Pennsylvania GOP Voters Reject McCain

The following is taken from Townhall.com (Link HERE):

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Pennsylvania Warns Us GOP Still Not Ready for McCain
By Peter J. Wirs
Monday, April 28, 2008

After all is said and done, the April 22nd Pennsylvania Primary didn’t tell us anything we already didn’t know. On the Democratic side, voters are still splintered by age and income; and on the Republican side, the conservatives still have not embraced McCain. Yes, there was a Republican primary in Pennsylvania. And its results don’t bode well for the Grand Old Party. (Snip)

What is more disturbing however, is that on the Republican side, 239,913 or over one-quarter of all Republicans casting ballots, 27.2% to be exact, voted against McCain despite the indisputable fact he is the presumptive GOP nominee. Congressman Paul won 15.9% of the Pennsylvania Republican primary, while former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, without even lifting a finger, won 11.3% of the vote. This is while the Governor was accompanying Senator McCain on the "It’s Time for Action" campaign visits.

Ultra-liberal columnist Frank Rich of the New York Times makes hay out of this point, notwithstanding that most Republicans stayed at home. But 827,000 Republicans did go to the polls, which represents 26% of the 3.1 million registered GOP. Assuming the recent — and downward trending of — GOP turnout in Presidential election years, the primary turnout represents 35% of an expected GOP turnout in November.

Such a rejection does not bode well for McCain. Traveling to Harrisburg two days after the primary, there were still scores of Ron Paul signs on the highway. Conscientious Ron Paul volunteers were even picking up signs off the Interstate. How often do you see this? What motivates Ron Paul supporters to take such measures when the nomination was decided a month and half ago?

What should be more disturbing is that the number of votes obtained by Messrs. Huckabee and Paul, 239,000 is greater than 215,000 margin that separated Senators Clinton and Obama. Given that the 2000 Gore-Lieberman Democratic ticket defeated the GOP Bush-Cheney in the Keystone State by 205,000 votes in 2000 and the Kerry-Edwards ticket won by 144,000 votes in 2004, these are 220,000 voters we Republicans can ill-afford to lose, all the more so since Pennsylvania now has over a million more registered Democrats than Republicans. These figures don’t include independents, no-party and registered Green voters, who could not vote in primary, as Pennsylvania primaries are closed, and as a whole have been migrating toward the Democrats since 2006, particularly in the Philadelphia suburbs.

The GOP gains nothing by swapping conservative votes for Independent votes. McCain can win only if he attracts Independent voters while retaining conservative voters. Unless Bush enters the witness protection program, the fall campaign will be among the most difficult GOP campaigns since Watergate. (SNIP)

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Peter J. Wirs is currently the Chairman & Co-Trustee of the Republican Leadership Trust as well as the incoming President of the National Conference of Public Officials.

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The writer here, while making the perfect case for the notion that the GOP has made a terrible mistake by presenting the electorate with an unelectable GOP candidate, goes on to plead with conservatives to again hold their noses and vote for another wealthy establishment RINO whose positions on key issues are indistinguishable from many Democrats and who arrogantly refuses to even pay lip service to the GOP conservative base. One of McCain's goals for years has been to destroy the influence of the vocal conservative wing of the GOP, especially the theocrat wing in presidential politics. He may accomplish that goal this election cycle but he will not enjoy his victory from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.