Dave's presidential campaign commentary

In one week, it will be over! The election that seems to have begun at the dawn of man will finally fold behind the curtain of history. I realize in the grand scheme of things, my thoughts don’t mean much, but obviously I’ve been taking in the news of this campaign for two years and have gathered a few thoughts along the way.

My initial thought, going beyond all the propaganda and name calling, is that we have reason to be positive as a country about our next leader. Both presidential candidates seem to be good men. Both candidates have made extraordinary personal sacrifices for the betterment of the country. John McCain’s story is well-known. He is a highly decorated war hero who endured more than most of us could imagine in service to our country. Barack Obama is an intellectual who received the opportunity to study at some of our most prestigious universities. After being president of the Harvard Law Review, he turned down many high paying jobs to go and work with the poor in Chicago. This also, a great sacrifice on behalf of citizens in our country.

I want to comment on the candidates:

Barack Obama: I recently saw a right wing video which, at the very beginning, kept saying Barack Hussein Obama over and over and over again. I kept thinking to myself, ‘Is this really necessary?’, I mean- never have I seen such an obsession over someone’s middle name. And what is the point, really? What if John McCain’s middle name was Stalin? Would that affect someone’s decision to vote for him?

Anyways, I think Obama is a brilliant politician (meant as a compliment). He has run an incredible campaign…even Bill O’Reilly (!) exclaimed that this is the best campaign he has ever seen. So, here is one thing to think about and it is very simple. How someone runs a campaign…isn’t this a great testament as to how they could run a country? Think of all the coordination. The speech performances and the speech writings (Obama’s speech on race he reportedly wrote himself). All kinds of advisors explaining the issues to a candidate, from foreign policy to economic to domestic, to give the person a grasp on how to approach or make a decision about anything under the sun. Obama on this point, no matter what one thinks of his policies, has been uncanny.

The propaganda surrounding Obama has been absurd. The first charge the right wing threw to the masses was that Obama was some militant Muslim, hell-bent on taking over the country with his hand firmly placed on a Koran. When I first heard this, I laughed because I thought it was some late night talk show joke. Apparently not! Now I know people who actually believe this in spite of the fact that Obama had been a member at a Christian Church (which teaches a variation of Cone’s Liberation Theology) for about 20 years. This seems like the last thing that a fanatical muslim would do but (sigh)…one cannot talk sense to some people.

There are also charges of Obama being a socialist. Well, he is liberal…kind of…but a socialist?? Toward the end of this presidential campaign, one may have noticed in his rhetoric that he has definitely moved more toward the center. This is a common occurrence in presidential campaigns. The socialist charge, of course, has to do mostly with the tax plan. Taxing the richest Americans (those making $250,000 a year or more) and giving tax breaks to those who make less than that (about 95% of Americans). This is in direct opposition to Bush’s tax cuts which were for the wealthy. It seems to be the inverse.

Furthermore, is the socialism charge fear-mongering from the right wing? Here are ways that McCain may be construed as a socialist: (shamelessly borrowed from a post by my friend Jacob Wilkinson)

“McCain wants the government to buy up large amount of personal failing mortgages... McCain wants the government to stake claim in banks... McCain wants the government to lead in energy innovation and not the private sector... McCain endorsed $700 billion government bailout for private companies... Government control is just as much an act of Socialism.”

By this line of reasoning, would Republicans who charge Obama with socialism be willing to vote for McCain who also favors mass government intervention in certain areas?

I do have my sharp disagreements with Obama. I am opposed to abortion on moral grounds and Obama certainly may have the chance to appoint Supreme Court Justices (the only real way a president can affect this issue). Some of his other left-leaning policies I might not be the biggest fan of but I’m not offended by them on any moral grounds.

The most interesting twist that Obama has shown the world is on the issue of foreign policy. He, in many regards, has spoken more aggressively than McCain at winding down the Iraq war and proactively going after Al Qaeda in Afghanistan and potentially in Pakistan. This is a big switch for a democratic candidate. Probably because John Kerry was viewed as being a big wuss.

Obama, no doubt, inspires confidence and leadership. He has done so in his campaign.

John McCain: Who cannot respect such a man as John McCain? A genuine war hero. A republican who, of course, sides with his party on most issues but is not afraid to vote according to conscious on others (this has drawn fire from the far right wing earlier this year). He is a candidate who has a solid pro-life voting record going back to the 1980s (he favors abortion in cases of rape, incest and the mother’s life being in danger).

McCain knows politics and he would undoubtedly know what to do or how to command in the heat of a war. McCain would work to keep our nation safe while abiding by law.

One of the strongest positions of McCain is that of his anti-torture stance (he defines waterboarding as torture). This is a break from many people in the Republican party and- honest to goodness- is there anybody else more qualified to speak on the issue of torture than McCain? Perhaps people should listen to him.
However, McCain has had his weaknesses. His campaign has seemed confused at points and what is there main message? McCain has hammered the pork barrel spending issue but is that really something that is going to resonate with American people right now? Embarrassingly enough, he supported the $700 billion bail out package with millions of dollars in pork barrel spending (including money for archery camps in Oregon). His health care plan seems abysmal and no one can forget the irritating “bomb, bomb Iran” to the tune of “The Beach Boys” song “Barbara Ann” last year.

Something that I don’t understand either is why McCain criticizes Obama so much for wanting to talk with other world leaders who we may not like? The fact is, this may be a better move than getting involved in several more wars…if by chance, we could successfully talk issues out.

And then there was Sarah Palin….Honestly, there is not a person I fear in this campaign becoming president more than this woman. Some on the right may hate me for saying this but hear me out. This woman has been governor of Alaska for two years. She has no foreign policy experience and she hasn’t even travelled overseas very much in her life. Why would we want her to be president in the midst of being in two wars, having the global Islamic threat, having countries threatening the well-being of Israel, and being in the midst of an international energy crisis?

This to me seems similar to going in for brain surgery and having an amateur perform the procedure on you. Would you want an amateur working on your brain? Why would we want an amateur in the most powerful position in the land…in the middle of an economic meltdown?

One may say she is not running for president but as vice president BUT her job is to be ready to take over the presidency. This issue has to be looked at because McCain is 72…the oldest elected president in history if he wins. The average life span of a male in our society is around 72. This is a major issue!

I’m sure Palin is a nice, great person but she’s not ready to lead a nuclear superpower yet.

Conclusion: These are my views. I encourage everyone to vote obviously and make themselves heard. These two candidates are WAY better than the last election we had so I think there is reason to be positive. However this turns out, I believe that God is sovereignly in control and guides the heart of the king. As always, your thoughts and comments are welcome. I hope, however, that a diversity of opinions over the realm of politics will not cause division.