Why I support John McCain

By Eric Sedler

I turned 18 on August 7th, 2003. One of the first things I did was become a registered voter, although I admit that I was not an informed voter and I was rarely concerned with politics. What I was however, was an independent. I voted in the 2004, 2005, and 2006 elections as an independent, and while I won’t say who I voted for, I will admit that I often split my ticket, even in 2006 when I started identifying myself with the Republican party and helped out Tom Kean Jr., I split my ticket. This past year I finally became a registered Republican and out of frustration with the direction of the state and with my home county of Bergen, I voted right down the Republican line in 2007. These days I’m not afraid to admit that I’m quite the partisan, but one of the things I can say is that I’ve learned the value of independence and just how important it is for candidates to appeal to independents, especially in New Jersey.

The Republican Party is facing quite the battle in 2008. All trends lean Democrat and the current Republican President’s approval rating is in the toilet. People are frustrated with him and even the word Republican has a negative approval rating. Our party needs to unite behind a candidate that can transcend the negative view of Republicans and win back the all important independents and appeal to the crossover Democrats. We cannot be obsessed with finding the perfect candidate for our views; rather we need to look to who would bridge the partisan divide in this country and lead this country in the right direction.

Senator John McCain is that person, not just for the Republican Party, but for the United States of America. His proven record of appealing to independents and crossover Democrats is exactly what stands out as his biggest strength.

I realize that some conservatives have a real problem with Senator McCain. There is no denying that John McCain has stood on his own at times rather than with siding with the conservative base of the party. There is also no denying he is more willing to work with Democrats then some Conservatives would like. I would call these strengths, but some Republicans would call it his greatest weakness. I’d like to reassure those people: JOHN MCCAIN IS A CONSERVATIVE!

He has an 83% rating from the American Conservative Union and is often the biggest deficit and spending hawk in the US Senate. Some Republicans dislike him because he originally opposed the Bush Tax Cuts twice, but it was a key conservative issue that led him to oppose the cuts: there were no spending cuts to offset the tax cuts. A common conservative complaint against the Bush administration and some other Republicans is that they let spending get out of control, John McCain realized that and understood the cause for concern so he opposed the tax cuts, never mind the fact that he now says he wants to make those tax cuts permanent. John McCain is a STRONG fiscal conservative; he has never asked or received one earmark. He leads the charge against pork-barrel spending and would veto every single pork filled bill that is sent to his desk as President and make the authors famous. Ask Jack Abramoff and his cronies just how tough John McCain is on pork-barrel spending. Ask The Bridge to Nowhere and Hillary Clinton’s would-be hippie museum just how tough John McCain is on reckless spending. This is exactly why America is worried about the economy, politicians are in Washington spending our taxpayer dollars on useless gifts to their campaign contributors and John McCain is the person who can finally stop this culture of corruption. McCain also realizes more needs to be done on the economy, that’s why he proposes repealing the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT), something that would save one middle class with children an average of over $2,700. McCain is also a very strong advocate for pro-growth and free-trade policies. He would give tax credits for innovation (research and development) that would keep America competitive and business-friendly.

John McCain’s weakest issue among conservatives just might be immigration. He has heard their message and the message of the American people and would secure the borders first and have the border state Governor’s certify that their borders are secured. Republicans need to realize however that after that is done, we need to take a realistic and humane approach to how to deal with the 12 million plus illegal immigrants in this county. John McCain’s campaign suffered greatly because of the bill that was unfairly labeled “Amnesty”. The bill was not in fact amnesty, because it required illegal immigrants to return home and pay fines, learn English, and other things to get on the path to citizenship. John McCain would deport the 2 million plus illegal immigrants that have committed crimes and make sure the borders are in fact secure before even working on the very real and complex problem of the illegal immigrants already in the country.

John McCain’s strongest issue is National Security and Foreign Affairs. He is hands down the most experienced candidate on both sides of the aisle when it comes to these issues. He was right to criticize the Rumsfeld strategy for Iraq and was the surge’s biggest supporter when it was an unpopular idea. John McCain knows just how important it is to listen to the Generals rather than play politics with our troops. His experience on foreign affairs is even greater, he’s been involved in every major national conflict since even before he was elected to Congress. We need a leader who needs no on the job training and is prepared to lead day one and keep America safe. John McCain is that leader for America and we can trust him to make the right decisions to keep this country secure from radical extremists.

John McCain is an American Hero. His days as a POW have made him into the tough character that he is today and makes him stand out amongst any of the other candidates. He takes strong positions on controversial issues like torture and earns the respect of everyone as someone who can restore the moral authority America once had around the world.

I encourage everyone to check out http://www.johnmccain.com/ and research more of his positions and trust the wisdom of the voters leads to John McCain becoming the next president of the United States.

Eric Sedler is Managing Editor of RedJersey.net. Eric is a volunteer for the McCain campaign. The campaign has opened a New Jersey office located at 4619 Nottingham Way. Hamilton, NJ. Phone Number: 609-587-0111. Open this week Mon-Friday 10:00AM -8:00PM.

Eric can be reached at eric.sedler@gmail.com