Topic: Election 2008
The Audacity of Pandering Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and the modern liberal establishment thinks so much of their own accomplishments that they are convinced we can't match them without their helpby R.J. Moeller
(conservative)
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Barack Obama's selection of Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) to be his running mate for the 2008 election seems odd given that his reported disdain for "politics as usual" has consistently been at the top of an increasingly shorter and shorter list of reasons to vote for Obama. Barack insists he will be a new breed of Commander-in-Chief, one that will rise above Washington's insider political "games" with healthy doses of transcendent hope and change. With literally dozens of alternative candidates that would have represented Barack's self-proclaimed commitment to change, he selected a 35-year veteran of the congressional "establishment" who is well known for his combative style and far-Left liberal positions on the issues.
Obama's campaign responded by reminding us that a guy who is fond of change (Barack Obama) picked Biden, so back off with the tough questions, all right?
Also, we'd prefer it if you don't ask us to explain how the 1st and 3rd most liberal-voting Senators intend to bring the nation together. Vote or die!
Apart from being seen as a non-verbal admission that Barack is in desperate need of something to make him look more experienced than a freshmen senator with no significant piece of legislation to his name, Biden's nomination, and the manner in which the Obama campaign and mainstream media is choosing to recant his personal life-story, lends itself to a great object lesson in one of the great flaws of modern liberal thinking and ideology. The specific problem is the Left's pandering to the lowest common denominator in society and inside each of us. The culprit is a rampant elitism that courses through the political veins of nearly every important Democrat in Congress or the White House since 1964.
At the VP acceptance speech in Springfield, IL last weekend, both Senator Biden and Obama reminded the crowd numerous times that it had been by nothing short of hard work, commitment, and resiliency that "scrappy Joe B from Scranton, PA" had made it to where he was today. Truly, Senator Biden has overcome great hurdles, both professional and personal, in his life to achieve the impressive level of success he has. Not the least of which included the tragic death of his wife and son in a car accident some 30 years ago.
My beef is not with politicians touting their own accomplishments in order to inspire voters. In fact, so long as they are true, I think Americans are always in need of more personal stories and anecdotes that remind us that while success is never guaranteed, here in this blessed nation anything is possible. Barack Obama is the first minority candidate seriously considered for the office of President, is the privileged product of Ivy League education, and benefactor of an economy that generates enough wealth to allow for people to hold jobs like "Community Organizer." Both men on the Democrat's ticket are remarkable examples of what a unique and awesome country the United States is.
What I take issue with is the fact that both men (along with the bulk of the modern Democratic Party) see, hear, and experience similarly extraordinary tales of success every day, yet come to the conclusion that the system that got them where they are is so ineffective and broken that it could never possibly work for anyone else. In short: "We can, but without us, you can't too."
This is elitism. Elitism is often confused for wealth, which certainly can be a contributive characteristic in the formation of an elitist. But elitism is a state of mind, an attitude, not a dollar amount in your checking account. John McCain defined the important difference in views of wealth that the Right and Left have during his Q & A with Rick Warren at Saddleback Ranch Church in California last week. The Republican's nominee for president said that being "rich" is a relative term that has to take in to account the quality of life, love, and relationships, not simply a bank statement.
Note: Wanting to check with your independently wealthy wife and your staff as to the exact number of properties you own and might be invested in does not convey the same level of elitism that an attitude which says, "We made it this far, but there's little chance you can so give me your tax money (and self-reliance) and I'll take care of you via socialized everything," does. Sorry, it just doesn't.
A 9-year old girl in Fort Wayne, IN recently asked Barack Obama why he even wanted to be president in the first place. Obama told the impressionable youth that her country had once been great, wasn't anymore, but could be again if he gets the chance to lead. His wife Michelle Obama infamously made the similarly disappointing "I've never been proud of my country in my adult life until now" comment in February and remains dumbfounded that people reacted negatively. Joe Biden, the same Joe Biden who in last fall's Presidential Primary debates said Barack Obama was not ready or fit to lead this nation, said at his VP nominee acceptance speech that he and his wife are like typical Americans who sit up late at night around the kitchen table and lament over how things could have gotten so rotten in America.
If that isn't inspiring, then I don't know what is.
Surely no one on either side of the political aisle is refusing to acknowledge that there are people hurting due to things such as the increased cost of gasoline or the mortgage-lending crisis. No one is trying to silence the American people from voicing the complaints they have with their government. Self-governance requires constant and sustained vigilance on the part of the citizenry and the moment we begin to shirk those duties is the same we will see our freedoms begin to be traded away at the ballot box for the empty promises of a "better life" that someone else in Washington will supposedly provide for us....
The views expressed in this
article are those of R.J. Moeller only and do not represent
the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. R.J. Moeller is
solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an
employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
Want to comment on this
article? Leave your comment here. Your email address is
required to track your comment. However, we will neither
publish your email address nor distribute it to other
organizations or persons. The only reason we might use
it would be if we needed to contact you regarding your
comment. All comments are subject to our
terms of use policy.
