Putting Integrity First

First off, before I get into any argument on ideology or American policy throughout history, I have to say that John McCain is not George Wallace.  Nor is John McCain a racist in any capacity, but his campaign has been treading on the other side of the line for weeks.  I will go as far as saying that an observer of the McCain campaign could possibly believe he or she woke up in a time machine and went back to 1968.  That is the problem.  We deserve more from our politics than cloaking fear and hatred with the idea of a "tough campaign".

John Lewis was not speaking out of turn last week.  In America, we cannot afford to ever turn a blind eye to intolerance.  There is a responsibility that comes with public office and public service and the ability to put people ahead of a political agenda should be at the top of the list. 

"Off with his head," or monkey dolls with Obama stickers should not be tolerated EVER! PERIOD!  Could you imagine the backlash if Obama supporters held up a G.I. Joe doll, with a McCain sticker, hanging from a stick.

Talking about pal"ling" around with terrorist.  The most prolific terrorist organization in American history is the Ku Klux Klan.  If you watched the debates on Wednesday, you heard John McCain say how proud he is of all the people that support him, and come to his rallies. Look at what the republican campaign has been building upon the last two months.  Republican campaign surrogates haven't even tried to hide their agenda for the racial attacks on Obama. And just for the record, when they say "we want to turn the page from the economic crisis, and make this campaign about character," what they really mean is that they want to make the campaign about race/religious anxieties/even his name. For the republican campaign, they see McCain's personal "character" easy for them to defend.  John McCain is white, a war veteran (hero), and oh did I mention that he is white.  He is just like you or your grandpa, whatever works for you.

Maybe I am an idealist just disguised as a realist.  Or maybe I am just saddened by the recent campaign efforts of a man that I truly admired.  I remember yelling with my parents, who are card-carrying democrats, after seeing the Clinton campaign wallow in the mud during the the Democratic primaries.  I told them that I am firmly against race politics, and I am going to vote for John McCain in November if Hillary won the nomination.  I want the 2000 John McCain Back!  He wouldn't pander to these hate filled crazies that are coming to his campaign rallies, because that John McCain was better than that.  Maybe the 2008 John McCain, could put his integrity first.