Where's the love? In politics, some issues should transcend partisanship or even the pursuit of power. There are times when public officials must consider history their ultimate judge. In two decades, is the electorate really going to maintain a zeal in limiting stem-cell research or the rights of homosexuals? It seems more likely that the circus of the impending mid-term elections will be in a textbook chapter called "Wedge politics" rather than "Defense of the American spirit."
Where is the love when we deny millions of our fellow countrymen the affirmation of their equality and the recognition that they are not a sort of biological error? Are our hearts all tied up in the faulty notion that the traditional bond between a man and a woman supercedes all?
We need to learn what it really means to "love thy neighbor." A fear of change should not diminish our feelings of common humanity. We have been socialized to defend the cultural ideals we've lived with, and that's a healthy reaction. Change that happens too fast often has unexpected consequences, and gay rights supporters have given the GOP a gift that keeps on giving.
History will question the timing of those promoting marriage rights. Whether pushing for too much, too soon led to a backlash that has set their cause back decades may well be decided on Election Day. Although numerous states have constitutional amendments on the docket, the results of New Jersey's senate race between Tom Kean Jr. and Bob Menendez will gauge the amount of passion the public has for the issue. If the Democrat Menendez can win this race weeks after the state Supreme Court ruled lawmakers must create a provision for equal treatment, the door will be wide open for these amendments to be overturned in the future. If he loses and exit polling indicates gay marriage was a significant issue, candidates won't have the gall to stand against similar legislation in the future.
It's a simple question: Where is the love? Do we consider ending the hopes of millions of Americans suffering from debilitating diseases secondary to defending the abstract ideal of defending human embryos already slated for destruction? Why was the opposition to Michael J. Fox's political endorsements of pro-stem-cell candidates been so immediately vitriolic and mean-spirited? Further, how does the absurd GOP rebuttal ad featuring healthy NFL stars and famous actors telling us why we shouldn't support research for the chronically ill do anything but help Fox and his political allies paint stem cell opponents as unreasonable and comically out of touch?
Where is the love in our political rhetoric? I don't expect to see the end of negative campaigning, nor is it an exclusively negative phenomenon. But I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a perfunctory level of civility. Black Republican gubernatorial candidate Michael Steele was accused of "slavishly" supporting Bush policy by House Democratic WHIP Steny Hoyer, D-Md. Although he has apologized, it underscores the sad tag many Democrats slap on black Republicans: Those who support the GOP put party over their own people.
This despicable brand of racial scapegoating certainly isn't exclusive to Democrats. Republican National Committee chairman Ken Mehlman apologized for the old "southern strategy," used to divide the electorate based on race, at a NAACP meeting last year. This apology now rings hollow as last second desperation inspired the GOP to employ the strategy yet again, but in a manner consistent with the nature of modern racism: subtle.
In Tennessee's senate race between culturally conservative Democrat Herald Ford Jr. and Republican Bob Corker, the RNC funded an ad ending with a bare-shouldered white woman winking into the camera and asking Ford, who is black, to "call me." While it seems benign and honestly funny at first glance, playing off the implications of a white man with a black woman is nothing new in southern Republican politics, and the irrelevant and otherwise inconsequential ad would not have run against a white candidate or in a state outside of the South.
Bob Menendez got it worse in New Jersey as a group supporting Tom Kean Jr. is running an ad linking Menendez to crime. The ad can be most accurately described as an Italian stereotype on a cell phone detailing his illegal dealings with Menendez. "Bada bing, we're in it, but deep," the no-talent Sopranos archetype asserts before lamenting Kean's commitment to prevent crime.
I feel compelled to conclude that there's not much love left to go around. The major parties are trapped in a fog of anger and feel as if meeting expectations is more important than having an ideal. Candidates should tell their supporters and party they would rather lose with conviction than win and pervert the public interest. Now there's an American dream. But look at where we were 30 years ago. It's getting better, so sit back and turn up that malicious attack ad — you're watching a little piece of history.
Bassey Etim ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in political science and journalism.
