DeMint is No Reagan, But …

In a recent piece for RealClearPolitics Carl Cannon discusses the pros and cons of Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) running for President.  The argument goes that conservatives would rally around DeMint but that he couldn’t win the general against Barack Obama.  There is even a comparison to Ronald Reagan.

First of all, DeMint is no Ronald Reagan.  There will never be another Reagan.  DeMint is DeMint.  That’s one reason why conservatives will flock to him if he chooses to run.

Jim DeMint, like Barry Goldwater, like Ronald Reagan, is the REAL DEAL.  While we will witness candidate after candidate attempt to claim the mantle of Reagan (because it's fashionable to do so in today’s GOP), they will ring false.  DeMint doesn’t need to do that.  His record, as well as his rhetoric, speak for themselves.

To quote conservative leader Richard Viguerie:

"These candidates rush over to the right during the primaries, and then tack to the middle in the general election," complains Richard A. Viguerie, the longtime conservative direct-mail guru. "That's what ruling-class Republicans do. We're not interested in somebody who says, ‘I'm opposed to increased taxes.' That's all rhetoric. Government has gotten too big. If you don't want to roll it back, you're part of the problem."

Unlike candidates like former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, DeMint’s rhetoric doesn’t change with the perceived electoral fashion of the day.  His record has shown that he would rather be voted out of office than compromise on a core principle.

IF DeMint decided to enter the race, and assuming he did so early enough to mount a credible campaign, it’s a game ender.  People may support candidate X or Y, but they will WORK to secure the GOP nomination for Jim DeMint.

Cannon alludes that DeMint, if he ran and secured the GOP nomination, would be a general election disaster.  I would argue that this isn’t the case.  History is 50 – 50 on the proposition.  In 1964 we nominated a true conservative and we went down in flames.  In 1980 we won in a landslide!  We haven’t nominated a movement conservative since.

One thing is certain, Jim DeMint will not alter his beliefs to accommodate the results of a tracking poll.  The last time we ran a candidate who did the same, we won big.

Jim DeMint may not be Ronald Reagan; but he is a 21st century equivalent.