Vote your conscience
The
Democratic preference vote is tomorrow. If you’re a Democrat, get out there and
make your vote heard. This is as much about the direction of the party as about
who gets nominated.
Democrats
have been trying so hard to be what some consider electable
— to be basically a Republican but just a touch less to the right. I wish Joe
Lieberman would just go ahead and switch parties. I saw a comparison of his
positions and Richard Nixon’s policies. He is more Republican than Nixon ever
was, so why doesn’t he just go ahead and say so?
I
would encourage you to vote for whoever really represents your views,
regardless of who's most likely to win or beat George Bush. I know that’s not
the conventional wisdom, but here’s why I think it’s important.
My
favorite candidate, Congressman Dennis Kucinich, illustrates the point
perfectly. He seems to be representing true Democratic principles the best.
He’s the only one who voted against the war. He also voted against the
“Patriot” act and has the clearest stand on international trade,
that it should take care of workers and the environment.
But
suppose I and a lot of other people decide to vote for someone more
conservative because we think they're more likely to get the nomination and to
beat Bush. Two things happen. First, candidates for other offices, and
presidential candidates next time, think Democratic voters are more
conservative than they really are, and so position themselves to the right. Or
they may just not bother to run if they don't think they can win. Further, some
discouraged voters leave the party or become inactive and new people don't come
in because the party doesn't seem to represent them. With each election cycle
this error compounds itself and the party creeps artificially to the right.
Second,
we put forward candidates who don’t stand distinctly apart from their
opposition. Had Gore not tried to be so "centrist", would he have won
even more votes? Would he have attracted more of those who didn’t vote because
they didn’t see any distinct options? Would Nader
perhaps not have felt compelled to offer an alternative or would he have
attracted fewer votes?
If
you're thinking people just won't vote for a truly Democratic candidate, that
they prefer Bush politics, think again. Who won the
popular vote last time? Gore. And that was after
losing 5% to Nader.
Either
people are going to vote for Democratic ideas and candidates or they aren’t.
Pandering only hurts our chances. A candidate who has the guts to say what he
thinks comes across as more trustworthy and more presidential.
Of
course a candidate can also pander the other direction, pretending to be a
champion of the disillusioned Democrats just to get attention. The Chicago Tribune
had a story recently on how the Howard Dean of the campaign trail is
unrecognizable to those in
Regardless
of what happens, what kind of candidates you will see running next time depends
on who gets supported this time -- those who believe in Democratic principles
and say so, or those who are Republican-lite or
pretend to be so.
If
Kucinich is not your cup of tea, Senator Kerry has a great base of experience
and a wonderful track record, except for that vote authorizing the war. But in
any case, vote — and vote your conscience. Afterward we can all rally behind
whoever does get nominated.
Not
as many voting places are open this time. You can find where to vote by calling
the