September 7, 2005 @ 3:24 PM
Jim Pederson, the former Chairman of the Arizona Democratic Party, is running for Congress. He’s running for the U.S. Senate as a matter of fact, against Republican Senator John Kyl.
Kyl represents everything that needs to be changed in the administration’s conservative, “God Helps Those Who Help Themselves” approach to the nation’s welfare.
But Pederson is running with such delicacy of feeling as to suggest that he has bought in on the Republican frame for the debate: Now we must all pull together…plenty of time for investigations and finger-pointing later.
I don’t know whether to scream or throw up.
I want our candidates and our Congressional delegation to howl, to refuse to be silent, refuse to be “cooperative.” Right now is the time to be critical. God, I wish Pederson had had the courage to say that he was declaring now, today, when the human consequences of Republican policies were clear and unforgettable.
I wish he’d had the courage to speak up, even at the risk of frightening off the middle-of-the-roaders in our party who think that the sweet spirit of conciliation is the way to win.
I wish he’s had the courage to risk losing for being accused of ‘playing politics’. It might be the only way to win.
No comments:
Post a Comment