What McCain Promised (and Didn't)

John McCain's acceptance speech last night was pretty good, at least for John McCain. He delivered it well (although his advisors should tell him to keep looking at the camera and crowd after delivering a resounding line rather than immediately ducking and looking down like he's lying and doesn't want to look you in the eye).

But it introduced McCain the man to a lot of Americans and explained his "Country First" motto perfectly. His Hanoi Hilton story was delivered masterfully.

[A quick aside on the prisoner of war story. One of McCain's fellow captives was a man named Charlie Plumb, who, like McCain, emerged from that experience a better man. Plumb later became a motivational speaker. I highly recommend that you watch one of his talks on YouTube (parts 1, 2, 3 and 4), then go buy the video and show your family. It not only explains the profound formative effect the experience had on their character, but gives great insight on what McCain is talking about. It should also transfer some of that learning and understanding to you and explain why McCain says that he was "blessed by misfortune".]

The speech contained a lot of the usual soft rhetoric of "building better relations" and "changing the way things work". But I want to record for prosperity the actual hard promises that he made the American people when he accepted his party's nomination, as well as a few of the topics that he avoided, by pulling excerpts from the text of his acceptance speech.

First, he promised to keep his promises:

I’m not in the habit of breaking promises to my country and neither is Governor Palin. . . . We’ve got a record of doing just that, and the strength, experience, judgment and backbone to keep our word to you.

Promised to be soft on illegal immigration (so much for changing the law that says children born her are automatically citizens):

We believe everyone has something to contribute and deserves the opportunity to reach their God-given potential from the boy whose descendents arrived on the Mayflower to the Latina daughter of migrant workers. We’re all God’s children and we’re all Americans.

Promised fiscal responsibility in the form of lower taxes and lower spending:

I will keep taxes low and cut them where I can. My opponent will raise them. I will open new markets to our goods and services. My opponent will close them. I will cut government spending. He will increase it.

Promised to give choice in health care and not put Hillarycare in place:

My health care plan will make it easier for more Americans to find and keep good health care insurance. [Obama's] plan will force small businesses to cut jobs, reduce wages, and force families into a government run health care system where a bureaucrat stands between you and your doctor.

Promised to cut the corporate income tax:

Cutting the second highest business tax rate in the world will help American companies compete and keep jobs from moving overseas.

Promised to increase the subsidizing of other people's children:

Doubling the child tax exemption from $3500 to $7000 will improve the lives of millions of American families.

Promised to change the unemployment program by providing retraining programs and additional funds while the training is taken:

Government assistance for unemployed workers was designed for the economy of the 1950s. That’s going to change on my watch. . . .

We’re going to help workers who’ve lost a job that won’t come back, find a new one that won’t go away.

We will prepare them for the jobs of today. We will use our community colleges to help train people for new opportunities in their communities. For workers in industries that have been hard hit, we'll help make up part of the difference in wages between their old job and a temporary, lower paid one while they receive retraining that will help them find secure new employment at a decent wage.

Promised school choice:

We need to shake up failed school bureaucracies with competition, empower parents with choice, remove barriers to qualified instructors, attract and reward good teachers, and help bad teachers find another line of work.

When a public school fails to meet its obligations to students, parents deserve a choice in the education of their children. And I intend to give it to them. Some may choose a better public school. Some may choose a private one. Many will choose a charter school. But they will have that choice and their children will have that opportunity.

Promised to reform foreign policy a tiny bit in this brief tidbit:

We are going to stop sending $700 billion a year to countries that don’t like us very much.

Promised to address energy in the usual Republican ways, but (in the usual Republican way) did not say anything about building refineries or methane hydrates.

First, he promised to drill offshore (nothing about ANWR as a nod to Palin?):

We will drill new wells offshore, and we’ll drill them now.

Second, he promised nuclear power (if the French can do it, why can't we?):

We will build more nuclear power plants.

Third, the usual "clean coal" solution:

We will develop clean coal technology.

Fourth and finally, the usual alternative energy sources:

We will increase the use of wind, tide, solar and natural gas. We will encourage the development and use of flex fuel, hybrid and electric automobiles.

Promised a bi-partisan administration (ala Palin):

I will ask Democrats and Independents to serve with me.

Promised transparency and to hold people in his administration accountable (this one will come back to haunt him, given the rancorous hatemongers in across the aisle and their media dogs):

And my administration will set a new standard for transparency and accountability.

What was not said:

Social Security: Although he said he and Palin would "stop leaving our country’s problems for some unluckier generation to fix", he never mentioned Social Security.

Second Amendment: Although he spoke of "personal responsibility", he never gave the NRA any reason to support him.

Global Warming: A dangerous reference to the Global Warming myth when he said "We must use all resources and develop all technologies necessary to rescue our economy from the damage caused by rising oil prices and to restore the health of our planet."

Economic Policy: He hinted that government subsidies of alternative energy research will create "millions" of jobs by saying, "This great national cause will create millions of new jobs, many in industries that will be the engine of our future prosperity; jobs that will be there when your children enter the workforce."

Stemming Illegal Immigration: Nothing was said about border security or the problems associated with it, other than a brief reference to how the children of Latinas are American citizens.

Bottom Line: McCain mouthed the right words for the most part. He earned six big plusses from me for lower taxes, smaller government, strong defense, school choice, offshore drilling and building nuclear power plants. His healthcare solution wasn't explained, but it has got to be better than Obama's nanny government nightmare scenario. McCain never exactly lost me on any issues, but then he didn't really address open borders or gun rights, which are my other two personal hot button issues.

Would I vote McCain rather than Bob Barr this November based on this speech? Not without Palin. But that might be an indication of just how crafty this old politician really is.

Sarah Palin is only a heartbeat away!

Blog post #7037 in category McCain, John
posted 5 September 08