If you look at pure qualifications, McCain is a pretty good pick. He’s excellent on foreign policy. While he supported the war, he also opposed the Bush Administration’s Iraq occupation plan right from the get-go, and he was the first major figure to support Petraeus’s vision of how to win the war, Several years before the ‘surge’ was finally allowed to happen.
He also has a reputation for honesty and for following his convictions, regardless of whether they fit in with his party or not. He was a darling of the left not long ago because of his vociferous opposition to Bush on Iraq policy, on torture, and on other significant matters. That’s what makes Republicans worried - they’re worried that he’ll break ranks with them on issues they care about because he doesn’t agree with them. He’s not a good party man.
But isn’t that really what you want in a President? Someone who will just try to do the right thing, no matter which side of the political divide the answer lands on?
My biggest worry about McCain would be his age. If he did two terms, he’d be in his 80’s by the time he left office - several years older than Reagan when he left. I think that will be a significant liability for him in the general election. No one’s much talking about it now, but you can bet in that in the general election there would be questions about his health, doctors would be interviewed on camera on the chances of a 73 year old living to 82, questions about what would happen if he seemed to be losing his touch while in office, yada yada. It’ll be a big issue - especially if the opposition is Barack Obama, because the contrast with him will be large.
But you couldn’t ask for a better commander-in-chief than McCain, and that’s a job which is becoming more important again.
One risk with Obama is that his first year in office could be a time of opportunism by some countries, hoping to capitalize on his lack of experience. And since he doesn’t have an executive track record, you’re basically just hoping that the guy’s up to the task when you have no evidence of it.
Many feel that the Cuban Missile Crisis came about because the Soviet Union thought it could outmanoever a 40-something new president with little experience. The next president is coming into a tough world (partly thanks to the outgoing president), and he’d better be able to hit the ground swinging.
The only people in the race that I have that confidence about are McCain and Hillary. Hillary because she’s got Bill to consult with and will come into the White House with an experienced team of professionals who have been associated with the Clintons for a decade or more.
The next group would of candidates most capable at being CinC out of the gate are Romney , Guliani, and Thompson - Romney because of his excellent record as businessman and executive who can work under pressure. He did a phenomenal job turning around the Olympic fiasco. That should count for something. Thompson has decades of experience in Washington and has sat on many security-related committees.
Then you’ve got Obama, Huckabee, and Edwards. The three guys I’d trust the least. I’d put Obama ahead of the other two purely on my impression of his high intelligence and character. Edwards and Huckabee are a complete crapshoot. There’s just nothing about them that would suggest they’d any good at the job. Huckabee’s run a state, but it looks like he also has a record of some questionable judgment. Edwards has really been a trial lawyer most of his life, with one very unexceptional stint as a Senator.
