Dr. Fleming has some thoughts on the election as it comes to a close, and sums up the main conservative objection to Obama:

He is an enemy of anything good that has ever been done in this country or this civilization, and when he is elected, I hope that all those Silicon Valley libertarians who supported him will live to see their property confiscated and their kids sent to reeducation camps.  Yes, that is mean-spirited and unChristian but it is unsettling to realize that you have lived among such monsters for so long without grasping the depth of their depravity and stupidity.

I would add a few observations here.  It is a measure of how profoundly wrong this administration and McCain have been on critical questions vital to our country’s welfare that Obama’s candidacy, much less his Presidency, is even remotely possible.  Whenever anyone contemplates the worst aspects of a future Obama administration, he should remember that Bush, McCain and their allies share in the blame for it.  Just as they bear responsibility for the consequences of their policies long after they have departed from the scene, they bear the burden of responsibility for the political consequences of their failure, which include making someone of such genuinely atrocious views, particularly as it concerns human life and dignity, electable and broadly popular.  That much may be obvious, but it should be kept in mind. 

It has fascinated me, in the original sense of the word as a mixture of wonder and terror, to watch legitimately outraged critics of the torture regime or unjust war suddenly discover moral ambiguity and gray areas when it comes to Obama’s indefensible record on abortion.  This is one of the few moral outrages left in the world that is discussed as if it were an unfortunate accident; it is something, to listen to the standard pro-choice argument, that should be reduced in number while simultaneously given full legal protection and government support.  Why an outrage against human dignity committed by the government is more outrageous than one permitted and defended by the government has never been clear to me.  One crime is justified in the name of necessity, the other in the name of autonomy, but both are crimes against human dignity, which has been and must be one of the fundamental goods that our civilization defends.  If we deny the sanctity of life itself, is it any wonder that we devalue and dehumanize others?

Libertarians who support Obama are more amusing.  Obama is a supporter of the PATRIOT Act and warrantless wiretapping, the bailout and vast new entitlement schemes, all of which expand the reach of government and trample on our liberty.  At every turn, he has favored centralism and expansion of the power of the state.  The natural response to this is that “the Republicans are no different,” which is by and large true, but it is not much of an excuse for siding with someone who in virtually every respect promises to repeat the mistakes of this administration while possessing few redeeming features that I can see.  Even balancing against this the recognition that someone as dangerous and reckless as McCain must never be allowed to wield executive power, there is not really anything positive that can be said about the likely future President.