It isn't his first slip. In 1980, he put forth similar sentiment - also expressing support for Thurmonds bid for presidency. I suspect he's a closet racist - he might not even be very aware of it himself, but he probably has some issues there. No way of proving it though. But the huge doubt is enough to stop his career.
Seems most conservatives posting in this thread have their head screwed on correctly. He's not been a good leader, he is prone to saying really stupid things and he has done harm to the conservative image. I seriously believe there are more qualified people than him in the Republican party.
I generally agree with the republican philosophy as laid out by wklink. I just don't think that we all have the same chances at success. We all got different cards - some got high IQ, some are compassionate, some are good looking or good at sports and so forth. Then there is the issue of social heritage. Still, I believe the essence of the philosophy (i.e self reliance, hard work WILL get you somewhere) is much more healthy than what we have here in DK, where you actually LOSE money if you go from welfare to a job (given that you're married and have one kid).