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June 7, 2006 When Newt Gingrich offered his “Contract with America” to voters in 1994 amid Democratic corruption and scandal, he hailed his magnum opus as an answer to the problems that plagued Washington. Voters agreed, giving conservative Republicans a majority in Congress after the midterm elections. Now it seems like a new Contract might be needed. Americans are getting tired not only of the rampant conservatism in government, but with the almost daily allegations of insider trading, money laundering and outing of CIA agents. Once a powerhouse in the Senate, Rick Santorum now trails his Democratic challenger in Pennsylvania by at least a dozen points. Self-avowed conservative Republicans have declined to challenge Democrats in states like West Virginia and New York. Moderate Republicans like Santorum’s Pennsylvania colleague Sen. Arlen Specter, on the other hand, are experiencing an increase in popularity as they fight to distance themselves from both President Bush and the far-right wing of their party. Senators like John McCain, Bill Frist and others have been noticeably moderating their views on such Republican standbys as stem cell research. What does it all mean? Simply, it means that the appeal of moderate candidates from any party has never been stronger. After almost eight years of being an evenly divided nation, constantly bickering and standing fast to our views at the expense of any others, Americans have begun to yearn for cooperation, bipartisanship and true progress. According to a Rasmussen poll, less than 30% of voters approve of the conduct of Congress. Nearly the same amount believes we are on the wrong track as a nation. Moderates will set us straight and get us back on the path to becoming that shining city on a hill we once were. Of course there will be those who doubt the abilities of these moderate candidates – people are naturally wary of change on such a national level. The trust of the American electorate will not be won back in a day after having endured years of cowboy bravado and scandal, poorly run war and a botched exit plan. Now is the time when American politicians must be divided between those who govern by self-interest and the few who will cross party lines and do what is necessary to move our country forward. Since 1994, conservative Republicans have been unwilling to work with Democrats. Why should they, after all? Democrats were the minority, the thought seemed to go; why listen to them? Indeed, Republicans only seemed to reach out to Democrats when the pressure was on and elections were up and running. Bipartisanship became less a guiding tenet of our government and more of an election-year publicity stunt. It’s time to turn that around. It should no longer be taboo to campaign on a platform of reaching out to the other party in order to do right for the American people. There is no honor in being elected to serve the common folk if a politician only helps them when it can help him. That kind of Gilded Age logic ought to be thrown out. The majority of Americans appear to agree. 2006 will be the year of this great referendum on the national purpose. Do we want politicians who take advantage of power, consolidate it for their own good and fail to work for the benefit of all, or do we want to become a prosperous and proud America once more? The great debate of the decade has begun. ------------ About the author: Max Burns is a 19-year-old moderate Democrat from Indianapolis. He has been moved from the Hoosier Heartland to the moral void that is Washington D.C. to study Government & International Politics at George Mason University. He is also the author of the fantasy novel Alcardia. Email: mburns6@gmu.edu Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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