Jesse Helms has died today--July the Fourth!

Conservative icon Jesse Helms dead at 86
Jesse Helms
http://www.wral.com/news/local/politics/story/1755723/

Raleigh, N.C. — Jesse Helms, the firebrand U.S. senator whose outspoken, conservative views polarized North Carolina and U.S. voters for decades, died at 1:15 a.m. Friday in Raleigh, according to John Dodd, president of the Jesse Helms Center.

He joins the second and third presidents of the United States – Thomas Jefferson and John Adams Jr. – who both also died on Independence Day.

Probably the idea of having to vote for McCain was too much for him. (I don't feel well myself.)

Well I guess being shot down and tortured for 5 years does not influence your decision Terry?

Or is it the fact he will actually listen to and work with Democrats to get things done?

Sherm,

Do I detect a defection?

A defection from what?

I am not particularly a McCain fan.

But McCain surely does not represent a Cheney-Bush neo-con kind of defection from principles of good and honest government, does he?

I was thinking about sherm.

But I will say that McCain has distinguished himself throughout his life in a way that neither Obama nor Bush has. If that attracts the Sherms of the country, that is probably a good thing. I still don't trust him with the country, but I will say that I would trust him looking after my kids (which is not something I would say of Bush and Obama!)

Well Mike I am not sure what constitutes a defection.

The rightwing posters on here keep branding me as a political hack but I dont think my posts here or on the predecessor forums justify that.

Sure your post justify that Sherm. I have no doubt that if your boy Edwards has managed to snaggle the nomination, you would have been claiming McCain is a continuation of GWB leading us down the slippery slope to the bottomless pits of hell.

The problem is, with the Presidency, there is not as much power as one perceives. The power lies in Congress. It is they that writes bills that become laws and they that distribute the money.

Take Iraq for instance. Democrats campaigned in 06 on a platform of getting out of Iraq. Have they done that though? Nope. What they have done is pass 4 major funding bills to keep our troops there. Now if they don't pass those funding bills, the DOD either has to take the money from elsewhere (defense contractors) or bring the troops home.

The one thing that cannot happen though is the President introduce a bill to keep funding the troops.

Right Sherm!!!

shermangeneral wrote:Well Mike I am not sure what constitutes a defection.

The rightwing posters on here keep branding me as a political hack but I dont think my posts here or on the predecessor forums justify that.

I have never called you a partisan hack, but I think that you have been a partisan Democrat, just as I have been a partisan Republican. My question of defection was not meant as an insult.

So is there a defection?

I dont know.

If McCain would pick Huckabee it might make the difference for me.

It would make a difference for me as well Sherm.

There's no way I'd vote for McCain then. Huckabee is a democrat who happens to agree with Republicans on the G's.