Kudos to Bob Smith by ZACK NGUYEN Wednesday, July 14, 1999 Senator Bob Smith, dark horse Republican candidate for the 2000 Presidential election, has actually done something rare in political history -- acted on his stated convictions. Senator Smith, perhaps the most conservative Senator in the body today, has quit the Republican Party, citing what thousands of activists across the country have been noting in recent years: the Republican Party's inability to consistently champion crucial planks in its platform. Whether it's tax reform, government growth, Second Amendment rights, or even impeaching a President that brazenly and repeatedly breaks the law, the Republicans have shown no sign of a backbone. Many have criticized Smith's move as being a desperate cry for attention -- especially since Senator Smith isn't placing well in most Presidential polls, and, even within his own state, is being trounced by the likes of George W. Bush and Pat Buchanan.

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If Smith is doing this to get attention, it is the act of a madman, not a smooth politician. He will pay a very dear price for acting on his convictions. He has already suffered a withering attack from the Republican establishment, who apparently realized early this week that Senator Smith could not be dissuaded from falling on his sword. The New Hampshire Republican chairman called him a "sore loser," and RNC Chair Jim Nicholson has vilified him publicly as well. Smith will continue to be ostracized within the political community. He will probably lose his committee chairmanship, and then, as a final reward for following his conscience, will almost certainly lose his Senate seat in 2002. No, I doubt very seriously that a bump in the opinion polls is what Smith is after. He hasn't a prayer of winning the presidency. The good news for Republican voters is that Smith will draw little significant Republican support from George W. Bush. This is not because Smith's stands are unpopular -- rather because Smith himself is not telegenic, and is not a fiery orator. In this regard the Republican establishment is lucky -- a smoother politician would draw a lot more votes and risk sending the election to Al Gore. Whether Smith's move will make any difference for the conservative movement in the long run is doubtful. The Bush Express will drown out most dissenting views, and Bob Smith is simply not in a position at this time to affect the outcome of the Presidential election. Men and women of integrity are in short supply in the Senate, as evidenced by the recent Senate trial of President Clinton. According to interviews with David Schippers, top prosecutor for Henry Hyde, and Congressman Chris Cannon, a House Manager, the impeachment trial was intentionally sabotaged by Republican Senators. Majority Leader Trent Lott made it very plain to the House Managers that they were not there to present a case and win a "guilty" verdict, but rather to go through the motions of a trial and acquit the President. Consider these two quotes from a "Human Events" interview with Congressman Joe Cannon: "I had had phone calls from a couple of senators with whom I was close. One of them said, 'You are going to do this our way, period,' and that was the end of the conversation. The other one started out like a cajoling uncle and ended up trying to take me to the woodshed. I said, 'Senator, I've got five people on my staff who have been waiting 45 minutes for us to finish this phone call, and I need to leave so they can eat dinner.' 'Well, are you going to do it our way?' he asked. 'Senator, I don't think I'm going to do it the way you want me to,' I said. The way he wanted us to do it, of course, was to have no witnesses in the Senate, or, at most, only three witnesses." Another quote follows: "Then Lott came out very aggressively. It was absolutely clear that they came into that meeting with the purpose of getting us to commit to a process whereby we couldn't effectively present a case. "Don't get me wrong: I really like Tent Lott, personally. At the end of the Senate trial, he did something that was one of the surprises of my life. When the Senate held its votes on removal, I tallied them up on a sheet with all the senators names on it. After the votes, I folded the sheet and put it in my pocket. We knew what it was going to be in advance. It was not a big surprise, but I was still very disappointed. "When I got up from my chair, Sen. Lott came up to me and grabbed me like a bear across my shoulders, and gave me this huge hug and talked at me for a very long time and said, 'This is wonderful. This is great.' For him, apparently, it worked out perfectly." Indeed, it did work out "perfectly." A felon, a man who trampled on the law and the Constitution, is still in the White House. I am sure that Trent Lott will be quite pleased with himself if Al Gore, hamstrung by Clinton and his crimes, is defeated and the Republicans take the White House. For educated voters with an ounce of integrity, however (and an ounce of integrity places you on an imminently higher moral plain than many Senators), this is a disgusting betrayal. The country will pay for the Republican Senate's utter lack of conviction. And now, the same deeds that nearly led to Bill Clinton's removal from office, could probably be duplicated by the next President with impunity. It's not hard to understand why Bob Smith, after witnessing all this, would feel like leaving the Republican Party in disgust. Who could blame him? Predictably, the larger lesson that Bob Smith offers is lost in the whirlwind of the Bush machine, which has raised a staggering $36 million, and is laying claim to the nomination a year before the convention. Republicans in Washington are too busy measuring the drapes at the White House to understand that the GOP is being defined entirely by who can raise the most money, and clearly not by a set of core principles. Bush's political philosophy is something of a mystery, though he is an imminently likable man, with a strong Christian faith and an irrepressible optimism (These characteristics are sorely lacking in American politics today.). But Republicans in the House and Senate have simply stopped doing anything useful, instead staring wistfully into the distance, dreaming of a white charger with "Dubya" firmly attached, waving his cowboy hat and urging his fellow Republicans into the promised land of Swing Votes and Soccer Moms. The Republicans may win the battle and yet lose the war. Despite Bush's early success and captivating personality, the Republican base is issues-oriented, and will be looking for detailed positions from its party in the coming months. Good luck. A clear vision is exactly what the GOP establishment is lacking most right now.

Send your comments to Coffee Shop Times columnist Zack Nguyen.