OK...I have a life. I missed the last debate (well...I saw excerpts of it). Newt's performance highlighted a problem I've had with him from the beginning. He has a hypocrisy problem. He wagged his finger and was all for the Clinton witch hunt by Ken Starr that cost tax payers millions of dollars (I need the exact figure here), which turned up the Monica Lewinsky/Clinton affair instead of the supposedly illegal land deals of which they were accused of participating. During that time, he had the nerve to attack Clinton's lack of "family values" while he, himself, was having yet another affair. How does somebody have the audacity to do that?
In the debate, he smugly declared that Romney had investments in Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac while his retirement/investment plan also has money in those "mortgage" companies. (read sidebar below about investments...another tangent).
Just weeks ago, he complained about Romney's Super PAC's negative ads (see sidebar tangent below about that subject). He wasn't going to stoop to negative ads and Super PACs. I thought to myself, "That sounds very adult and grown up. Let's see if it will last." It turns out, he is now all for Super PACs as long as he has one that has the money to dole out negative ads. Hypocrisy? I think the definition fits.
As my late husband's favorite band sings, "Who Are You?" while I'm writing this, I think it is appropriate to ask that of Newt. You want me to believe you are a Washington outsider when you've made your living maximizing your Washington connections and living there for most of your adult life. You want me to believe you are an historian, not a lobbyist, while you made money by advising congressional representatives for various companies that hired you. Who are you? You say you are a 68-year-old grandfather. OK...how does that make you qualified to run the country?
Be authentic! I know it's tempting in this era of spin and soundbites to feel like you have to be poser to gain acceptance by various groups. But this isn't junior high people! This is a job interview for the most important position in the world.
Sidebar Tangent 1: Investments.
Many of us have 401ks, and we pick investment "funds" in an attempt to make sure our money grows. It seems we didn't learn the lessons from Apartheid. I was in college when the anti-apartheid movement was in full swing. Students erected a shanty town in Dunn Meadow. Their presentation to the Indiana Univeristy Board of Directors was the first story I covered. As I remember it, I.U. had investments in companies in South Africa that promoted the status quo of treating whites and blacks differently in that country so the whites could retain power. Maybe we should go back to the old days where we don't pick "funds" and simply pick companies we believe in. Afterall, I've always said you know what matters to a person by how they spend their time and their money.
Sidebar Tangent 2: Money and Politics
We are a capitalist country. Is anyone surprised that the guy with the most money backing him wins? But of course there is a cost, isn't there? Let's just grow up and either accept it or change it. We have the technology. Here's how it goes: no more PACs or Super PACs. If you're a candidate, each donation is recorded on a website: the amount, the person's name, the person's occupation.
Since I believe there are few things that could possibly be this black and white, I'm trying to think of the problems this would cause. Right now, I can't think of any. Can you?
