I'm normally a pretty committed Republican. They're not perfect but they're closer to me philosophically than the Democrats. This year they've given me no reason to vote for them. And the best I can say for the Democrat is he's not McCain.

John McCain: The Other Democrat

The Republicans offer up John McCain as their candidate. I say "their" candidate because he's certainly not mine. He didn't campaign here in Iowa. He doesn't think my vote matters (and he's getting the nomination, so he was right) so why should I bother to vote for him? That's strike one.

McCain hasn't just extended a hand across the aisle, he's taken out an apartment on the other side because he visits it so often. Selling out people of his own party is a defining characteristic of John McCain. You can say he's a "maverick" but the other word that comes to mind is "traitor" (to his party, not his country). He sponsored one of the largest infringements on the First Ammendment in history (McCain-Feingold). He sides with Al Gore (and against science) on human-caused global warming. He sides with Bill Clinton on wanting to treat terrorists like criminals instead of enemy combatants. At the same time, he doesn't want to treat real criminals (illegal aliens) as criminals, but rather as law-abiding citizens.

Something has to be said about this man's age. He's ignorant of the Internet, which is a driving force behind the economy. He's arthritic and stiff when speaking. And those weird smiles that pop up at random times during his speeches are eery. I appreciate the wisdom and experience that comes with age -- there's no question about that. But there's a sweet spot somewhere around 50 where a candidate is sufficiently in touch with his children's generation and has a flavor of what life is like for his grandchildren's generation that he can be an effective representative of a modern society. At the same time he's close enough to his senior years to be sympathetic to the needs of the elderly. At 70-something, I'm sure John McCain could find some fantastic things to do with his life -- all of which I'd support -- other than trying to be the president of the most powerful nation in the world.

McCain is a one-man argument for super delegates. When the rank and file nominate a de facto Democrat to be the Republican candidate, smarter, richer people need to step in and give us a real Republican candidate. While I was opposed to pretty much everyone running in the primary, I'd literally take any one of them over McCain.

I don't care who he's running against or what the implications are. There's no way I can pull the lever for McCain.

Barrack Obama: The Other White Candidate

If there's ever been an empty suit running for president, Obama is the man. He has absolutely no relevant experience. After a failed run for state office, he ran for the US Senate, where he has served an unremarkable term. His education is in political science and international affairs, but those of us with a college degree know how worthless what we learned in college is in the real world.

The only thing that made Obama look like an experienced statesman was that he was running against Hillary Clinton -- First Cuckquean to President Bill Clinton.

I was especially disappointed with Obama's handling of the Jeremiah Wright affair. Obama sat in this man's church for twenty years, listening to one "kill whitey" sermon after another, raising no opposition. Even the dullard media queen Ophrah Winfrey was offended enough to leave this church after a few years. But Obama stayed and even put Wright on an advisory council to his campaign.

When Wright's blatant racism and bile spewing sermons were made public, Obama first stood by him, as one would for a close friend and confidant. But after additional pressure, Obama began to distance himself; eventually repudiating him.

While many would say this was the right thing to do -- that is, once he realized just how hateful Write was he was right to disassociate himself from him -- the reality is that what Obama was doing was changing deeply held convictions in the interest of his political ambitions. Think about it: He spent twenty years listening to this man. He was a close friend and political advisor. One can only conclude that Obama agreed with Wright -- otherwise why would he stay, and why would he put Wright on staff? So then when you look at his subsequent renouncement what you see is a man who would rather sacrifice a close friendship and deny his core beliefs than lose a few points in a popularity poll.

What should he have done? If Obama were a real man with real positions on real issues, he would do what George Bush did with the invasion of Iraq: Convince me that he's right. If Obama truly believes that the government invented AIDS to kill black people, then make the case to the public. If he truly believes that whitey is the problem, then stand up and say it. Use those oft vaunted speaking skills to win over the American public to your position.

As it is I can only conclude that Obama is like every other politician -- with his finger to the wind of public opinion, ready to sell out family, friends, church and country if that's what it takes to keep his numbers high.

And isn't it time we told the truth about Obama's race? I don't believe I'm a racist. I've voted for a black presidential candidate (Alan Keyes on more than one occasion). But there are some things about Obama that need to be explained to his African American supporters.

It's not so much that Obama is only half black. There are a large number of so-called "white" people in America that have some black heritage, and probably more blacks with white ancestors. That doesn't have anything to do with it.

No, the point is that his black father wasn't African American. He was African. Obama's father left his mother when Barrack was very young, and she married a Muslim man. Barrack was raised by white people and went to all the best schools. So there's nothing about his upbringing that is typical of the African American experience. In that sense, Obama is just as "black" as I am, and it could be argued that his Ivy League education makes him even "whiter" than I am.

I'm disappointed that the black culture in America is so keyed into skin color that they can't see anything else. The mostly black jury in the O.J. Simpson trial found Simpson innocent despite a trail of O.J.'s blood that started at the crime scene, led to his Bronco, filled the Bronco, then went from his driveway, up the stairs to his bedroom where it ended. You couldn't have been more guilty than Simpson was. But black jurors sided for the black man against all the evidence and set him free.

Similarly, the black vote in America seems to be lined up for Obama -- a man whose ancestors were slave owners not slaves, whose black father was not American and not a descendant of slaves, who was raised by his white grandmother and who attended schools dominated by rich, white kids. I'm sure there are plenty of African Americans who are voting for him based on his politics, but the polls are so polarized on this issue, with white Democrats predominantly supporting Clinton and black Democrats supporting Obama, that you can't help but conclude that racial bias is what drives a lot of Obama's popularity among blacks.

The best thing I can say about the possibility of either of these men ascending to the presidency is that Bill Clinton had eight years and didn't bring down the republic, and he was a more skilled politician than either of these jokers. So I believe we'll come out the other side of a McCain or Obama presidency; hopefully with a strong desire to find a better candidate than either of the parties have put forward this year.