCain w/poll!
Wed Apr 02, 2008 at 10:23:30 AM PDT
There have been a lot of rumblings on the right, particularly the religious right about Sen. John McCain that do not bode well for his ability to unify the GOP. McCain once rightly called Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson "agents of intolerance." He meant it, and he has always been independent of the religious right on many things -- but he has also been seeking to patch things up as he prepared for his presidential campaign. His efforts have met with some success. But not enough.
Right wing talk show host Bill Cunningham and the ever-notorious Ann Coulter would rather vote for Hillary Clinton. Richard Viguerie is encouraging conservatives to sit this one out and regroup. And Alan Keyes is leaving the GOP altogether and will seek the nomination of the theocratic Constitution Party. (He will reportedly announce his intentions on April 15th, (tax day) in Pennsylvania.)
And now James Dobson tells the Wall Street Journal:
"I have seen no evidence that Sen. McCain is successfully unifying the Republican Party or drawing conservatives into his fold," he said in a written statement, reflecting his personal views. "To the contrary, he seems intent on driving them away."
In a written statement to the Journal, he stated:
To my knowledge, he has not reached out to pro-family leaders or changed any of the positions that have troubled them. He still believes, for example, that federal money should be allocated for laboratory experiments with tiny human embryos, after which they would be killed when they are no longer useful. He continues to favor allowing each state to create its own definition of marriage, potentially giving the nation 50 different legal interpretations. It would create chaos within families.
On March 7th, the senator delivered a speech to influential members of the The Council on National Policy, during which he thoroughly disappointed and irritated many of those in attendance. By contrast, McCain spoke last week during to the Los Angeles World Affairs Council on Foreign Policy, and reiterated his support for governmental intervention in the global warming debate, proposed shutting down Guantanamo, blamed the U.S military for torturing prisoners of war and promised to pander to our European allies before defending America's interests around the world. These policies frustrated conservatives, whom McCain seems to have written off.
One of his senior advisors asserted recently on Fox News that 'the right' can just go its own way, stating that McCain can win by attracting moderates and crossover Democrats. That seems to be the strategy. These are not the policies and pronouncements of a man who is seeking to 'unify the party.' Indeed, they appear to be fracturing an increasingly divided constituency. "
Oh yeah, and unmentioned by Dobson, and for that matter the Journal, was McCain advisor, former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger's recent statement that the Religious Right is "a serious problem."
[Crossposted from Talk to Action]
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