McCain Wins Big In Florida

Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) last night became the man to beat for the Republican presidential nomination, edging out former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney to win the Florida primary and ending the bid of one-time front-runner former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Returns from 95% of Florida's precincts showed Mr. McCain with 36% of the vote, and Mr. Romney with 31% of the vote. Mr. Giuliani was at 15%, and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee at 13% percent.

The victory, Mr. McCain's first in a Republican-only primary, came with strong support from conservatives and represented a remarkable validation for the the moderate-conservative written off by political pundits six months ago. "It shows one thing: I'm the conservative leader who can unite the party," said Mr. McCain, who will ride the momentum of his back-to-back wins to the 21-state Republican showdown on February 5.

Mr. Giuliani, whose unprecedented strategy of shunning the early voting states backfired when he failed to ignite support, will endorse Sen. McCain today in California.

My response: Yesterday I took advantage of early voting here in Chicagoland, before Illinois holds its primary on February 5. I chose to vote in the Republican primary and - over the protestations of my conservative relatives, who argue that Sen. McCain is a 'liberal' despite my proof that he is a moderate-conservative - I voted for Sen. John McCain for president. I march to my own beat. Rush Limbaugh's head must be about ready to explode over Sen. McCain's victory in Florida (a state where I lived for half of my childhood), where only registered Republicans could vote in the GOP primary.