Super Tuesday, Part Deux
I've gotten calls from friends and family from all over the US wanting to know the 'temperment' of the Texas voters, and who I believe might come out ahead in the Democratic Primary. That, like a lot of things in life, is very much up in the air.
Texas can be seen as a state divided. We have Austin, our bastion of Democratic thought and home of 'Hippie Hollow', Willie (Nelson); and past gubernatorial candidate, comedian-musician-entrepreneur- Kinky Friedman; Whole Foods (Lobsters have feelings, too), freedom for dogs, and some of the best Tex-Mex and Barbeque on the planet. The rest of this very LARGE state (it takes 2.5 days to go from Beaumont to El Paso) is pretty much filled with people who are Republicans, either by though or action.
We are also unique as Texas is one of the few states in which there is not a white majority. We are a proud state, filled with many ethnicities, colors and religions. In this uniquely American melting pot, there is a different racism, that of the Black and the Mexican.
Black Americans have fought Jim Crow Laws, racism in its many forms, and have won. Down came the 'Whites Only' signs and integration began. Mexicans liken themselves to the manner in which Black Americans were treated fifty years ago, and by association have gotten themselves a bad reputation because of the overt actions of illegal aliens coming to this country. Historically, Mexicans don't like Blacks, and vice versa.
In my humble opinion, Barack Obama will take the black and white vote here in Texas, leaving Hillary with the Hispanic vote. Why? It's simple.
Barack Obama offers hope, albeit little else. His speeches reminiscent of JFK and MLK, Jr., asking what we can contribute to our country to make it great. Although he possesses little in the way of solid concrete experience at this level, he is exceedingly good at rallying people to his cause, and offering hope, a better way, and maybe that is what our great country needs (unlike Mr. Obama's wife, I have been proud of our country since my childhood, as our country has accomplished many great things).
Mrs. Clinton offers...well, that's just it. She talks of the experience gained by being First Lady, to Bill. However, that administration was continually rocked by devisiveness, scandal, and hypocracy. No Chinese Wall ever built could insulate Hillary from what her husband and his administration did. We can only expect (and have come to expect through this campaign) more of the same old tactics, veiled threats and innuendos (like Gov. Shaheen's husband).
The Republican vote here is not as cut and dried as the Democratic vote. As this state is largely Republican and conservative, John McCain just makes most Texans itch. Most Texans have seen the erosion of their workplace due to illegal aliens, and consequent erosion of their paycheck. The McCain-Kennedy Amnesty bill was seen as a huge travesty here. McCain is just not as 'Republican' as what they want, he waffles from side to side and was the leader of the 'Gang of 14', which prevented Republican leadership from making a rule change that would have ended the filibuster to prevent majority approval of judicial nominees (thanks to Mark Levin, whose article "The Real McCain Record' can be viewed on nationalreview.com) Texan Republicans are holding their noses, voting for McCain, as opposed to Huckabee, who doesn't have a chance to get the delegates he needs to make a stick at the Convention this summer.
So, who am I going to vote for??? Like a good New Englander, I keep my religion and my politics to myself!
Good to hear from you Susan!
Due to it being President's Day on Monday, the History channel was running a show on the presidents, giving a quick 15-20 minute capsule and commentary on each president and their place in history and the legacy of each presidency. Since it was running in the early mornings this week, I only caught a bit here and there. What I found most interesting watching this show is how time not only is a great healer, but a great revealer. There is much truth in 20/20 hindsight and in learning from the past, but so often we don't pay attention to such things and only care about the here and now.
More often then not, the great orators who could inspire thousands to rally to their side, often were ill equipped to run the country and left most of that up to the people they surrounded themselves with; President Regan being the most recent and obvious. Not to liken Regan with someone like Hitler, but let us not forget that Hitler too was a great orator who could inspire thousands with his speeches. We need to look beyond the words to what lies beneath. Can someone like Obama really back up his rhetoric?
With 20/20 hindsight and an ability to forgive any "scandalous" behavior that seems trivial, even questionable, after decades have passed, one can better judge who the truly great leaders were. I've commented to my S.O. often over the last few weeks that who this country really needs right now is another Teddy Roosevelt, a man his own party wanted to squash during his political reign, a man who did what he felt was best for his country and the world even if it meant thumbing his nose at everyone else.
In a world where terrorists are barely being held at bay and in some places gaining ground, we need a president who will make them at least hesitate. Thinking talk and great speeches will do that is just setting up our country for another painful wake up call.
In the end...
In the end, history will be the one to bear out the success or failure of our choices.
Right now, looking at where we were with our political choices, and what we have left, I have to believe that we aren't left with much. It has come down to choosing the devil you know, versus the devil you don't know (or at leas don't know much about).
I remember when John Sununu was Governor of NH. He pretty much did what he needed to to in order to have a fiscally responsible government. And I believe he was successful in doing so.
I was dearly hoping that Mitt Romney would be the candidate of the Republican Party this time around. I believe that fewer bureaucrats, and more business people is what this country needs.
And what happened to plain old self reliance versus going to the government for everything? We need to be more self-reliant as people and as a country instead of looking to our government for cradle-to-grave care.
Very good analysis, Susan.
Austin is right up there with Berkeley, Boulder, Cambridge and even Concord. You are right on point with Obama. His rhetoric will not do us any good and I read today that his proposals for big government will amount to $859 billion the first year.
McCain does support amnesty, there is no question. In the end all conservatives, moderates and Republicans will need to hold their nose and vote for him. I am just as unhappy about that as anyone else but the alternative is unthinkable. What Obama or Clinton would do to entitlements and establishing a nanny state would be horrendous.
What progressives do not understand is that this country was built on self responsibility, self reliance and hard work. They loathe about everything that has made us prosper in exchange for some utopian vision of economic equality and collectivism.
It used to be that to be a good New Englander that you kept your politics to yourself but we need every soldier we can get to beat back the Democratic candidate. More than likely, McCain would serve one term so we will need to take a look at his VP as the heir apparent.
I enjoyed you comments about Mark Levin. The Left hates him as well; his facts are right on the money though. Thanks for your great thoughts and excellent observations.