A karate chop to decency
I never liked John Edwards. The first time I saw him was when he ran for Senator in 1996 against Lauch Faircloth. Edwards is the stereotypical trial lawyer. My initial impression was political. Here’s a Southern Democrat who acts moderate who is obviously liberal. Beating Senator Faircloth was fairly easy. Faircloth wasn’t a very good Senator and 1998 wasn’t a particularly great year for the GOP. As soon as Edwards became North Carolina’s Senator he moved to the left. When his term was over it was obvious Edwards had set his sights on the White House. He didn’t have much of a choice. Edward’s voting record meant there was no way he could be reelected in North Carolina.
In 2004, Edwards was a strong candidate for President. In March of 2004 I thought Edwards would eventually be elected President someday. His fall has been spectacular. People fell for Edward’s “folksy charm” and the idea that he really cared about people. Edward’s former aide Andrew Young paints an entirely different picture.
Young says Edwards is an Atkins-dieter who hated making appearances at state fairs where “fat rednecks try to shove food down my face. I know I’m the people’s senator, but do I have to hang out with them?” Before a SEIU candidate forum in Las Vegas, Young says Edwards made him cut out a “made in the USA” label from Young’s own suit to sew in place of Edwards’s “made in Italy” label . . .
Could Young be lying? I guess it’s possible, but is there any reason to believe that this isn’t true given what we’ve learned about the man? My point here isn’t partisan. Plenty of politicians turn out this way. There’s a danger in holding these elected figures in too high of a regard. Jim Geraghty makes the same point today.
When you misjudge somebody’s character so spectacularly, you don’t really have to stop voting for a few cycles. But you probably ought to reexamine what shaped that erroneous positive assessment. Is it that he told you what you wanted to hear? Were you, in retrospect, too easily impressed by emotional stories, or fake folksy charm? Did you associate the political positions you prefer with good character, when the connection between the two is often more tenuous than we would like to admit?
Just over six years ago John Edwards was only a few Ohio votes from being the Vice President of the United States. Now he’s fodder for the National Enquirer. Leaders should always be judged on what they have done, not what they say they will do. We’re living in the age of instant gratification and everyone is looking for the easiest solution. Real leadership isn’t easy and real solutions aren’t quick. I’m not sure our nation has the stomach for real change.
I still haven’t figured out what it is about Sarah Palin that drives people on the left bonkers. My only guess is that they must feel that she is some kind of political threat. Let’s face it, when a mainstream figure (and Palin is mainstream despite the left’s derangement) like Palin is subject to constant partisan attacks it means the person as viewed as a threat. Ronald Reagan, easily the best President since Eisenhower, was hated on the left. In fact, most people on the left still struggle to say anything nice about Reagan. At the time Reagan was dismissed as an old forgetful idiot by liberals. Check out this description of Palin in a recent entry on the Huffington Post.
After a year and a half of exposure to this virulently toxic presence, the question on the table is: In our lifetime, has there ever been a worse human being in American politics than Sarah Palin? For all the morons and criminals and bigots we’ve been subjected to, has there been anyone else who has combined all of the fetid qualities — the proud ignorance, the sadistic viciousness, the shameless hypocrisy, the arrogant laziness, the congenital dishonesty, the unctuous sanctimony, the bilious resentment, and whichever others I’m forgetting for the moment — that this morals-free harridan so relentlessly displays? (Not to mention that atonal bray with which she communicates it all.)
Has there ever been a worse human being in American politics? Where is this coming from? I’m not sure how anyone on the left can complain about “terrible human beings” as long as disgraced Democrat John Edwards walks the Earth. John Edwards is a living, breathing example of everything wrong with politicians/lawyers and Paul Slansky is concerned about a former governor from Alaska?
John Edwards was right. There are two Americas. The problem is that those two Americas make up the constituency of his party. The very rich are attracted to the Democratic Party because they’re able to “do something” to help others without lifting a finger themselves. Plus, their wealth insulates them from the consequences “progressive” policies have on the average American.
The poor, meanwhile, become dependent on the government, which is the way government and the aristocracy prefers it. It helps ensure the perpetual power and wealth of those in power as the rest of us are forced into dependency by the policies of the powerful.
I happened across a Q&A in USA Today with Andrea Jung, Avon’s CEO. As you may already know, Avon sells cosmetics. But more importantly, Jung is a big supporter of “change”, particularly since the consequences of change are unlikely to affect her since she’s taken home about $36 million over the past five years.
“Without being a political pundit, each one of us has come into a leadership role knows that the first 100 days will be looked at. President Obama’s 100-day plan is pretty impressive. I think it’s a Wow 100-plus days. The administration is not operating from fear, it is trying to drive change for the future, and that’s a good thing,” Jung said.
Good lord. Jung’s missive about the first 100 days totally misses the mark. What the hell is a “Wow 100-plus days” anyway? You mean ramming trillions of dollars in unnecessary spending down our throats without giving anyone a chance to read the 500-lb. bill? You mean the litany of tax cheats and other ethically-challenged people Obama tried to foist on our system?
Then she has the nerve to say “the administration is not operating from fear…” Obama’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel said it best: “You never want a serious crisis go to waste.” It is obvious the administration was operating from fear, and playing on the fears of the American people in order to implement its left-wing agenda.
Given this foolishness (and the response to her foolishness could fill volumes), how can you possibly trust anything else she says, whether it’s about politics or business? But again, Jung represents the new narcissistic aristocracy in America. When cap-and-trade and a new health care program goes down, Jung’s millions will shield her from the consequences.
When energy prices double and triple all in the name of reversing mythical, magical “global warming” (now called “climate change”) through cap-and-trade, Jung will continue to jet around the world, burning petrol like no tomorrow. Meanwhile, everyone else better figure out how to squeeze into those freaking clown cars, or add another two hours to their commute as they mount their bike for the 20-mile ride downtown. It’ll be like China, but without good Chinese food!
But it’s all worth it… this change that Jung is helping foster through her support. We’re all going to have to make adjustments. Well, maybe Jung won’t have to make any adjustments. I very much doubt that Jung will face the same health care system enjoyed by the average American. There will be no rationing, no interminable waiting lists, and no being subject to the whims of a faceless bureaucracy for Jung.
In Jung’s brave new world, everyone else must pay the penalty to make her feel good about “doing something”. Jung gave $30,800 to Obama’s campaign in 2008. Something tells me that if you can throw around $30,000 you’ll probably do just fine when the inflation, high interest rates, skyrocketing costs of fuel and health care, and all the other you-know-what hits the fan when the Obama administration’s runaway spending starts to pay dividends.
Remember this guy? The ambulance chaser from North Carolina with the expensive haircut? Senator John Edwards was even a nominee for Vice President for the Democrats. If he was a Republican he’d be the butt of every joke for the next ten years, but since he’s a Democrat he’s forgotten.
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