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Wanted by the GOP: One Good Man Philip V. Brennan Conservative Republicans, which is most of them, are an unhappy lot. Dissatisfied with the current crop of presidential wannabes, they are wandering through the bleak political landscape like Diogenes with his lamp looking for the perfect candidate to carry the party's banner in the 2008 presidential election campaign. Ask them what they're looking for and they'll get a wistful look in their eyes and tell you they want another Ronald Reagan. Their hopes are doomed. There isn't another Ronald Reagan. The original is gone to a far better place, and it should be obvious that there isn't anyone who even faintly resembles the Gipper in politics today. He was a man completely suited to his times if you will, a product of Divine providence who arrived on the scene at a pivotal moment fully and peculiarly equipped with all the faculties the times required. The present time demands something else entirely a man capable of meeting new kinds of challenges in a time far different than it was when Ronald Reagan came on the scene. I have had little patience with the current media mania over an election that is two years away. Story Continues Below
Having said that, I think that instead of focusing on the "who," we should be focusing on the "what," namely exactly what kind of man is needed to meet the challenges that lie ahead. One that is determined to defend his party's principles and policies against all comers. One who is always a warrior and never a wimp. As I look at the current crop of GOP hopefuls I see the same chink in their armor that has plagued most Republican leaders in recent years. In the elegant phrase of Maggie Thatcher, the have an unfortunate tendency to "go wobbly" when faced with a major crisis. Instead of responding with unshakable determination to stick to what they know is right in the face of media firestorms that demand they do what they know is wrong, they seek some compromise in the barren neverland between right and wrong. A case in point: global warming. George Bush and those around him are fully aware that the whole thing is a gigantic hoax that could bring about a serious crippling of the economy and the imposition of Marxian regulations presided over by the United Nations that would diminish the liberty and prosperity of Americans. Instead of maintaining as they had in the past, they begin to wobble, agreeing that perhaps something really should be done to solve a problem that they know does not exist. It's almost impossible to find an issue where they do not equivocate when the media-fed pressure is on them. It will be interesting to see how they respond to the latest media firestorm over Gen. Peter Pace's statement that homosexual practices are immoral a position held by most civilized societies since the dawn of time, but now under attack by the politically powerful homosexual lobby that seeks to repeal the strictures against sodomy laid down unequivocally in the Holy Bible. If ever there was a wobbly moment, this it. Watch them run for cover. In the coming presidential campaign the man who captures the GOP nomination is going to be faced with an opponent singing the seductive quasi-Marxist liturgical chant that promises something, not for nothing, but for ever larger slices of the liberties and personal responsibilities of the beneficiaries of government largess. Again and again he will be challenged by an opponent who will weep bitter tears over the plight of the medically uninsured, huge chunks of whom have $50,000 annual incomes but choose not to buy health insurance, and opponents who will insist that only the federal government can guarantee and supply health coverage for all. Here again is a wobbly moment, when the Republican candidate will be called upon to compromise his party's understanding that socialized medicine has always proven to be the worst possible prescription and instead attempt to be half-socialist in their approach to the problem. Then there is the war on terrorism which will still be going on during the campaign, and for many years to come. The only course the United States can follow is one of absolute determination to defeat an enemy that is absolutely determined to defeat us. There can be no half measures here. Going wobbly on this issue imperils the very future not only of the United States but of the entire world. Time after time the Republican candidate in 2008 will be faced with clear choices between standing firm on traditional conservative Republican principles and policies, or equivocating by accepting watered-down versions. The man the GOP chooses to carry its banner must above all be two things firmly devoted to defending his party's conservative views and fully capable of convincing the voters that the things the Republican party stands for are the things that will continue to guarantee their freedom, protect the economy from ruinous socialistic policies, and their futures. In this one area we do need another Ronald Reagan another great communicator a man who will stand tall in the saddle, fully capable of telling the opposition to smile when they attack him or suffer the consequences of his wrath a man, finally, who is his own man, certain in his beliefs and willing to go to any lengths to defend them. In short, Republicans need a man who can wipe the floor with any opponent the Democrats can throw at him no matter who he or she might be, and be completely unapologetic about it. They need a he-man. They need a winner. If that sounds suspiciously like one Fred Thompson, so be it. Phil Brennan is a veteran journalist who writes for NewsMax.com. He is editor and publisher of Wednesday on the Web (http://www.pvbr.com) and was Washington columnist for National Review magazine in the 1960s. He also served as a staff aide for the House Republican Policy Committee and helped handle the Washington public relations operation for the Alaska Statehood Committee which won statehood for Alaska. He is also a trustee of the Lincoln Heritage Institute and a member of the Association For Intelligence Officers. He can be reached at pvb@pvbr.com. Editor's note: Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
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