Complaining about the Election Part I

In case anyone hasn’t noticed, the 2008 election cycle has already begun. With it comes all the backstabbing evil that most of the candidates at least publicly say they want to avoid. I take the first of what will be many quibbles between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama’s campaign teams. I am taking about the money raised for Obama by former Clinton fundraiser David Geffen. Instead of turning it into an argument about issues, both teams opted to get dirty instead.

I believe a good reason exists for why the 2008 election campaign has already begun. I know it has been said by many people much more famous and learned than I: people want change and they are focusing on the future in an effort to forget the present. With President Bush’s numbers in the toilet, people are more willing to look past his failed policies in favor of something hopeful.

The 2008 cycle thus far is a unique one. We have the first shot for a woman and an African American to win the White House. While the focus has been on these two contenders, the direction they are sending the campaigns has already been a bad turn. In the last cycle, I feel the Democratic Party made a sort of promise to us the voter to make this cycle different. Instead of the inferred promise of a dialogue about issues, campaigns are discussing and dissing fundraisers.

As a former campaign worker whose main focus was actually fundraising, I know the importance of those who are willing to part with their dollars to fund candidates. However, that does not mean that I fell in love with the practice in fact I came away with a certain dirty feeling about it. I came away from my experience with the feeling that the “golden rule of politics” needs to be amended if not abolished all together. I would honestly like to see fundraising in general fall to the State and National parties. This would streamline the money process while allowing candidates and campaigns to focus on the issues rather than money. That is my ideal campaign world. One where the issues are louder than money. Where the dialogue is open and honest about what is affecting the common person and each candidate is offering real solutions. If the campaigns are getting attention this early, it’s for a reason.
I would like to see those from my own party taking advantage of the fact that this is probably going to be one of the few times that they can talk freely about issues that are most pressing to them. Instead, we have politics as usual. When campaigns have control of the news cycle, they are choosing to not focus on issues but rather piety rivalries. Democrats: ’08 is for fighting Republicans, not each other. The politics of destruction needs to stop and quickly. We have a rare chance for so many firsts in this cycle, lets unite to enable them to occur without petty party infighting about who is giving money to whom and when. Let each candidate’s voice be heard for what they have to say and what they can offer the American people.