If I may barge in here for a second. I’m probably closer to VDH than I am to Mark on the question of comfort level with McCain. But I think VDH frames the issue somewhat inaccurately when he writes this:

It is clear that the animus toward McCain shown by Romney supporters is growing far greater than any distaste those who support McCain feel for Romney.

I think the dynamic is a bit different. Many anti-McCain people are becoming Romney by default. It is not that they dislike McCain because they are so pro-Romney. Rather they are becoming pro-Romney because there are fewer and fewer places for anti-McCain people to go.

As for the issue of whether anti-McCain people will rally to McCain if he gets the nomination, I’m a bit torn. I would certainly support McCain over Hillary or Obama given what we know about things right now. But I have sympathy for folks who don’t want to make those sorts of statements now. The primaries are the time to have these arguments about the future and direction of the Republican party (and to some extent the conservative movement). Pre-committing to support whoever then nominee will be essentially defuses these arguments of their relevance.