Well, the big day came and went. Barack Obama made a point of showing up in the Senate to vote (unlike John McCain who apparently doesn't care one way or the other). Some of his votes were good (for the Dodd-Feingold, Spector and Bingamen amendments). But the big ones were bad, very bad indeed.
So what's the big deal? Why can't I accept this compromise? What more could Senator Obama have done? What does this mean for my support for Barack Obama?
What's the big deal? Why not compromise to pass FISA reform?
First of all, let me say that probably 98% of the time, compromise is the best way to advance the interests of the American people. As Senator Obama himself has said, you don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
So when it comes to health care, education, energy policy and a wide range of other issues, there's always going to be some horse trading that goes on. If I need Congressman X's vote on a bill, then maybe I can add something that will benefit his district. Yes, it can be ugly, but great legislation is often founded on a wide range of backroom deals.
Likewise, you're very rarely going to get everything you want in a bill that passes. To take energy policy as an example, if I want incentives and tax breaks for solar and wind power, I might also have to throw in some money for nuclear as well. That's politics. That's how the process works.
But every member of the legislature needs to have a core. Principles he or she will not compromise on. A line they will not cross.
I believe that that core should first and foremost be the Constitution. I believe that members of Congress should put their loyalty to the document before all other considerations, including, if need be, the lives of their constituents. I believe that every American should always be willing to pledge their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor to defend every last article.
Barack Obama swore an oath to support and defend the United States Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Note that we have decided that no other consideration is worthy of being placed in the oath of office. Nothing about keeping the people from harm or maintaining the economy or anything else. Just supporting and defending the Constitution.
So for Senator Obama to vote in favor of a law that blatantly violates the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution is, as far as I am concerned, the mark of an oathbreaker; a man without a core. (Needless to say, this also applies to each and every Republican in the Senate and most of them in the House; I will not speak of the President here.)
What more could Senator Obama have done?
As a Senator he has just one vote in 100, right? Even if he'd voted against the billit still would have passed, right?
Well, it's not enough to just cast your vote in the Senate if you want to be a leader. A leader isn't just one out of a hundred. If Barack Obama has the chops to be President, to forge a national consensus, to truly bring about change in Washington, he's going to have to do a lot more than just show up to cast a vote.
He's the leader of the Democratic party now. He could have gone to members of his caucus in the Senate and persuaded them to join him. He probably could have reached across the aisle to Republicans like Arlen Specter, Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, and others. He's got influence as the presumptive nominee and (as of right now) the favorite in the Presidential race.
He could have gone to the floor of the Senate and delivered a rousing speech outlining why the Fourth Amendment is so critical. He could have shown the American people that he will draw a line in the sand when it comes to principle.
In short, he could have shown that the Constitution is important to him.
So what does this mean for my support for Barack Obama?
Well, perhaps in the grand scheme of things, very little. I've only donated about $50 or so to his campaign, so I'm far from a big contributor. But one thing that it does mean is that my vote (and I live in Colorado, a swing state) is once again up for grabs.
I won't vote for McCain, even though I supported him in 2000. McCain is so far from the politician he used to be he's almost unrecognizable.
But now Obama's mask has slipped as well. It appears that what once seemed to be firm principles are as easily cast aside as yesterday's newspaper. Ask yourself—if Barack Obama will sell out what he articulated as core political principles back in 2007 and during the primaries, what else will he throw under the bus when it's no longer convenient? Abortion rights? Withdrawal from Iraq?
Where I go from here is not clear yet. I may still vote for Obama in November as the lesser of two evils. But perhaps a third party or independent candidate will represent my values better. And two things are gone for good: any enthusiasm for his campaign and any contributions that might have gone to him. Those will now go more deserving organizations.
EFF is a good place to start.
Blue America PAC vs Retroactive Immunity is another good step if you prefer an organization that specifically supports (real) Democrats.
Comments are closed for this post.
