What its all about.
I think we need to take a step back from this contentious primary season and remember what is really important.
All the debates, all this inter-party strife, all the "hit diaries" on behalf of both candidates, all the controversy about race and gender issues, and everything else we've been talking about for the past year...all of it will not matter a year from now. The only thing of true significance is what happens on November 4th, 2008. The only thing that matters is whether or not we will have a conservative Republican running the country for the next 4-8 years, or a progressive Democrat there instead. I don't need to list all the reasons why, but its difference between:
*No end in sight for our involvement in Iraq, or a swift withdrawal
*A Supreme Court full of Alitos and Scalias, or one full of Ginsburgs and Breyers.
*A continuation of Bush economics, or digging ourselves out from it
*Environmental issues on the back burner, or front-and-center
*The status quo indefinitely, or universal health care for all Americans
I had a conversation with a pro-Obama coworker just before the New Hampshire primary. At that time, I was for Hillary but Barack was my second choice, and I was prepared to back him strongly if it became clear it was over for Clinton. But I told my coworker that there was one clear, strong reason why I was so solidly pro-Hillary: My brain and my gut were telling me that she could definitely beat the Republicans in November, and I simply could not say the same thing about Obama. There was just too much we didn't know about him, and the stakes were too high for me to take that risk. That, and the Clintons don't know how to lose.
I see echoes of 2004 in our current election season. Back then, I saw one candidate that could have easily beaten Bush. That candidate was Wes Clark. When it became clear that John Kerry was on his way to the nomination, I saw him as a strong but beatable candidate, and all I could say to the Democrats of Iowa and New Hampshire was "Umm, guys...I hope you know what you're doing here." And sure enough, our hearts were eventually broken. I still firmly believe that if Clark was our nominee back then, he would be our president right now and perhaps coasting his way to reelection. There's no way to prove it, its just what I think.
The point I am getting to is this: It has become clear to me that Obama will not be elected president. If he goes against McCain, he will lose. I've been leaning towards this line of thinking for about about a month now, but the controversy surrounding Rev. Wright has sealed the deal. I'm not sure that everyone appreciates just how deadly this sort of stuff is. His ties to him are deep, profound, influential, and probably unbreakable. To have such inflammatory and offensive rhetoric as "God Damn America!" and "U.S. of KKK A." coming from Obama's spiritual adviser and mentor is deeply troubling to the average American voter and should not be dismissed.
I had an interesting talk with my mom about this a couple of nights ago. She lives in Anson Texas, a small conservative town just north of Abilene (where I grew up). She is deeply religious and conservative (very common for Anson) but is not dizzy with love for McCain, either. As soon as I mentioned something about politics, she immediately wanted to talk about Obama and his pastor. She was completely outraged about it. Despite living in a small town in Texas and not being an avid viewer of cable news, she knew quite a lot about the situation. For instance, she knew that Obama had listened to Rev. Wright's tapes even in his youth at Harvard. Somewhat compassionately, I thought, she said she attempted to look at this in an understanding way but simply could not. I got the feeling that this was definitely the political talk of the town, and if Anson Texas is at all representative of small-town America, this is a big deal and big trouble for Obama. This may be tough for some to hear, but the truth is he might as well be Farrakhan to a great many people at this point. And the more people talk about this, the worse it will get, I believe. So I asked her, as a Republican, who she would choose if the options were only Clinton and Obama. "Hillary, in a heartbeat" she said. This coming from a woman who has HATED the Clintons unabated since 1992.
I take no joy in the downfall of Obama. I will never forget where I was when he delivered his '04 Convention speech. It brought me to my feet and brought tears to my eyes. It was the best political speech of my adult life, and the highlight of it was this section:
There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America -- there's the United States of America.
The pundits, the pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red States and Blue States; Red States for Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. But I've got news for them, too. We worship an "awesome God" in the Blue States, and we don't like federal agents poking around in our libraries in the Red States. We coach Little League in the Blue States and yes, we've got some gay friends in the Red States. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and there are patriots who supported the war in Iraq. We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America.
These were the words of a future president, I thought. But it is clear that his campaign has not lived up to these words. As soon as I saw his co-chair on national television the day after New Hampshire questioning why Hillary did not cry for Katrina victims, but did cry over her physical appearance, I knew that his convention speech was just words...just a speech. And as soon as the information regarding Rev. Wright and Rezko came to light, I knew he did not have the judgment to be elected by the American people, or even to be the kind of president we need him to be.
But the good news is that we have another Democratic candidate in this race that can and will win in November.
That person is Mike Gravel.
....just kidding. Its Hillary.
If a progressive Democrat as president from 2009-2017 sounds like a good idea to you, I believe the time may be arriving to unite behind a candidate that can win and save our beloved country from the brink of disaster.
Madame President?
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