Conservative leader: I'm not sure conservatives trust' McCain

Atlanta Journal Constitution
Thursday, February 7, 2008

Conservative Political Action Conference, conference organizer David Keene sat down with McClatchy chief political correspondent Steven Thomma to discuss the state of the movement.

Keene, the chairman of the American Conservative Union and a supporter of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, talked about John McCain's testy relationship with conservatives, possible running mates who might help the Arizona senator solidify the base, how a Democratic president would be good for conservatives, the role of Republican U.S. Rep. Ron Paul in the campaign and President Bush's imprint on conservatism.

Excerpts:

Question: You've said the important debates are within parties, not between parties. Describe the debate within the Republican Party, and within conservatism.

Keene: The old Reagan coalition, which was small-government conservatism and free-market economic conservatism, lower taxes and all that, is being implicitly challenged by the Bush administration.

We have now compassionate conservatism. We traditional conservatives like to call it big-government conservatism.

Question: How does that play out in 2008?

Keene: You have Romney adopting the old religion and McCain the new religion.

Question: Who's winning?

Keene: McCain, by appealing outside the party and the faithful and because of the peculiarities of the nominating process and the inability of conservatives to unite ... is putting himself in position to remake the coalition in his own image. In that perspective, he's winning.

Question: How is he remaking the coalition?

Keene: McCain has been unable to change the minds of conservatives. The way he's going about trying to change the deal is by bringing in other people who change the balance of the party. That's a struggle that's going to get more heated, regardless of how the nomination process turns out.

Question: More moderates and fewer conservatives?

Keene: He's trying to shift it toward the middle ... it is an extension of his 2000 campaign, when he likened it to a hostile takeover.

Question: Is there any chance conservatives will unite behind McCain?

Keene: Yes. Not all of them. If John McCain were to do nothing except get the nomination, more than half would go along with him because they're Republicans. You're not going to have millions of conservatives walk out on him. That's not such good news as it sounds. You don't need millions to walk out on him.

Question: How does he get more of them?

Keene: If John McCain makes a concerted effort to solve his problems with conservatives, to convince them they're all friends, then he'll get most of them. ... He'll never get all of them. But if he's successful, he'll get enough of them that he can go into the general election knowing he won't get killed from behind.

Question: How? By changing positions on issues?

Keene: He has to gain a modicum of credibility with these people ... in terms of what he says about them. Conservatives have a sense he doesn't like them. I think they're right.

If John McCain doesn't like you and has the power to do something about it, you're in deep trouble. Because that's his nature. They may or may not be right about that, but that's the way they feel. That makes his problem more difficult than if he just doesn't agree with you on taxes. You can always make a deal on that. But in order for the deal to be credible, you have to trust the guy. And I'm not sure conservatives trust him.

Question: What can he say to conservatives this week to fix that?

Keene: It's not a problem he can get up and give a speech and solve. It's a good thing he's coming here. He's not going to solve it here. We don't have the power to say, "OK, John, you're absolved of past sins."

But if he in fact wraps up the nomination ... and has some months, he needs to spend a good deal of that time securing his base. It's conceivable he can secure most of it.

Question: What can help him with conservatives during those months?

Keene: One, the prospect of Hillary Clinton. Secondly, by naming a vice presidential candidate.

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