Print

Email story

Comment

Letter to the editor

I still cherish my right to vote -- kind of

By ANDREW SKERRITT, Times Staff Writer
Published January 27, 2008

I'm one of the nearly 700,000 Floridians who voted early. It could have been my last chance this year to vote for a presidential candidate rather than against someone else. I didn't want to miss it.

I don't know about you, but this is my third presidential election campaign as a voter, and I'm already tired of casting a ballot more to keep someone out of the White House than trying to elect who deserves to move in. After all my efforts to become an American citizen so I could vote, I never dreamed that in our democracy we more often get the politician we deserve than the candidate we need.

Let's begin with the unforgettable election of 2000: Al Gore vs. George W. Bush. That year I would have preferred either former Sen. Bill Bradley, the New Jersey Democrat, or even Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona. But one guy lacked the charisma to win the job, while the other had to fight a legacy.

Four years later, things got worse. Many of us were intrigued by Howard Dean, the former small state governor who seemed to actually speak truth. After his campaign fell apart, in part because of his own awkward style, we were left to decide whom we would rather have a beer with: Sen. John Kerry or the incumbent, President Bush. What if I don't drink?

So it's that time again. The state of the war in Iraq is a less pressing concern than the value of our houses. We need to elect a can-do president, but we're faced with a shrinking crop of imperfect choices: Hillary Rodham Clinton, John Edwards or Barack Obama and Rudy Giuliani, Mike Huckabee, McCain, Ron Paul or Mitt Romney. Whom can we trust to repair our standing in the world, figure out how to jump start the economy and create new jobs while also addressing global warming and a withdrawal from Iraq with honor?

After a year of debates and stump speeches, it's still hard to decide. The pandering on immigration by Republicans leaves me uneasy, while the catfight between Clinton (Hillary and Bill) and Obama on the Democratic side reminds me so much of what I disliked about the '90s. Sometimes I feel we're being forced to stick with fear or return to dysfunction. That's not much of a choice.

Still, presidential primaries ought to be the one time when we can vote with our hearts and press the button for the candidate we believe in. I did; so can you.

Andrew Skerritt can be reached at askerritt@sptimes.com or (813) 909-4602 or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 4602.

[Last modified January 26, 2008, 18:57:59]