John McCain received a warm introduction from George Allen and Tom Coburn, but not so much from the audience. At first, McCain looked a bit uncomfortable, but quickly adopted the attitude of a man accepting his party's nomination ("I'd be deeply humbled and honored to receive your nomination..."). In that tradition, McCain sought to demonstrate his conservative bona fides to a skeptical crowd. Among the highlights:
On missing CPAC last year: "I was merely preoccupied with the distinction of being the Republican frontrunner..."
On abortion: McCain reaffirmed his commitment to the pro-life crowd ("my 24 year pro-life record").
On immigration: McCain had only to utter the words "on the issue of illegal immigration..." before he was cut off by boos. But then something strange happened. A broad smile appeared on McCain's face, as if to say, "trust me," and the crowd's boos turned into applause. He then elaborated on immigration: "I would consider it among my highest priorities to secure our borders first" before focusing on the "rule of law" concerns of conservatives in the audience in order to, in his words, "prevent another wave of illegal immigrants."
On Democrats: Despite McCain's promise to work with "Reagan Democrats" and "enlightened Democrats," he nevertheless warned, in a hushed, grave tone, that electing a Democrat to the presidency would take us "backward to the days when the government felt compelled to take our freedom" and accused Democrats of "timidity" in not paying attention to the gathering storm of Islamic terrorism, while opposing surveillance reform (extending FISA with retroactive telecom immunity).
McCain also promised the following, each to hearty applause:
"I will not sign a bill with any earmarks in it."
"I will start by making the Bush tax cuts permanent."
"I will cut corporate tax rates from 35 to 25%"
"I will end the Alternative Minimum Tax."
By the end, the crowd was actually chanting "John McCain! John McCain! John McCain!" John McCain's presence here today might have been a success, but it has only partially bridged the gap between him and conservatives on a host of social issues.
--Mori Dinauer
