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McCain's reform agenda conceals right-wing roots

Initially doubted as a serious challenge to Gov. George W. Bush, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) — after sweeping Bush in New Hampshire, Michigan and Arizona — is a very real contender for the Republican nomination. McCain's base support is the self-proclaimed "McCain Majority," primarily made up of Independents, crossover Democrats and Republicans. With the surge of support he gained after his victory in New Hampshire, McCain has generated a "rock star phenomenon," according to political analyst Norm Ornstein.

People just want to touch him, Ornstein says, like they wanted to touch Robert Kennedy 30 years ago. It has reached a point where registered Democrats are now re-registering as Republicans so they can vote for McCain in the upcoming closed primaries. Democrats, Independents and Republicans alike are attracted mainly to his reformism (e.g., in taking on special interests) and to his ironclad character (e.g., his five years as a POW in Vietnam). But despite his vocal attacks on big tobacco and other powerful lobbies, voters should not view McCain as an anti-establishment, reformist Republican.

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In New Hampshire over intersession, I spoke with dozens of voters who were divided over whether to vote for McCain or Bill Bradley '65. But it is unclear why voters seem to equate the two. A brief overview of McCain's recent record should dispel any doubts that he is anything like Bradley — his competitor for Independent votes. McCain's conservative ideology has been largely hidden from the public by a media that is intoxicated by its unrestricted access to the candidate.

Hardly an anti-Republican Republican, McCain voted with his party 93 percent of the time in 1996. He supported every single article of impeachment against President Clinton. He supported term limits and every other item in the Republican Contract with America. He has voted for constitutional amendments to balance the budget and prohibit flag-burning and has supported an anti-abortion amendment. He has voted against gun-control legislation, including the 1993 Brady Bill, and he voted against making Martin Luther King Day a national holiday. In addition, "he has fought against legislation barring job discrimination against homosexuals," according to The New Republic. McCain also opposes Proposition 22 to legalize same-sex marriages in California and has promised never to allow federal money to sponsor artwork by artists like Robert Mapplethorpe, whose work he calls "smut and filth."

The coming election is perhaps the most important election in 50 years in which to vote Democratic if you want to preserve fundamental human freedoms. Between two and four seats on the Supreme Court are being vacated; McCain will no doubt appoint justices in the mold of his favorites, Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas — two of the most conservative on the court. This is very dangerous if abortion rights are to be preserved in the 21st century. McCain's court would likely reverse Roe v. Wade. At a time when Census 2000 is debated in the halls of Congress and congressional districts are being redrawn, it is essential to elect a Democrat and include in those districts the minorities whom Republicans frequently overlook.

Bush's assurances that Democrats are crossing over to McCain because they think Gore has an easier chance of defeating McCain in the general election are false. A recent Gallup poll has McCain defeating Gore by 24 points to Bush's five points. It is very possible that a McCain nomination will result in a McCain victory.

John McCain is an honorable man and wants to restore to the government an integrity that has been absent for 30 years. But he is not the right person to be president in 2000. Let him return to the Senate with a national mandate to reform politics and reign in the special interests.

To paraphrase Jules Feiffer's cartoon about Bobby Kennedy, Beware of the Two Johnnys: Good Johnny fights against the Republican establishment and takes on special interests; Bad Johnny is against federal sponsorship of the arts, against gay rights, against gun-control and against abortion.

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Democrats and Independents: Don't vote for McCain — you might not get what you hoped for. Adam P. Frankel is from New York, N.Y. He can be reached at afrankel@princeton.edu.

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