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Eliminate the middle man

Well, it's convention season 2000. Big whoop! The two candidates in the running couldn't be more alike. George W. Bush and Albert Gore are candidates born of our poll-obsessed, spin-ready, middle-centric political culture; they are barely distinguishable from one another. One is a compassionate conservative, and the other is a conservative liberal. But what our political parties' quest for the most moderate candidate is doing to the political process is detrimental to our society - it is eliminating choices and silencing the healthy debate that helps set our public agenda.

As a result of the dulling and dumping down of American politics, an attitude of extreme apathy is forming. Citizen participation is the lifeblood of democracy, and without it, America would forever stay as it is.

Some might ask if politics and politicians were ever different from what they are today. Certainly, men like John Adams and Abe Lincoln did not have spin doctors, pollsters and Internet information to aid them in their campaigns. And our country has always had two parties, but back in the day before the technology boom, they were fairly distinct. This meant that candidates were forced more than they are now to speak their minds candidly and to lay before the American public their plans for running our nation.

Men like Lincoln did not have polls to tell them how the nation felt and more or less had to rely on their convictions and charisma to get them elected. But sadly, that was in an era when a Whig was a Whig and a Populist a Populist. Today's politicians are free from actually having to make any decisive statements about their position or beliefs. On the campaign, they consult with their managers, confer with their aids and peruse the populace before opening their mouths.

If they are in Iowa, they are for federally subsidized ethanol, if they stop in Chicago, they are against the expensive modified gas. Speeches are tweaked to cater to the crowd and rarely contain any real messages. What they do say is, "You like me, I am one of you, vote for me."

Sure, this is an age-old trick, but our technological age has made it a science. Thus loosened from the chains of personality and conviction, these political chameleons are let loose on the American populous to be everything to everyone. Is it any wonder the American populous is utterly turned off by politics?

Politicians might argue that they are only giving people what they want. And it might be true that most Americans might be moderate in their viewpoints, but when politicians try too hard to be that perfectly moderate candidate, they bypass the critical process of national debate.

What makes our country's political system so strong is that it pits faction against faction, until a compromise is reached. When that vital discussion is cut out by politicians trying to earn every middle vote, it robs the people of the right to make a choice between two different visions for America and denies them a voice in the debate.

Quite simply, moderate candidates are bad for America. Their harmful effects are already showing. Experts predict this presidential election will have one of the lowest voter turnouts ever. Many will say this is because the economy is humming and we face no immediate national threat. But what Americans will really be saying when they stay home in record numbers this fall is there really is no real choice, no different vision for America to vote for.

Whether Al Gore or George W. Bush is elected, the American public thinks the same white, Protestant male values will be represented. It is a pretty sad statement about our democracy when only one choice is available to its people.

Another odious effect of this political strategy is that candidates who try to represent an overlapping and moderate agenda for America often revert to mudslinging and accusations to try to set them apart from the very similar opponent. Instead of engaging in debates about issues, our current political climate is one bogged down with dirt and ridiculousness. And more and more Americans are turned off.

What the country really needs are candidates who are willing to turn off their campaign manager, silence their aids, and have the courage to step forward as an individual with a different outlook for America. Political parties have lost sight of their ideas for America, and have become so obsessed with winning they no longer mean anything. We need men and women to come forward who are willing to stand up for what they believe and who they are, and not change that for every new crowd. Above all, America needs a leader who can take us somewhere better than where we are today.