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Sep
23
2018
Sunday, September 23 2018

In a way, former independent “conservative” candidate for president Evan McMullin deserves credit for pulling off one of the sickest scams in recent American political history.  McMullin exploited the desperation of a significant portion of conservatives who were unable to support a man with the character issues of Donald Trump for the presidency.  Little did they all know that by supporting McMullin in his stead, they were casting a vote with someone unscrupulous enough to pose as a conservative simply to advance his own personal brand.

They know now.

Since the election, McMullin has been engaged in a stiff competition with Washington Post writer Jennifer Rubin for the title of “America’s Most Absurdly Non-Conservative Figure Posing as a Conservative.” 

No question that Rubin has had some doozies of her own, from calling for Sarah Huckabee Sanders to be publicly harassed for the rest of her life and suggesting that anyone who continues to identify as a Republican is a racist.

But McMullin isn’t going to take the silver medal to Rubin’s gold without a fight.  And this last week he delivered a power-packed performance that demonstrates he’s willing to go to the mat against anyone who would accuse him of actually having principles.  Quote-tweeting the perilously left-wing Texas lawmaker Beto O’Rourke, McMullin shared his endorsement

“Some say that messages of unity don’t sell in times of polarization and tribalism like ours, but Beto is proving otherwise. There is, in fact, tremendous hunger in America for leaders who unite, not divide, and who call on us to put country before party.”

If you’re trying to prove yourself a complete and total fraud for ever having sold your candidacy as one of principled conservatism, this is pure gold.  Beto is rabidly pro-abortion, in favor of socialized medicine, and about every other destructive progressive policy position imaginable.  Don’t take it from me; here’s NPR’s report on Beto:

“On issues like universal health care, an assault weapons ban, abortion rights and a higher minimum wage, O'Rourke has staked out progressive positions. The Democrat even raised the specter of impeachment after President Trump's Helsinki press conference with Vladimir Putin.”

McMullin’s self-assigned tagline has been “country before party.”  That’s a fine motto, but if one is a true conservative – as McMullin raised a lot of money for himself asserting – then one would never suggest that progressive, even socialist, policies are good for the country. 

Another way of saying that is that no one who thinks Beto O’Rourke and his vision for the country is good for America can rightly or reasonably consider themselves a conservative. 

It’s fair to say that the vast majority of conservatives who cast their vote for McMullin in 2016 don’t regret the choice to deny their vote to Donald Trump.  But there’s simply no questioning that they massively regret the choice to offer it to Evan McMullin.

Posted by: Peter Heck AT 10:00 pm   |  Permalink   |  Email