Super Tuesday II, as it was dubbed, did determine who the Republican nominee will be. As the votes were counted in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Vermont Tuesday night John McCain surpassed the 1,191 delegates needed to secure the Republican nomination. Mike Huckabee, who continued to draw strong social conservative support in Tuesday's primaries, congratulated McCain and announced he was stepping out of the race.
Despite his exit, no one can deny how influential Mike Huckabee was in championing values issues in this crucial race. While Tuesday night was clearly a victory for McCain, the Arizona senator acknowledged that his work is just beginning. To succeed in his bid for the White House, McCain must consolidate his support among conservatives, including social conservatives, which will not happen just because he is the Republican nominee.
In the wake of the Republican scandals that began to surface in 2006 and the failure to advance most of the social conservative agenda, unqualified support for the GOP has diminished. A poll released last month by George Barna revealed that if the election were held then, only 45 percent of Evangelicals would vote for a Republican candidate. That number is down from 85 percent of Evangelicals who voted for George W. Bush in 2004.
John McCain will have to convince social conservatives that their issues matter and that he can talk about them as a candidate and act upon them as president. The contest for the Democratic nomination appears to be a new version of my favorite show "Survivor," as Hillary Clinton managed to keep her campaign alive by winning the primaries in Ohio, Texas, and Rhode Island. The focus now shifts to the April contest in Pennsylvania as the next possible deciding point for the Democratic Party.
Source: Family Research Council.
1 comment:
i sent huckabee an email telling him that i want to vote for him and asking him not to drop out but i guess he didn't get enough of those to make a difference
Post a Comment