In your heart, you know he's right

Is McCain's presumed nomination victory "a repudiation of small-government conservatism," as this New Yorker article by Ryan Lizza, cited here by Matt Welch, would have it? I think it's more a repudiation of big-government conservatism. Do voting against the prescription-drug entitlement, crusading against earmarks, and campaigning against ethanol subsidies in Iowa count for nothing? As for war and foreign policy, McCain is very much in the tradition of the man who said this:

Now, we here in America can keep the peace only if we remain strong. Only if we keep our eyes open and keep our guard up can we prevent war. And I want to make this abundantly clear--I don't intend to let peace or freedom be torn from our grasp because of lack of strength, or lack of will--and that I promise you Americans.