John McCain is not a conservative

Economy- So, McCain supports keeping unfair taxes around. The estate tax definately taxes the rich more heavily than the poor. I thought conservatives were for lower taxes across the board and taking the government out of the economy. Just because it would benefit the rich doesn't mean it isn't an unfair tax burden. Conservatives are against heavy tax burdens, McCain is not. What about other things like the death tax? McCain is status quo on a lot of these issues. While I admit, he does have a good record and position on most economic issues, he isn't as conservative as other republicans. I'm not denying that he is fiscally responsible when it comes to spending, but on the economy he isn't as conservative as he could be or as his republican fellows are. Immigration- Conservatives are against special paths to citizenship for illegals. Sure, McCain-Kennedy didn't directly and immediately provide citizenship, but it did allow for the undermining of our laws and give them a special route to becoming citizens. A conservative would be staunch on the issue, not giving indirect amnesty, however you want to spin it. Despite common conception, Reagan isn't the montra for conservatives. While he did do a lot in the way of furthering conservatism, not EVERY position Reagan took was a conservative one. McCain championed a bill that directly undermined conservative efforts on the issue. Judge Appointments- I just need to prove that McCain is not a conservative. Being part of the Gang of 14 dropped support for Bush's nominees. It deprived Congress of an up or down vote on judges now and in the future by promoting the right to filibuster. Conservatives were making a move to ban filibusters on judges on the whole. McCain not only didn't support the judges but undermined conservative efforts yet again. Don't confuse Republicans with conservatives, there is a distinction. Rights- McCain-Feingold limited the amount of money someone can donate to their own cause or a cause they believe in. It places caps on individuals donations as well as caps on how much people can donate to their own campaign. The right to bear arms is a conservative position. I'm not saying McCain has NO conservative positions. I'm merely pointing out that on most contreversial or difficult issues, McCain has abandoned the conservative cause. Every Republican or conservative can take positions like supporting the RTBA or fiscal conservativism, but how well and to what degree they support them is where McCain struggles. Foreign Policy- He has personally mentioned shutting down Guantanamo, even if that particular ammendment didn't purport it, which is contentious. He has strong points here, but again, isn't as conservative as he should be to be considered a conservative. He is against torture and guantanamo. Here again, we see McCain take the easy Republican and conservative postions, like supporting the war on terror, while taking non-conservative positions on difficult issues, like torture and guantanamo. Record- You don't answer the most important argument of the debate. His record. How does the lowest conservative rating not matter. We can argue the conservatism of his positions, but the fact is, the ACU has already done it for us. His rating tells us exactly how much conservatives agree with his voting record. This PROVES he isn't conservative. Again, playing the Reagan card. How does his record not matter? He is less conservative than EVERY other conservative in Congress. The fact that he is from a red-state ties his hands and somewhat forces him to take conservative positions on easy issues like RTBA and things like that. When we look at the bills he is passionate about, the ones he champions, he undermines the conservative cause on nearly everyone. He is quick to jump the aisle and support the liberal cause, but NEVER brings people the other way.