Does America Deserve the Bush/Kerry Choice?
by Bill Sizemore

In the end, we may all discover that throughout the history of the world there was some kind of immutable, perhaps even divine principle, which insured that nations always receive the kind of leaders the people of that nation deserved.

The more I have pondered that thought, since I first heard it expressed by one of my college professors some 30 years ago, the more I have come to believe that there really is such a principle at work.

Think about it for a moment. Presidential candidate John Kerry is about as far left on issues as any candidate the Democrats have nominated in modern history; and yet somewhere between 40 and 50 percent of Americans tell pollsters they plan to vote for him. Whether the issue is higher taxes, increased federal spending, abortion on demand, gay rights, or national defense, Kerry occupies the far left of the political spectrum. What does that tell you about the hearts and minds of the 40 to 50 percent of the American people, who say they plan to vote for him?

They must as a group believe that a woman should have a legal right to terminate a pregnancy, simply because she doesn’t want the child. They must believe that homosexuality is okay. They must believe that government should use the tax system to coerce money from those who earn it and redistribute it to those with lower incomes. They must believe that we should submit our national security and our foreign policy to the whim of the United Nations.

They must believe that pornography should be protected free speech and that we should discriminate against some Americans by continuing to embrace affirmative action. While it may be true that not all Kerry supporters agree with him on every issue, it must be true that in general their views are consistent with his views.

In 2002, the voters of my home state were asked to vote on a ballot measure that merely said that public schools could not promote homosexuality. I did not believe that such a measure could fail. It was so commonsensical. But fail it did. The failure of that measure, which was so obviously right, was a real wakeup call. This is no longer the country of Norman Rockwell, or even Ronald Reagan. A lot has changed in just two decades, and much of it has not been good. Does anyone really believe that a nation that allows judges to outlaw public displays of the Ten Commandments and the inclusion of God in the Pledge of Allegiance is the America of our Founding Fathers? It is not even the nation that pulled together to fight and win World War II.

And now that nation is about to choose a new president.

Granted, George W. Bush is not the most conservative Republican around. On several issues, he has staked out positions that raise the hackles of true conservatives. He has pandered to the left. He has reached out to the entitlement class. He has played the political correctness game.

But we had better pray to God in Heaven that George W. Bush wins on November 2nd, because the alternative is unthinkable. Bush has been outspokenly pro-life, even if he has not prioritized the issue. He has lowered taxes, though not as much as we would like. He has pledged not to appoint activist judges to the federal courts, and has kept his word. He has rejected the economically devastating Kyoto protocols and has refused to subject our military personnel to the international courts.

Candidly, I have some sympathy for those who are frustrated with the two choices we have before us. I would like better choices, too. The question remains, however, do the American people at this point in history deserve a truly conservative leader?

I do. My family does. The folks at my church do. Fiscally and socially conservative Americas do. But, folks, we do not by ourselves comprise the citizenry of this nation.

The subscribers to Hustler magazine, the wild-eyed union fanatics, the tree hugger environmentalist whackos, the PETA enthusiasts, the third generation welfare recipients, and people who staff the abortion clinics and Planned Parenthood offices across America are citizens, too, and they deserve John Kerry.

Given what I see all about me, I believe that George W. Bush may be the middle ground president that this nation deserves. Right now, we may not deserve a truly conservative leader. In fact, all things considered, we will be fortunate if we end up with Bush instead of Kerry.

I am persuaded that Bush is a good man. He has his faults, but I am not sure that even if he wanted to he could do a lot more than he has done, given the make-up of the U.S. Congress, where there is not a solid conservative majority in either house.

As water seeks its own level and as cream rises to the top, so the people of a nation get the kind of leaders they deserve. Maybe it’s time we took an honest inventory of where we are right now as a nation. Maybe it’s time we took steps to insure that the people of this nation deserve the kind of leadership we say we want.

One thing is for sure. We are a far cry from the country we were even a generation ago. It seems that the light is getting brighter and the dark is getting darker, as two juxtaposed worldviews collide; two worldviews that are as "unmixable" as oil and water; as mutually exclusive as light and darkness.

Perhaps it is time we conservatives recognized that politics alone will not fix our problems and recognized instead that our politics are merely a reflection of where we really are as a people.

The real battle in America today is not about which party controls the White House or the Congress, though the consequences of such decisions will have real and serious consequences for our nation. The real battle is one of which politics is only a part, the battle for the hearts and minds of the American people. At this moment the outcome of that battle is far from certain.

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