If the radical right hates him, he must be OK

Why do the Republicans hate America so much? There’s no other way to analyze their presidential race but to conclude that theirs is the party of destruction, intolerance and personal attacks. After eight years of war, misery, corruption and economic devastation, they’re on the road to normalcy — but they seem determined to mess it up again.

Their presumptive nominee, John McCain, is a man of unassailable integrity, courage and conviction. He is a genuine war hero, a distinguished public servant and a man who says what he believes, no matter what the cost.

So it only makes sense that conservatives are trying to destroy him. Rush Limbaugh, a man who avoided military service and an admitted drug addict, blasts McCain daily on the radio.

Other conservatives are trying to derail McCain’s nomination in favor of Mitt Romney, a candidate who in many ways is just like the current president: the son of a millionaire, a man who will say whatever it takes to get votes and a person indebted to big money and corporate interests.

The people have spoken. McCain is their choice. But since modern Republicans are fundamentally opposed to personal liberty and democracy, they’re trying to stop McCain at all costs.

While I personally disagree with McCain on many issues, I respect him for his honesty, his distinguished military service and his willingness to work with his political opponents for the good of the country.

It seems like any time an honest Republican comes forward, he’s attacked mercilessly by the conservative media and the conservative attack dogs.

Let’s look at the past 30 years or so of history. President Gerald Ford was a moderate politician who unified the nation after the horrors of Watergate. Conservatives tried to destroy his presidency. In 1996, Sen. Bob Dole, another war hero, was abandoned by his party and pummeled in the election by Bill Clinton.

Who were their choices? Ronald Reagan, who gave weapons to Osama bin Laden and sold weapons to Iran; George H.W. Bush, an oil millionaire and military interventionist; and his son, another child of privilege who bought his way out of at least one DUI and who pulled strings so he didn’t have to fight in Vietnam.

They call themselves the party of law and order yet lie to the world about Iraq. They condone the torture of prisoners and the wiretapping of innocent Americans. On top of that, the current president and vice president both have criminal records.

If John McCain became president, he’d pursue an agenda based on his core beliefs, not on what talk radio hosts and corporate titans tell him to do. He’d follow his conservative principles but be willing to compromise when it was necessary. And he’d be criticized constantly by the conservative-dominated media.

Usually, the big-money conservatives save their attacks and smear campaigns for Democrats. Jimmy Carter, one of the most religious and pious men ever to hold the office as president, was decried as un-Christian by Jerry Falwell, who preferred the twice-married Reagan. Yet Carter spent the years after his presidency working to spread freedom and democracy around the world. He earned the Nobel Peace Prize, while Reagan will be remembered as an affable con man.

Just four years ago, big-money conservatives succeeded in portraying John Kerry, yet another combat veteran, as being soft on terrorism. History will show that thousands of lives would have been saved had the votes been counted fairly and he be allowed to become president.

And if Barack Obama becomes the Democratic nominee, expect the race card to be played constantly. Like McCain, Obama is a unifying figure, a man who would seek to right the wrongs of the past eight years. His drug use as a youth will be brought up endlessly, despite the fact that the current president is a recovering alcoholic.

I have a feeing, though, that these un-American, anti-democracy forces on the right will fail this time. Even the densest American citizen can see what conservatism brings us: more ill-advised military adventures, the removal of constitutional rights and the destruction of our economy.

History has already rendered its judgment on Bush, Reagan and Li’l Bush. History will smile upon Ford, Dole and McCain, not to mention Carter, Kerry and Al Gore. The conservatives are hoping they can fool us again with Romney.

For the sake of freedom and democracy, let us hope they are not successful. This election is too important. Our nation’s future is at stake. We can’t let the military-industrial complex and its lackeys in the far-right media decide another vote.

Pray for McCain, Obama and Hillary Clinton. They are all honorable people. Any of them would serve the country well.

And that’s what scares the conservatives the most. They have every right to be frightened. Their days are almost up. God bless America.