"Now, we begin the most important part of our campaign: to make a respectful, determined and convincing case to the American people that our campaign and my election as president, given the alternatives presented by our friends in the other party, are in the best interests of the country we love."
With those words, John McCain became the Republican nominee for President of the United States.
All of those words are crucial. I believe McCain symbolises the new form of politics that we in this country have sought for so long, and which David Cameron has championed. A politics that is respectful - in contrast to everything that has gone before. A politics that is determined - in contrast, in our context, to the absurd abstention by the Lib Dems tonight. A politics that is convincing - in contrast, in our context, to the broken promises of Labour over the referendum on the European Constitution and David Miliband's feeble defence today. And, turning back to McCain and the US, a campaign that makes a strong case - in contrast to the alternatives of Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Ralph Nader.
I am dismayed by Hillary's resurgence - for the simple reason that I cannot stand someone who is so shrill and self-absorbed. Like many, I have found Barack Obama far far more superficially appealing. If I were a Democrat, I'd opt for him over the fish-wife anyday. He's exciting, fresh, dynamic, creative. Yet I still wonder, naggingly, where the substance is, and what he'd do in a crisis. I happen to be a fan of Samantha Power and her book A Problem from Hell, and I am pleased to learn she is now a senior adviser to Obama. That's reassuring. Read her book, by the way. But still, McCain's my man. Read him.
I love his words here: "I have never believed I was destined be president. I don't believe anyone is pre-destined to lead America." (So stick it up ya jumper, Hillary!!). "But I do believe we are born with responsibilities to the country that has protected our God-given rights, and the opportunities they afford us. I did not grow up with the expectation that my country owed me more than the rights owed every American." (Hear, hear....) "On the contrary, I owe my country every opportunity I have ever had. I owe her the meaning that service to America has given my life, and the sense that I am part of something greater than myself, part of a kinship of ideals that have always represented the last, best hope of mankind. I understand the responsibilities I incur with this nomination, and I give you my word, I will not evade or slight a single one." (How much more conservative can you get - freedom and responsibility?!)
I believe him. I believe him in the face of the three greatest challenges we face. I believe him in the face of the threat of militant Islamism, perhaps the greatest ideological, security and military challenge we face. I believe him in the face of tyranny, oppression and global poverty, which are intertwined, overlooked and on which he has demonstrated a track-record. And I believe him in the face of climate change, a challenge he has highlighted alongside David Cameron.
To those conservatives - in this country or in the US - who may continue to gripe and moan, I say: pull yourselves together. Think of the Horror of Hillary's Grimace. Or think of Barack's Banality. Say Clinton through Gritted Teeth - or Say Obama Ohdear. It's not worth contemplating. McCain's a conservative. Read his speech and then back him with everything you have got. Listen to President Bush. Listen to Romney. Listen to Huckabee. Go for it. The world depends on it.
