The "Enthusiasm Gap"

There is much in the news about the "enthusiasm gap" between Republican or conservative or tea party voters on one side and Democratic or liberal voters on the other.

I don't doubt that the gap exists, for I feel it myself. I am a liberal Democratic voter who does not feel very enthusiastic about voting for Democrats in this upcoming election. (I insert here the caveat that my feelings do not apply to all Democrats, but, unfortunately, they do to most Democrats and especially to most at the federal level.)

But, it isn't for any of the reasons that the "pundits" and "talking heads" speculate might be the reason why we liberal Democrats aren't very enthusiastic.

I care about the economy and health care and regulation. I'm not happy with what's been done with the economy and health care and regulation. But, it isn't because I think there's been too much done. It's because I don't think enough has been done in any of those areas. I don't blame the Democrats for that. In fact, by and large, I think the Democrats have been pretty heroic in doing all that they could in the face of Republican intransigence. The Democrats have had to compromise for what they could get, and such compromise is a necessary ingredient of a democratic form of government. While I wish the Republicans had been more cooperative, they weren't and I'm okay with the Democrats on those issues.

The economy and health care and regulation are not what has dampened my enthusiasm.

My enthusiasm is low because the Democrats - and particularly President Obama - have compromised on things that they should not have compromised on and on things they didn't have to compromise on.

Guantanamo is still open and still holding prisoners.

The President has averred that there are some prisoners in Guantanamo who will never be released, even if we can't convict them of anything.

Prisoners in Guantanamo are either being tried or facing trial in military courts which did not exist at the time they committed their alleged "crimes" and for violation of laws which did not exist at the time they committed their alleged "crimes."

The President has either refused or has failed to prohibit the illegal kidnapping of foreign citizens in their own countries, a practice euphemistically and misleadingly referred to as "rendition."

American civilians are killing people in countries with which we are not at war with the imprimatur of the United States government.

The President has avowed that those who committed international crimes in the name of the United States while in the employ of the United States will not be prosecuted for their crimes.

We are still violating the Geneva Conventions.

All of these things are wrong. The President did not have to compromise on any one of these things. The President should not have compromised on any one of these things.

The fact that one or all of these things may not be being done as often or as flagrantly as they were during the Bush administration (assuming that were true) is no defense to the fact that they were wrong to do then and they are wrong to do now.

I am reminded of the story of the man who was having dinner with a lady and asked her if she would go to bed with him for a million pounds. She smiled coquettishly and said, "Well, Sir, I think I would." He then asked her if she would go to bed with him for ten pounds, to which she looked horrified and replied, "Why, Sir! What do you think I am?" He then replied, "Madame, we have already established that. Now we are merely haggling over price."

I am not enthusiastic about voting for Democrats because they have compromised on moral issues, apparently for the sake of political expediency, when they didn't have to and should not have done so. I will hold my nose and vote for the Democrats, because I think they are substantially superior to the Republicans, but I'll have to hold my nose. I'm not enthusiastic.

And I find it somewhat complicated to argue with anyone who says that "all politicians are the same." Actually, they are different, but it seems only in quantity, not in quality. About the best I can say is, "Yes, my politicians are morally reprehensible. They just aren't as morally reprehensible as your politicians."

The Democrats are unlikely to bridge the enthusiasm gap when that's the best argument that can be made for them.