My Case Against Obama… and McCain
Three weeks ago, I was about to write an “endorsement” of Sen. Barack Obama on this blog. Our wedding and hurricane Ike got in the way, which prevented me from writing such endorsement, as it were. Along the way, I did some thinking and talking with my now husband, Policraticus, and I realized that the only reason why I wanted to vote for Obama was to vote against Sen. John McCain. Undoubtedly, Sen. Obama is an appealing candidate; however, his positions on abortion and, more importantly, embryonic stem cell research—given the fact that abortion is already legal in this country—are far too important for me to close my eyes, cast a ballot for him, and hope for the best. Jay Anderson’s example also affected my decision not to vote for Obama. What it boils down to for me, is that I will not be able to forgive myself once either President Obama or President McCain signs federal funding for embryonic stem cell research into law. After a long process of discernment I have come to terms with the fact that I cannot face God and tell Him that I did not have enough information: that I did not know that they both supported a grave evil. I truly believe that faithful Catholics can make a good moral argument for voting for either candidate. However, my conscience prompts me to move beyond fulfilling the basic requirements of the law. I wish I could justify how an Obama administration could provide a better framework for achieving the common good and how it would supersede the desecration of human life in its most vulnerable stages, but I simply cannot. Once the day comes, sooner or later, I do not believe I could face the living God, my source of joy and hope, the reason why I get up every morning, my innermost strength and comfort in the midst of discomfort, and tell Him that I simply ignored the facts that were presented to me.
Knowledge, Freedom, and Conscience
That being said, this is a decision I have come to based on the information I currently have and after responsible and serious formation of my own conscience. Note that I have emphasized the personal aspect of one’s formation of conscience. I do not hold anyone to my “standard” or to the decision I have made. Every individual possesses the freedom to follow their own conscience and act upon it. I can only provide information and aid the discernment process of others, but it all ends there. The process of forming one’s conscience does not occur in a vacuum and our community of faith, among many other factors, should aid us in coming to a informed decision. But once one has gathered the pertaining information to the moral situation at hand, it is one’s responsibility and obligation to follow one’s conscience and act upon it. At the end of the day, we are the only ones—as individuals—responsible for our own actions and we stand alone in the face of God when judgment comes. Only God alone is judge.
There needs to exist knowledge and freedom for the individual to act in a moral situation. It is this knowledge and freedom that is granted to us by God so we can listen to Him speaking to us in our hearts—that innermost voice that moves us toward the truth that only He can speak. However, to listen to that voice, distractions have to be kept to a minimum—if not altogether scrapped through prayer. It is through a strong prayer life that we listen to our conscience—to the voice of truth. In my case, taking a break from the blogosphere and the news in general made my decision easier and clearer.
Why McCain was never really an option
McCain stopped from being an option for me right before he picked Gov. Palin as his running mate and after his campaign took the wrong turn. He just did not seem to give me a reason why I should vote for him even if I did not care about abortion or embryonic stem cell research. I just simply could not figure out what he stood for and why, as a citizen, I should vote for him. To put it simply: the McCain campaign made the process of my formation of conscience rather easy. Below are my reasons why McCain has not been in my short list for a few months now.
After Gov. Huckabee did not seem to have a chance to win the Republican primary, I was one of those who was actually glad that it was Sen. McCain rather than Gov. Romney who would become the Republican nominee. In all honesty, Sen. McCain always struck me as a authentic individual who genuinely wanted to listen to the voice of the people. I was very much looking forward to the Obama and McCain campaigns, because they both looked like they would not fall on the dirty games of politics. It was, in the beginning, a breath of fresh air. Among a few of my personal interests, McCain’s position on global warming, immigration, and drilling at the Alaska Wild National Refuge were promising as a shift from the Republican base. The McCain campaign started well, not wanting to point out Rev. Wright and such, but then it took a bad turn when they switched campaign strategists. McCain isolated himself from the media and his campaign seemed to search aimlessly for a slogan that would appeal to voters at the time.
Problems started to arise for me when McCain’s call for “lower taxes” did not seem to be followed by a reason as to why tax cuts were a good thing to achieve the common good in the midst of a record national deficit, states going virtually bankrupt, and a colossal global financial crisis. There was the “drill, baby, drill!” that was not followed with the truth about the several years that it takes for geoscientists to find oil first and how many more years it would take to achieve commercial production. Of course, it was not mentioned that domestic drilling was not going to have a direct effect on gas prices immediately and not even in the long term as economists predict given how global oil demand would catch up with U.S. oil supply. Not to mention the embarrassing proposed “gas tax holiday.”
And then there was Gov. Palin as the vice-presidential pick. (You know that now that the economy is a mess, the McCain campaign is wishing they would have Mitt Romney in their ticket). I have to be honest, the fact that nobody knew who Sarah Palin was completely turned me off, but I still turned on to her first speech to see what she was about. Talking points: that’s all she was. Very disappointing. No mention of her pro-life record or what she would do about it as vice-president. As a woman, I was completely turned off by the news that her teenage daughter was pregnant. What disappointed me? The very same fact that even after knowing that her daughter got pregnant out of wedlock, she was willing to put her daughter on the line by accepting the nomination. You can spin that however you want, but I would never imagine my mom doing that to me or doing that to my daughter. NEVER. The speech at the RNC followed and her sarcastic and sour tone turned me off even more. Sarah Palin’s tone and presentation makes Hillary Clinton appear genuine and authentic, and that is not a compliment. We have enough polarization in this country. We do not need any more and being divisive is what Sarah Palin seems to be all about. Then, the Katie Couric interviews came about and that sealed the deal for me. As a woman, I was insulted. As a citizen, I was embarrassed. As an immigrant, I was in disbelief. I came here ten years ago and I know more about basic Civics of this country than this woman knew. Not to know Casey v. Planned Parenthood if you are in the pro-life group or to know the names of a few newspapers is almost unpatriotic. Not to know at least some of the principles of what the bailout bill was about or what the financial crisis in this country entails for Americans is insulting. To feel that I know more about economy and foreign policy than a vice presidential candidate is simply an embarrassment and that is not a compliment for me. Now the attacks about Rev. Wright have launched again while many Americans are being laid off and many others are losing their homes. The McCain campaign has really mocked what it means for public elected officials to serve the people that pay their salaries.
I came here ten years ago with a lot of hope, because my fellow Venezuelans had elected Hugo Chavez—a man with no merit whatsoever who simply took—and keeps taking—political systems as a joke. I have not seen so much incompetence embodied in a person running for a major executive office since Hugo Chavez until I saw Sarah Palin. No merit: there is simply nothing there. My friend from Venezuela who visited two weeks ago and has endured 10 years of Chavez watched the Palin interviews in disbelief and told me: “That woman is crazy! Why would anyone consider voting for her?” I ask myself the same thing. I became a U.S. citizen recently and even after witnessing the disaster that this administration has been, I still had a dim hope in the political system of this country. I no longer do. Setting aside embryonic stem cell research, which by itself dismisses him, I am not even considering John McCain simply because his pick of Gov. Palin and the lack of substance of his platform. Both are an insult to me. As a responsible citizen and as a hard-working American, I am offended by the lower bar that has been set for American politics thanks to the McCain campaign. I moved too far away from Venezuela hoping for a political system that worked or that at least kept the issues that mattered right and center. I was wrong.
