I guess at some point, during some election, I registered Republican. I’m not sure when but somehow I got on the GOP’s list. Just for full disclosure, I am currently registered as an independent and have been for many years. I vote for candidates from either party depending on how well they represent my interests.
Before people start getting all excited that this might be a partisan political post, it’s really not. It’s more about the political process in general. I decided to post after getting yet another plea from the GOP to make a campaign contribution. It was positioned as a “Republican Party Census Document” which was more or less a questionnaire asking for my views on various hot topics. The last question is:
Will you join the Republican National Committee by making a contribution today?
The possible answers are:
Yes, I support the RNC and am enclosing my most generous contribution of _________
Yes, I support the RNC, but I am unable to participate at this time. However, I have enclosed $11 to cover the cost of tabulating my survey.
No, I favor electing liberal Democrats over the next ten years.
Wow! Some choice, huh? I can either send them money, not send them money but still send them money to cover their costs of sending me a survey I didn’t request, or I can let those dirty, stinkin’ liberals run the country into the ground.
I received a similar plea a few months ago. I was sent a nice autographed photo of Mr. and Mrs. Bush and a card inside telling me that in order to confirm that I had received the president’s gift, I should return the acknowledgement form with a check for $25. Nice gift, huh?
During the election cycle I decided to read a book called “What it Takes: The Way to the White House” by Richard Ben Cramer. It chronicals, in great detail (1072 pages), the 1988 presidential election. It looks at all of the candidates, both Republican and Democrat, going all the way back to how they grew up to the battle for the nomination of their party. For those with short memories that was the year Hart got caught up in his monkey business, Biden had to drop out to kill Reagan’s nomination of Bork to the Supreme Court, Michael Dukakis ruined his chances by wearing a silly hat while sitting in a tank, Dole got blind sided by accusations that he was a mean hachet-man for the GOP, and Bush Sr. slid into the White House.
It really is an interesting look at how completely out of control the whole process is. All the consultants and pundits and money people who are constantly competing for each candidates ear. How the press can often turn on a candidate and turn his every victory into some sort of defeat. About running around the country, making 5 or 10 stops in a day to make the same speech. In other words, you see the process for what it is. You see the process as this grinder that chews people up and spits them out. You see people who are put under a spotlight 24/7 and even the smallest utterance can be blown into a front page story in tomorrow’s papers.
I highly recommend the book to those who are curious about how a single man can rise to the position of leader of the free world.