Ames has asked me to comment on a recent NY Times article entitled, McCain’s Conservative Model? Roosevelt (Theodore, That Is). The title alone was enough to make me curious and the content was pretty interesting as well. Here are the highlights:

HUDSON, Wis. – Senator John McCain in a wide-ranging interview called for a government that is frugal but more active than many conservatives might prefer. He said government should play an important role in areas like addressing climate change, regulating campaign finance and taking care of “those in America who cannot take care of themselves.”

“I count myself as a conservative Republican, yet I view it to a large degree in the Theodore Roosevelt mold,” Mr. McCain said, referring to Roosevelt’s reputation for reform, environmentalism and tough foreign policy.

“I believe less governance is the best governance, and that government should not do what the free enterprise and private enterprise and individual entrepreneurship and the states can do, but I also believe there is a role for government,” Mr. McCain said. He added: “Government should take care of those in America who can not take care of themselves.”

…

Mr. McCain has long admired Roosevelt, and in the interview he identified with him as a fellow reformer and environmentalist and also touched on his assertive foreign policy. The choice might to some extent be an indication of how Mr. McCain would like to position himself now that he has moved from the primary to the general election.

Asked to name a conservative model, he skipped over the suggestions of three names typically associated with the conservative movement – Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and Barry Goldwater, the founder of the modern-day conservative movement who occupied the Senate seat Mr. McCain holds today – to settle on Theodore Roosevelt.

As most of our readers will know, I also consider myself a conservative in the Teddy Roosevelt mold, i.e. a Progressive Conservative. For students of American history I think it is hard to argue against his inclusion among the top tier of former U.S. presidents. I won’t go into all the mushy details of my love affair with all things TR, but I would encourage anyone not familiar with him to do their homework. It’s hard not to be impressed.

Yesterday I read through a few other blogs that ran with this story and most of them engaged in a sort of point by point comparison of McCain and Roosevelt, with their goal being to either affirm or discredit McCain’s comments. I’m not going to do that here. Why? Because I don’t think McCain was trying to compare himself to TR. (If people want to debate TR vs. McCain I’ll be happy to entertain that conversation in the comments section).

I believe what McCain was trying to convey is that TR’s example is a good one to follow. On that point, I agree. On the three points mentioned in the article, reform, the environment and foreign policy, TR was indeed a good model. Of course, ‘reform’ is a broad word and it can be applied to any number of issues.

Without using the term, I believe McCain considers himself a Progressive, in the traditional sense, not the bastardized liberal (small p) progressivism. That is comforting for me as a voter and a long time admirer of Senator McCain. I still remain cautious about him this time around, fearing that the McCain of 2000 has disappeared. But again, these statements are a positive sign.

There are several leaders at the national level, on both sides of the aisle, who I believe are carrying the legacy of TR on their shoulders. To be sure, none of them are perfect, but they are trying and I would consider McCain among them. I think if McCain likens his brand of conservatism to TR, we should ask him to further define his policy goals to demonstrate his commitment to a Progressive Conservative agenda. If he can do that successfully over the coming months, he has my vote.