Posted by
Always To The Right on Friday, October 10, 2008 6:15:45 PM
It is juvenile to believe that voting for a president is synonymous with holding a referendum on a plan. “The Best Laid Plans . . .”
Even worse, after every debate we are subjected to an endless parade of
focused-grouped “swing voters” who think they’re oh-so-terribly
sophisticated for wanting to hear ever more details about this
candidate’s plan for education reform or that candidate’s scheme for
health care. It’s all absurd intellectual vanity. These voters are
undecided not because they haven’t been spoon-fed enough policy detail,
but because they haven’t been paying attention and haven’t bothered to
do even minimal research about the candidates.
I’m not saying
that candidates shouldn’t have platforms. But voters — and
journalists — should look at them as mission statements, not the
political equivalent of instructions that come with a disassembled
bicycle.
The real hints for how to choose a candidate, at
least in a general election (as opposed to a primary), reside in the
realm of judgment, philosophy, track record and temperament. And, using
those criteria, the choice shouldn’t be hard at all.