It seems it is going to feel like a really long time until the 2016 election what with all the noise of the candidate stampede. The talking heads are filling the airwaves with endless chatter not much of which is illuminating. It is very similar to the Invesco commercials in which four chattering people follow a hapless man around issuing endless, and probably inconsistent investment advise.
The so-called Democratic race for the nomination promised to be unspeakably dull until Bernie Sanders came on the scene. We will probably have Hilary, but Bernie is making a lot of interesting noise. The media has labeled him a socialist but Marx and Engels would probably not be impressed, and the people in the Scandanavian countries are laughing. He raises issues of income inequality, a failing middle class, functional pricing of a college education, attention to our failing infrastructure, none of which sounds particularly socialistic. At least there is focus and passion and the possibility for a real debate.
On the Republican side, we have a rather large contingent of “candidates” who are claiming they are running or will run. Much of the rhetoric is familiar and the talking heads, poor deers (in the headlights), are finding it hard to keep up or decide who they want to cover. From time to time there is good stage humor but on the issues it is difficult to decide how the “candidates” can be focusing on specific minimal bases and how it might lead to a win of a nomination much less a national election.
I was spending a lot of time scratching my head, endangering what is left of my hair, until one analyst raised a thought about what might be going on. He opined that they were looking, not just for exposure, but for work. Suddenly there was clarity. Certainly some of them like Donald Trump are simply egos who like the stage but a lot of the others do have political creds but a meaningful base to win the nomination, or the national election seems very unlikely. In fact, you have to bundle a number of candidates to get to two digits in the polls.
So, in the end we can expect that when their time is through in politics they can move on to paid appearances on television or to jobs at think tanks and corporations. They are out and about talking to people and making contacts and relationships. Fair enough.
There is one problem. This is America, and we can embrace the entrepreneurial spirit and planfulness for one’s future. But we are in the twenty-first century and have a rapidly changing world. Forget for a moment the incredible disorders in the Middle East and the threat of terrorism. We need to attend to the changing needs of our workforce, terrible educational cost problems for our young and an infrastructure which is not in good shape among many other issues. We should be having an intelligent discussion and it would serve us if it were truly diverse. Unfortunately, with all this noise we are not getting much that is constructive.
For now I’ll be listening with only half an ear. It’s my hope that somewhere down the road we will have an informed debate from all parties. Different philosophies would be constructive. Fine. Make it with different philosophies but it would be helpful if it were not manipulative chatter aimed at small constituencies. Maybe it is a bit much to ask but I’d like to see some courage and integrity demonstrating a real love and commitment for our country. The issues are big, they are commanding and they need our attention.
Carol Voyles says
Wonderful column, Roger.