[LEMONS] 11.23.2003
I'm A Democrat, Too
I have not yet decided who I'm going to support for President. I don't think I'll make that decision until early next year. But I do know that I'm going to back whomever I think has the best chance of beating George Bush.I've always been an independent. I have never voted for a major party candidate for President. But I registered as a Democrat this year, so that I can vote in the primaries and make it count. I registered as a Democrat because I believe the foreign policy of this administration constitutes a perilous threat to our nation--to me and my family and friends, to the people I love.
The basic disconnect between Americans right now is safety. Liberals take the view that when Bush alienates the rest of the world (particularly a sector of the world in which we weren't very popular to begin with) while fueling terrorism with his unflagging support for the oil industry. They believe he makes the world less safe, and your local Wal-Mart more likely to be blown up by a suicide bomber. Conservatives, on the other hand, seem to find liberals to be candy-asses and question their patriotism and commitment to fighting the war on terror. They believe that liberals would allow our nation's great cities to be bombed to ashes rather than fire a single shot.
What neither side seems to recognize is that liberal, conservative, or moderate, it all comes down to whether you think Bush has made America safer, or put us all in harm's way.
I take the latter view. I think America is an inherently more dangerous place due to the actions of the Bush administration. No American president would have stood by after 9-11 and done nothing. I don't care what sort of Foxian fantasy you entertain; had Al Gore been president, we still would have bombed the piss out of Al Qaeda. Hell, if Bill Bradley had been president, we still would have bombed the piss out of Al Qaeda. But I also believe that no other administration would have recklessly thrown us into Iraq, necessarily devoting most of its time and energy to that fight rather than the one against extremist cells who seek to destroy us all, a few dozen at a time. And Americans dying are still Americans dying, be they wearing Brooks Brothers suits in the United States or government-issue camouflage in an alien desert. I also fear that just as we need international cooperation most, to help track down and eliminate terrorist threats to our homeland, we have squandered whatever goodwill we once had across the globe.
Yet the invasion of Iraq is water under the bridge. We're there now, up to our shoulder in the tar-baby. What we need now is someone who isn't going to make the problem worse. These perilous times require a courageous statesman with the wisdom of Solomon.
Even Bush supporters should be able to understand how his close ties to the oil industry and the corporations rebuilding Iraq can smack of political opportunism and cronyism to those who already do not trust him. And it becomes more evident with each week that passes that our postwar plan changes day to day, without any sort of realistic vision of how to accomplish anything. Meanwhile, it would be comforting to think that the administration had some clue as to what Osama bin Laden and company are up to these days. Or at least that it is devoting the majority of its efforts to answering that question. I don't support the president. I do not believe in him. I have no confidence in his policies. It is not because I hate America, Mr. O' Reilly, that I feel this way. That's what you don't seem to get. It's because I love America.
We need someone who can convince those on both sides of the debate--and in particular those in the middle who are uncomfortable with both the liberal and conservative labels--that he can keep us safe. That he knows what he's doing. That he's acting in the best interest of our nation as a whole, and not just for a select few.
Like John Kerry, General Wesley Clark has a history of public service and putting his nation above himself. Above his very life. He has demonstrated a willingness to go against the best interests of his career in order to speak out for what he thinks is right. Although he is now a politician, it is new to him. He doesn't seem bought and paid for. He's smart. And his security credientials are impeccable. He understand the military in a military era.
I'm not endorsing anyone. Certainly not Clark. Not yet. But I do think that General Clark might be the man who can speak to this middle. And I'm going to support whichever Democrat makes middle America most comfortable. Many of my friends support Kucinich. While I agree with Kucinich on many, many issues, being right doesn't equate to being electable. Put Kucinich in front of a moderate, middle class, swing voter, and you've got a vote for Bush. Everyone else has already taken sides; these are the people who decide elections. I want to offer them someone they can get behind. Someone who can beat Bush. My ideal candidate would probably be far too extreme on multiple issues to be electable. I think one aspect of maturity is recognizing that just because you think something is the greatest idea in the world, that doesn't mean you will be able to get everyone, or even most people, to agree with you.
General Clark's new ad is one of the best political ads I've ever seen. (Just as good as his last was puzzling.) It plays perfectly for the times we live in. It's positively moving, and simultaneously takes away the patriotism and security cards from the Republicans, while presenting a peacemaker. This is the kind of thing the Democrats need to be doing to capture swing voters.
I like several of the Democrats. I like Clark, Dean, Kerry, Kucinich and Moseley Braun. However, I only like Clark and Dean's chances. I don't buy into the Third Way. I'm not a New Democrat, or an old one, either. I like to think that I'm still an independent. But now, I am a Democrat, too. I'm a Democrat because I believe that for the future of our democracy and very planet, we must evict George Bush from the White House . It's desperate. We have to make it happen.
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