Defining John McCain: He's more conservative than his image

Mike Lux has a very fine post at Open Left about the necessity for Democrats to begin the process of defining John McCain.

This is an absolutely critical period of time in the Presidential - the spring of a Presidential election year, when a nominee is already picked, is always the moment when the dynamics of voters feelings about the candidate get defined, and the frame of the race is cast in - if not in stone, then a highly solid metal. We need to pound away at McCain's vulnerabilities, and he has many.

If we are to end the era of torture, unnecessary war, abrogation of the 4th Amendment, rampant disregard for basic constitutional oversight responsibilities, and an Imperial Presidency, it is imperative that the grassroots take the bull by the horns to begin defining McCain as he is, and not allow the established media elites to continue to publicly fellate him, thereby reaffirming the false notion that he is a centrist. Anyone who believes McCain is a centrist please leave your contact information in the comments -- some well meaning Nigerian diplomats want to make you rich.

The likely Republican presidential nominee is much more conservative than voters appear to realize. McCain leans to the right on issue after issue, not just on the Iraq war but also on abortion, gay rights, gun control and other issues that matter to his party's social conservatives.

A coordinated effort from the blogosphere, diarists at your favorite blogs, and other grassroots organizations will be required in order for the real McCain portrait to make it into the mainstream perception.

"People see him as a centrist. They don't see him as a conservative," said Andrew Kohut, president of the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

"In fact, they put him pretty close to themselves, in terms of ideology, and put President Bush way to the right of themselves," Kohut said.

In a national Pew survey earlier this year, voters placed McCain in the middle, where they placed themselves, when asked to judge the ideology of Bush and the presidential candidates. They placed Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama far to the left.

McCain strays from the conservative farm infrequently, but enough to convince a large number of Independents that he's a centrist. Bullshit!

This is the real John McCain:

1. 100 more years in Iraq

2. Anti-choice

3. Opposes marriage equality (He actively supported efforts in Arizona to deny marriage equality for all Arizonans.)

4. Arch-conservative and former Senator Phil Gramm is part of his economic policy group.

5. Supports making permanent the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest 1% of Americans

With every sign pointing toward a Democratic victory for the White House and expanding control over the Congress now is the time to shape the narrative for the General Election.

Spread the word. McCombover ain't no stinkin' centrist. He's a conservative true believer. Had enough?