The Myth of Bad Republican Candidates

[Geee]

American Thinker:

Repeat a big Democrat talking point often enough, and it becomes the truth. There is a certain liberal narrative that has recently filtered down to many independents and even some conservatives: the idea that the current crop of Republican candidates is weak, wanting, and worrisome. The lament is, "Hell's bells, the guy in the White House is out of his depth, but what alternatives does the GOP offer?" The idea, I suppose, is that we might as well just re-elect Barack Obama. At least he has four years of golfing, government-growing, and greenback-gobbling experience.

This characterization of the Republican field much reminds me of the gratuitous criticism of the U.S. by the hate-America-first crowd. Okay, you say America is a bad country. Compared to what? Some imaginary Utopia that will never exist? Because in the real world, the U.S. has been besting her competition for a long time.

Many repeat the statist talking point about the GOP contenders' alleged ineptitude simply because of media spin and the branding iron of repetition. Yet others do, in fact, have unrealistic expectations. They have in mind an ideal, a utopia of a politician -- a person who agrees with them on every major issue, possesses eloquence and decent looks, and has never strayed from ideological purity. And when this imaginary figure doesn't appear, they ask, "Is this the best our political class has to offer?!"

Yet to what are we comparing these candidates? And are we being mindful of Bismarck's sage observation that "[p]olitics is the art of the possible"? For even insofar as a true traditionalist's ideal candidate does exist -- and this is important to understand -- he could not win election given the current state of our culture.

So there is something I'll now say. And I must preface this by stating that, although no conventional label adequately describes my ideology, I have what many would call unassailable paleo-con credentials. My ideal presidential candidate is Selwyn Duke (I agree with myself almost 100 percent of the time); my second choice would be someone such as Alan Keyes. My vision for civilization is something akin to the Middle Ages meets Mayberry, with modern technology, the best virtues from every age, and medieval piety. And when I apply my merciless standard, all our politicians look like Lilliputians. But I also live in the real world, and when I judge them under its light, something seems plain.
The current GOP hopefuls are the best group of presidential contenders we've had in a very long time.

Yes, you read that right.