McCain edges Romney in Florida … not good news

If the Florida primary catapults Arizona Senator John McCain past Mitt Romney to win the GOP presidential nomination, the truth will be plain and simple: conservatives have no “dog” in this dog fight. Even if a owned a plasma TV and a plasma tv mount, I would have found it hard to believe Tuesday’s primary results.

Since Florida is a “winner take all” state, all 57 delegates now go into McCain’s column. That puts McCain in front-runner status for the first time, with the following delegate count: McCain 93, Romney 59, Huckabee 40, Paul 4, and Giuliani 1. Ridiculously, McCain is now claiming he is the bearer of the “conservative mantle” in the GOP, despite a career of authoring anti-conservative legislation and being a pain in the ass to any remotely conservative president from Reagan forward to George W. Bush. When Hillary Rodham-Clinton is a closer friend than your own party’s president, guess what, John: YOU’RE NOT A CONSERVATIVE! NOT REMOTELY!

I mean, sure, Romney’s not an ideal conservative, but at least he’s leaning in the right direction. He speaks fondly of Ronald Reagan, at least. McCain speaks fondly of Hillary Clinton.

So, Florida – a state where voters claimed they couldn’t even understand how to mark a simple ballot back in 2000 – has decided to deliver the GOP nod to one of Washington’s top Democrats, RINO leader John McCain.

I am not exaggerating when I say I’d feel better voting for Barack Obama than John McCain; and that is NOT a vote that would make me feel that good on a political ideological level, believe me. But at least Obama is inspiring. McCain’s not.

And if it comes down to McCain or Hillary, for the first time in my life, I will vote third-party; basically, whoever runs on the libertarian ticket. I refuse to support John McCain, ever, and I know I’m hardly the only conservative who feels this way. I’m a conservative first, not a Republican, and if McCain is forced down our throats this time out, this is one conservative who won’t be swallowing this time.

If McCain wins the nomination, we will be witnessing the death of the Republican Party. Perhaps it’s time conservatives withdrew entirely and formed a real conservative party. I’ll make a prediction: McCain 2008 is Dole 1996 all over again. Same “it’s my turn” cronyism, same result: a Democratic victory. Let the Republican crack-up begin! (Notice I didn’t say conservative crack-up.)

I’ll even suggest a name for it: the Reagan Party.