November 6, 2006
Never tell an election it’s in the middle of pitching a perfect game
About this time six years back a friend and former editor was penning an editorial in praise of our democratic system of government and the way our fair elections bring about a smooth transition of power. It was the end of the Clinton era, not a bad time really and while the campaign between Al Gore and the man who would become Our Fine President had been contentious and close, surely none of us quite imagined what lay ahead.
It is certain that my editor did not as he sat down Monday morning and knocked out fine piece that began, “By now we know who our next president is…” Unfortunately those words were off to press Monday night and by the time our weekly hit the streets on Thursday, everybody was well aware that no one knew who had won that election and some guy named Chad seemed to be involved in some yet to be discovered way. I think the tragically optimistic words of that editorial formed some sort of a jinx because I don’t think any election has been the same since.
That election way back in 2000 turned everything on it’s head now didn’t it? Before then the elections I remember seemed fairly orderly and efficient. They definitely felt trustworthy. Now I’m wary of them, wondering who’s doing what to cook this here or squeeze votes there. I know voting irregularities are nothing new and fixing things has gone on as long as people have been voting. (Come on I’m not that naive. After all, I am from Chicago where the dead vote if asked by a Daley.)
Still, it just seems like something changed after the Supreme Court was called in to play pick-a-president. I remember hoping this guy wouldn’t be so bad, even though I disagreed with the theories behind most of his policies. Still, half the country was against him and he had to respect that sizable opposition didn’t he? Then a war was sprung and differences were briefly dropped. But eventually compromise was abandoned, domestic plans ignored the half who supported the other guy and things veered in the unnecessary direction of Iraq.
Two years back seemed like the chance to demand some accountability from the government. If Our Fine President wasn’t going to be ousted by the loquaciously mild John Kerry at least the public could have sent one house of Congress over to the other side to kick that Legislative Branch back into the checking and balancing business. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen and despite continued domestic and military failures, the current Congress has done nothing to demand some accountability and answers for why the Executive Branch keeps dropping the ball.
Now the polls say tomorrow will bring the dawn of at the very least a Democrat-controlled House of Representatives and possibly a Democratic Senate as well. It’d be nice to see that happen, but I just don’t feel I can trust things. Something about Karl Rove’s statement about seeing different poll numbers than the media makes me think about pre-selected vote totals for those paperless electronic voting contraptions.
Of course who’s to even say that Democratic subpoena power in Congress would lead to any accountability. After getting angry and saying some things that need to be said more often last week, Kerry seems to have meekly backed away without getting answers to the legitimate questions he was asking. Will he or anyone else with some authority be brave enough to use it to call this executive branch on all the ways they’re ignoring the Constitution, eliminating rights and blindly abandoning the principals of this Democracy in their war to “save the American way of life.”?
Thanks for the reminder. Man, that was a great editorial though. That guy sure could write.