I've never voted Democratic in a real, major election in my life. The first time I was eligible to vote was the 1992 Republican Primary and I cast it for Patrick J. Buchanan. My high school class elected me Most Conservative...whatever the hell that means. I briefly volunteered for the McCain campaign in 2000 in Minnesota...at a time when his campaign was already over after the dirty Bush tricks in South Carolina that year. John Kerry annoys the hell out of me and I voted to re-elect Shrub in 2004. I'm no activist, but my voting has been roughly predictable during my adult life.
Despite some misgivings, which I'll try to put on the tubes below, my plan at the moment is to vote for Barack Obama. Routine events between now and next Tuesday probably won't change this, but I reserve the right to change my mind if some bombshell, literally or figuratively, happens to pop up.
Both sides of this campaign committed sins. McCain's people, both direct and surrogate, have fanned ugly flames. They've come just short of calling Obama a terrorist and implied that he's un-American. These claims are demonstrably false and over the line when it comes to claims I've seen in my lifetime. Obama, suggestions of fringe websites notwithstanding, is not wearing sandals and carrying a glow over his head. He's benefitted from John Lewis' accustions of Wallace-like campaigning and ran Spanish-language ads chocked full of lies.
These are par for the course and pretty predictable given the novel demographics of this election. While I think McCain's sins were worse, I'll call this a draw.
One of the big criticisms I hear from friends and Sean Hannity is that Obama is a Socialist who will have to raise taxes in sphincter-stretching ways to pay for all his ambitious social programs. With the liklihood of November producing a filibuster-proof Democratic majority in the Senate, I see where they're coming from with the fear of taxes, but the claims of "Socialist" are utterly ridiculous, coming from supporters of a guy who also favors a progressive tax structure.
However, we should have learned by now that the legislative promises of candidates rarely go the way they plan. No one knows what's going to happen in the coming weeks, let alone years, that could change this. Framing Clinton as being far too interventionist, Shrub ran on a "humble foreign policy" plank in 2000, but produced nothing of the sort. Situations on the ground dictated a reassessment of this position. So while Obama is a little bit too meddlesome in his orientation towards domestic social engineering for my ideal tastes, I also don't consider his current plans as a done deal, pal.
So what am I left with to judge these clowns on? It's my impression that Obama is more of a thinker than McCain. Some of the weight I'm putting in this assessment is a natural emotional reaction...when you move on in relationships, jobs or other things, you often want to overcompensate for previous deficiencies. I have no evidence that Bush posesses any more intellectual curiosity than a jellyfish, so Obama's insistence on speaking in full sentences and appreciation for the fact that the world is a complex place is...mighty refreshing to me.
I'm not arguing that McCain is a dolt, but he sometimes has a knee-jerky response to issues that's good for soundbites on the news (kudos to him) but also make me wonder what's going on upstairs and if he really thinks that
everyone falls into either the good or evil camps. Surely both have members, but is there a middle ground where others reside? I'm pretty sure Obama thinks so, but I'm not so sure about the other guy. His worldview and approach to understanding that world is what attracts me to his candidacy.
Obama's been criticized as naive when it comes to how he'll deal with foreign and domestic policy. "He's too wet behind the ears," they say. While I'll guarantee mistakes during his first months in office, I don't believe he's anything but a shrewd politician. He somehow managed to bring down the mighty Clinton machine and deftly navigated the last few years without being pinned to many serious policy position flaws. This is a guy willing to make the correct sacrifices to achieve his ends. If our interests are his, which I believe they are, these are good habits for someone in charge. I don't need someone who's always got his heart on his sleeve when he's dealing with some of the bozos in the world.
I'm intentionally not addressing some of the more scurilous charges and implications from his dealing with Ayers and Wright. They merit no more than these two sentences.
It looks as if the Democrats could win the Presidency and enough of the Congress to leave no doubt who's to credit and blame for what goes on in Washington. I'm fed up enough with the Republican party to switch the course I've traveled for my entire voting life and it's not a choice I've made lightly...I'll be watching closely to see how my investment pays off.
Republican Party, you chased me and my reliable vote away. Your insistence on pandering to the lowest common denominator lately just worries and disgusts me. Appeal to my brain, not only the base animal instincts you've been going after lately. I hope that some time in the wilderness helps you learn the error of your ways, reinvent yourself and come back and deserve my vote again.
I continue to be amazed at how otherwise-smart friends of mine will insist that, unlike McCain and Palin, Barry is a "socialist," implying that their ticket is not.
