IN 1984, TO THE CONSTERNATION OF many conservatives, Ronald Reagan loyally supported and campaigned for liberal Republican Illinois Sen. Charles Percy despite Percy’s opposition to many key aspects of the Reagan program. Angry and dismayed conservatives asked Reagan how he could support Percy, who many saw as a liberal heir to Nelson Rockefeller. Reagan responded he would rather support a Republican whom he agreed with 90 percent of the time than a Democrat who would oppose him all of the time (although in Percy’s case 60 percent of the time was more like it). Conservatives did not heed Reagan and ran a third party candidate against Percy throwing the election to liberal Democrat Paul Simon who was a strident opponent of the Reagan Revolution and hoped to revive the New Deal.
Today many conservatives face a quandary with the apparent nomination of John McCain. Should they support McCain, who has stymied them in the past with maverick positions,or refuse to vote for him or even run a third party candidate and almost ensure the election of a Democrat. What all of us conservatives and Republicans must do is take a deep breath and remember Reagan’s 90-10 rule.
John McCain has infuriated conservatives with his work on McCain-Feingold (one of the largest infringements of free speech since the Alien and Sedition Acts) and sponsorship along with the conservative bête noir, Teddy Kennedy of what amount to tantamount amnesty. Yet despite this and his maverick in-your face style, he has been a conservative at least 82 percent of the time according to the American Conservative Union. While not quite 90 percent, it is far better than Hillary Clinton’s or Barack Obama’s record. While McCain is no Reagan, The Gipper wouldn’t even be a Ronald Reagan in this day and age.
We all know where McCain stands on the war on terror and the Iraq War. Indeed no conservative can question his credentials on those issues. Indeed, he was far right when his critics were dismissing his call for a surge as nothing more than mere posturing and more of his maverick personality. Today, as Iraq becomes stabilized militarily, we all must concede this ornery conservative was right, when we others were wrong.
On an even greater issue to social conservatives, McCain has been a champion of the unborn for over 24 years. With Justice John Paul Stevens perhaps nearing the end of his career on the Supreme Court and Justices Ginsburg and Breyer reportedly contemplating retirement, a McCain who only agrees with conservatives 80 or 90 percent of the time will still make a greater impact in advancing the issues of life than will a Clinton or Obama, who are adamantly opposed to conservatives on the issue and sanctity of life. While with McCain we might not get another Alito, we most certainly won’t get another Larry Tribe or another Ginsburg like we would with an Obama or Clinton administration.
On the issue of taxes and fiscal responsibility, McCain is far more conservative than his like Democratic rivals. While his opposition to the Bush tax cuts is being used against him and justifiably so, it also must be taken in context with his overall record. In that overall record he has been a consistent conservative earning the support of such supply side leaders as Phil Gram and Jack Kemp. Encouraging to conservatives should be the fact that he has been reaching out to strong fiscal conservatives in crafting his economic vision.
What conservatives must not do is adopt the mindset of the Tories in England who after Margaret Thatcher would rather vote for Tony Blair or sit out the election then vote for a Tory leader who was not 100 percent to their liking. As a result, the Tory Party has lost three successive elections to the New Labour (or as we in America would call it Clinton lite) and only now after being out of power since 1997 are they making a rebound by realizing that under David Cameron they may not have a leader they agree with 100 percent, but 90 or 80 percent is better than five more years under a Gordon Brown who they agree with on nothing. For Republican conservatives this should serve as a cautionary tale this election year.
DAVID E. JOHNSON, is the CEO of Strategic Vision, LLC, and a leading Republican pollster and strategist. He may be reached at
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 21, 2008. Read the original PDF.