People excuse much of what politicians say, but when politicians become leaders folks don’t tolerate as much grandstanding and dissembling. That’s the electorate’s double standard and, with President Bush, it led us down the thorny eight-year primrose path.
The Test
Label these true or false:
- John McCain, as chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, claims to have overseen every part of our economy.
- Barack Obama says he will only raise taxes on the 1.9 % of households making more than $250,000 and may cut them for almost everyone else.
- The Washington Post has stood up for Cindy McCain, saying claims she was a longtime drug addict are untrue.
- After Congressional hearings, John McCain was reprimanded for poor judgment because he joined four senators in inappropriate meetings with regulators during the Savings and Loan crisis in the 1980s.
- John McCain’s financial advisor, Carly Fiorina, who went to the top of corporate America’s ladder as Hewlett-Packard’s chief executive, received the top award of the Chamber of Commerce when she retired.
- Half of Barack Obama’s financial advisors are tied to Wall Street firms that contributed to the current financial crisis.
- Barack Obama has been criticized by Republicans for wanting to have sex education start in kindergarten.
- Did Congress indicate to Alaska that the cancelled “Bridge to Nowhere” money could be kept and used for something else?
- Did Sarah Palin ask for federal funds to study the mating habits of crabs and the DNA of harbor seals?
- Did Sarah Palin put out a press release about her teenage daughter’s pregnancy and then spend the next few days attacking the press for covering that press release?
Strange Voter Values
What a strange assignment U. S. citizens have been given. It now appears that the skills needed to run a winning campaign are not the same as those needed to run the country. It’s acceptable to stretch the truth to out game the opposition, but once in office expect truth, honesty and nothing but.
Why can’t voters decide that how a politician runs a campaign is a barometer of how he would run the nation? What is this Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde dichotomy? More important: Have citizens given permission to future presidents to hurl muck during the campaign so they can prevent a debate on real issues?
The Answers
1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 9 and 10 are true. It should be noted that what Sen. Obama wants taught in kindergarten is that children should not go anywhere with strangers, plus other things designed to protect them from sexual predators.
3, 5, and 6 are false. Here’s why. Cindy McCain was a longtime drug user who fed her habit with drugs stolen from a charity she served as a volunteer. Carly Fiorina, a brilliant woman, was fired from Hewlett-Packard after a large drop in shareholder value; she took home a retirement package worth $42 million. 6. Obama’s financial advisors are not involved in any of the current Wall Street problems.
SOURCES: “Truthiness Stages a Comeback,” by Frank Rich, Sept. 21, 2008, New York Times; “Squad of G.O.P. Aides Prepares Palin for Interviews,” by Jim Rutenberg and Monica Davey, New York Times, Sept. 10, 2008; “ Blizzard of Lies,” by Paul Krugman, New York Times, Sept. 11, 2008; “My Fair Veep,” by Maureen Dowd, Sept. 10, 2008, New York Times.
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