Hope for Republicans

George Will continues to be the best conservative columnist in America - and his record over the last few years is a stellar example of cool conservatism under fire. And I think he's right that all three current GOP front-runners are less awful than some seem to think. If the small but encouraging developments in Iraq lead to more progress, McCain will get a second wind. Giuliani and Romney are both excellent executives, representing two sides of the Republican libertarian/theocon divide. None of them is as incompetent as Bush (although Giuliani is as dictatorial, dangerous and controlling as Cheney). Sane conservatives are also beginning to realize that some of the most divisive issues, like abortion and marriage, are best dealt with at a state level or by judicial appointments - defusing some of the passion. And people forget who Ronald Reagan really was. Money quote from Will:

Suppose someone seeking the presidential nomination had, as a governor, signed the largest tax increase in his state's history and the nation's most permissive abortion law. And by signing a law institutionalizing no-fault divorce, he had unwittingly but substantially advanced an idea central to the campaign for same-sex marriages -- the minimalist understanding of marriage as merely a contract between consenting adults to be entered into or dissolved as it suits their happiness.

Question: Is it not likely that such a presidential aspirant would be derided by some of today's fastidious conservatives? A sobering thought, that, because the attributes just described were those of Ronald Reagan.

The GOP has gone insane these past few years with big government spending, borrowing and moralizing. But the Bush era is ending; and a better day may be coming. We shouldn't forgo a better future in the process of excoriating the recent past.

A reader comments:

My political education and activism grew out of the roots of the evangelical, social conservative, religious right movement of the early to late 90’s. That being said; I have no problem, at this stage of the campaign, to state that Rudy is the best candidate for the 08 GOP nomination. If conservatives actually want to win, that is.

My stance and my energy on these 'social issues' have wavered slowly since 9-11 and Iraq. The rise of political Islam, the disastrous results of regime change in Iraq, which I originally supported, your blog, George Will's columns, and most importantly, CS Lewis's Screwtape Letters have changed my perspective on the relationship between faith and religion.

Keep hope alive.