Worrying about our presidential options
In a rational world, this presidential election would be between Hillary Clinton and John McCain, with their respective running mates Barack Obama and (maybe) Sarah Palin.
But we do not live in a rational world. We live in a world of emotional excess and so are left to ponder the qualifications of two relatively young, relatively inexperienced candidates -- even if one of them isn't running for president.
Confession: I love Barack Obama and I love Sarah Palin -- both for different reasons. They both also scare me to death.
I love Obama for his style, grace, intellect and his way with words. I want the healing power that an Obama presidency could deliver to this country.
I love Palin for her chutzpah, courage, maverickness and her authenticity. As a woman, I want her to be fantastic. I want her to expose the fraudulence of identity politics and show the world that Woman is not just one thing.
But my inner eye is watching. And my inner voice is saying: These are not good enough reasons.
I worry.
I worry that Obama isn't serious enough about terrorism and free markets. I worry about his out-of-touchness with the people who, he says, cling to guns and religion because of frustration and anger. I worry about a worldview that may have been shaped in part by a spiritual mentor who damns America in church and thinks the government invented the AIDS virus to kill blacks.
I worry about Obama's over-intellectualizing -- that he will get lost in a maze of deep thoughts and fail to be decisive when necessary.
I worry that Sarah Palin won't set foot in that maze.
I worry that she won't intellectualize enough. I worry about her certitude and her slight offness. Whatever her charms, anyone in public office who thinks out loud about banning books might be missing some aces in her deck.
I worry about a worldview that might have been shaped in part by a minister who believes that Alaska someday will be home to Christian renegades arriving for the Rapture.
I do not worry about her small-town values, which are mostly Main Street's values. Or even her social conservatism, which is driving Democrats insane. Most Americans are more worried about a crumbling economy and the next terrorist attack than they are about what motivates Palin to have a baby others would abort.
Even were Palin to become president and in a position to fill Supreme Court openings with pro-life justices, the likelihood that Roe v. Wade would be overturned is slim. Such a dramatic shift in U.S. law would require an unlikely alignment of stars, including Senate confirmation of the nominees. Moreover, it is not clear that Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito would line up with such a campaign.
With so much to worry about, we are left with two not-great choices that, frankly, do not lend themselves to sound sleep. There is still much to know about Palin and not much time to know it. Was she the most qualified person in McCain's field of running mates?
Clearly not. There was once a man named Mitt Romney who might have been handy to have around as the economy collapses.
Is Obama the most qualified Democrat to deal with global terrorism and an array of domestic issues that have confounded many more experienced politicians? Not really. Clinton surpassed him and every other candidate in nearly every debate, but she couldn't pierce the impenetrable aura that surrounded Obama.
How did we get in this mess? All together now: It's Bush's fault.
George W. Bush created The Phenomenon Known as Barack Obama. If you fed data describing Bush into a computer and commanded the machine to create his opposite, Obama would emerge.
As for Palin, thanks be to Obama. He passed on Clinton and then McCain stole the ball. In a political season of feminist angst, Palin was a rimless swish.
In a final bit of irony, those who have attacked Palin may ensure her victory.
Challenging Palin on her policies and her public record is legitimate. But when self-identified feminists call Palin a "cutthroat Texas cheerleader stage mom(s)" and ideologically a "hardcore pornographic centerfold spread" -- just to pull a few recent comments -- they hurt their cause and their own candidate.
Whatever happens, we may deserve what we get. On the other hand, maybe there's still time to wise up: Obama boots Biden and taps Clinton; McCain dumps Palin and picks Romney. It's a concept.
Sep 21, 2008 at 7:25 p.m.
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Very interesting opinion here. We better be worried this year but I tend to think many of our presidents in the past have been successful not in who they are themselves but who they pick for their staff, their cabinet, and of course their VP. John Kennedy comes to mind. Abe Lincoln came out of the same state legislature that Obama did. While I would have guessed, and maybe even preferred Hillary at the top of the ticket, recent events are giving me a gut feeling that we better go with the best and the brightest again this time. We can't afford another C-student, especially with a very naive and inexperienced VP on deck. The old John McCain was great. The one advised by the likes of Karl Rowe is a real scary thing indeed.
Sep 19, 2008 at 9:57 p.m.
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Thats whats funny about conservative political commentators, they are trying to frame this election as Palin VS Obama...I don't care about Sarah Palin or Joe Biden, I want to hear what the PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES have to say! Having to listen to either Biden or Palin makes me want to throw up! Everyone is making such a big deal about something that is not so important when it comes to the PRESIDENTIAL election.
Sep 19, 2008 at 9:48 p.m.
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I SERIOUSLY entertain the thought that the world IS gonna end in 2012, more & more, each day...!! lol! WTF, WORLD!! :( I am NOT LOOKING FORWARD to voting either!!
Sep 19, 2008 at 9:19 p.m.
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Our country is going to **** in a handbasket. The high cost of fuel has driven up the production and shipping cost of everything. Consumers have nothing left over after filling the tank and paying more for the necessities of life to spend on extras, save or invest. We need to get ourselves out from under our dpendency on foriegn oil.Just as gas prices start to fall slightly and we felt like there might be hope along comes Ike and causes them to spike to an all time high. Families everywhere are wondering where else they can cut back to cover the cost of fueling up the family vehicle to get back and forth to work and take care of the necessities of life. There is no money left for relaxation and family fun. The stress level continues to rise. Most areas of the country have seen a sharp rise in their electric bill as power companies pass their increased production costs on to consumers. The cost of every consumer product has risen sharply. Americans are stretched to the limit. Jobs are being lost, foreclosures are increasing at an alarming rate. Seems even the family pets are suffering the high cost of fuel as almost daily a sad new story is on TV about shelters being forced to euthanize record number of surrendered pets from those forced out of their homes due to foreclosure or they simply can't afford to feed them anymore. The energy crisis in our country is far reaching and needs immediate attention. Our economy is in a sorry state of affairs directly related to the high cost of fuel. We have become so dependant on foreign oil that we have neglected to fully utilize such natural sources of energy such wind power & solar power. Along with modern technology such as plug in cars, hybrid cars, v2g technology ,and regenerative braking, technology we still seem to be floundering as a nation as to devising the best plan utilize all that is available to us and lift ourselves out of this mess we are in. We need to take o ur closest look at which candidates put our economy and energy crisis at the forefront of their agenda. There is a new book coming out soon called...The Manhattan Project of 2009 by Jeff Wilson . It looks like an eyeopener!
Sep 19, 2008 at 3:26 p.m.
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Interesting opinion. But like Rumsfeld said "you have to fight with the army you have and not with the army you want." Wishful thinking will not get us out of this economic disaster that has been created by deregulation, a Free Market has created this mess. A Free Market with no regulation or oversight by the Bush Administration. Short sales of stocks to make money, Hedge funds to inflate the market. If that is a Free Market. Who benefits? Not me and I think not you. But we can thank some important people like Phil Gramm in 1999 who began the Experiment in Deregulation, with his Bill. Just goggle his name and you will read what he had started. Who will pay for this Republican folly? Your children and their children. Vote Republican and you will live through the Next Great Depression. Times are going to be very tuff no matter who you vote for. Paulsons decision in a few days will Bail out the Financial Community and put it on the backs of the poorly paid and jobless community the taxpayer. Of course the upper class will not suffer because their tax cuts remain in effect until 2010. I read the CEO of AGI worked in his job for three months before his company crashed and was saved by the taxpayer. He got over 8 million for his good work as he left the failing company.
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