This election story came from Phil Hutson of Austin, Texas. He voices an opinion that is probably not shared by a great many of OpEdNews' readers. For that reason, at the very least, it is worthwhile to read it.
And while we're at it, I again extend an invitation to you, to share your election story with us while it's still fresh. Send it to me at Joan@OpEdNews.com.
Joan,
By sheer coincidence, I just happened to find your article "...Election Personal Narratives" on OpEdNews and decided to send you mine. I am 59 years old and have generally voted Republican since I was old enough to vote. I never vote a straight ticket - I research the individual politicians views/stance, and if a Democrat has ideas closer to my own, he gets my vote. But because of the overall Democratic party philosophy, I rarely vote that way. However, that being said, I would not vote for George W. Bush if he was up for re-election, so go figure...........
Regarding the 2008 Presidential election, let me say from the onset I did not like John McCain as the Republican candidate. I believe he was one of the weaker nominees - Romney may have been a better choice to run against Obama, but not sure if he couldn't beat him. I DO believe it would have been a coin flip instead of a rout, if the RNC had run a better campaign! That being said, I was SO UPSET about the election, Monday night, Nov. 3, BEFORE the election, I decided to put into words via internet blog what I REALLY thought, and next thing I know it appears in the "Letters to Editor" column of the Phoenix Herald - McCain is from Phoenix, but he hasn't called to chew me out yet! It sums up what a lot of my Republican friends (and apparently many others as I have received numerous replies from disenfranchised Republicans from all over!) thought about this campaign/election.
As you said in your article, "this is my story and only I can tell it." We are all entitled to our personal opinion, and this is mine. Thank you for the opportunity of sharing it.
I am not a subscriber to OpEdNews (yet), so if you run this narrative in your column, please let me know. Thanks again.
Phil Hutson/Austin, Texas
Open Letter to John McCain
An Open Letter To John McCain
11/3/2008
Dear Senator McCain,
I am writing you this open letter on the eve of the 2008 Presidential election, and the dawn of what I believe will be a turning point in, not only America, but also the world that we live in, and there are a few things I have to get off my chest.
I want you to know that, in my opinion, you are one of the most honorable men in America, and I respect you very much. I respect you because, in spite of what others may think about you, you say what you think, do what you say, and don’t really care if it is for or against “party lines.” I haven’t always agreed with you on a number of occasions, being the staunch Republican that I am, but I will be the first to admit that I have not always been right on every occasion, and I believe that more “non-party line” voting from both the Republicans and Democrats is probably what this country needs right now to get our political system back on track. Too many of you Senators and Congressmen are too busy worrying about what your allies on the same side of the aisle are going to think and say about you, and if you are going to be “blackballed” the next time you ask them to do you a favor, and/or worried about getting re-elected, than what is good for the country. And last but not least, I respect and thank you for your service to your country, and in that respect alone, I view you as an American hero.
I want you to know, John, that what I have to say next might hurt your feelings, and I apologize up front for that, but I, too, say what I think, and if it hurts your feelings, so be it. For you see, you and the RNC have hurt my feelings, and a whole lot of my Republican friends’ feelings, and you have allowed arguably the most under-qualified, over-rated, diplomatically inept man to become President of the United States of America, at least in my lifetime.
I want you to know that I voted for you, even though I knew it was for a lost cause. Barack Obama will not win this election, you will lose it – there is a huge difference.
Some will say that you lost because Obama “bought” the election with his vast resources of money – money that is untraceable back to its source – and part of that will be true. Where did those millions and millions of dollars come from? In the very best of economic times in this country no candidate has EVER raised this kind of campaign money, and these are not the best of times in the country right now. So maybe if you had not agreed to limit campaign sources/funds you could have had a fighting chance and won? Probably not, but it wouldn’t have hurt – read on.
Some will say you lost because you are one of the worst debaters I have ever seen, and part of that will be true. Mr. Obama’s charisma in front of a crowd or camera, and his ability to charm one with his verbal eloquence is a sight to behold and an admirable quality, especially when it comes to politics, and something you are sorely lacking. You insisted on having several debates, and in spite of what a few Republican commentators say, you lost every one of them in the public’s mind. I know you felt compelled, but wrong decision.
Some will say you lost this election because you chose Sarah Palin as your running mate, and adding my personal opinion to this theory, believe that was one of the most insane, ridiculous, stupidest, and asinine decisions of your entire campaign. If you honestly believed you would win the “women-who-voted-for-Hillary” vote by choosing a female for a Vice Presidential running mate, you were mistaken beyond belief. Although you picked up a small percentage of the female vote in this irrational thought, the country knew that Sarah Palin was and is no Hillary Clinton, and no amount of makeup could hide the fact. Sarah Palin is a very, very smart woman, and a very beautiful one at that, but enormously unqualified for the position intended. If the position had been a popularity contest, as in one voting for a head cheerleader, she would have garnered you a lot of votes, but her inexperience shown every time she opened her mouth, and the American public isn’t stupid, John. You really blew your chance of playing the “no experience” card on Mr. Obama when you chose Sarah as your running mate. You lost another small chance – so he gains another small victory. You may live for another 50 years in spite of your heart condition, but a lot of people weren’t willing to hedge their bet. See where I’m going with this, John?
Some will say that, because Mr. Obama is black, or at least black enough, that you never had a chance because of his heritage – that the black vote alone was enough to bury your chances, and there is some rational to that theory – to what extent remains to be seen. The African-American (I hate that expression) populace of this country believe they have been downtrodden for decades, and that because he is “of their color”, that in itself gives them hope – hope that he can and will change the hatred and racism that still exists here in America, but I have my doubts. The vast majority would have voted Democrat like they always have, but he did pick up a few extra votes because of his roots. To be honest, you never really had a chance on this issue – you would lose the black vote regardless – you just lost more of them because he got more of them to vote!
A very popular theory, and probably the one with the most credibility, is you lost because of the “economy”. If the economic policies implemented under the Democrats/Bill Clinton regime, and continued by the Republicans because it was helping the rich get richer (and NOT just Republicans), and poor, unqualified people get houses, and the other nations of the world thrive on our stupidity, had continued, we would not be having this discussion – you might have just squeaked out a victory. But this one “world-shattering event” was maybe enough to derail your Presidential victory. You and your advisors never really came up with a satisfactory economic answer to Mr. Obama’s “Change We Need” from the past Bush economic policies, and although the “change we need “ is not, in my opinion, to an Obama Presidency, you lost the opportunity to propose your own “change for the better” hypothesis. See what I mean? He didn’t win the opportunity – you simply lost it? Am I making any sense yet?
There would be some argue that the war in Iraq was the main reason you lost, and it certainly didn’t help – we haven’t learned a lot since you got out of the Hotel Hilton when it comes to winning a war for a foreign country. And however admirable I, and most of your Republican constituents believe this is the righteous thing to do, we as a nation cannot continue forever to be the “Police Force of the World”, and the sooner the “world” wakes up to this fact that there will always be “bad” people(s) that need a good spanking, someone else needs to help swing the paddle. The “good-cop-bad-cop” procedure sometimes works with murderers and thieves, because some of them actually have a conscience, but not with terrorists – they don’t have one, and they don’t care.
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