I have a deal breaker. Mine would probably be global warming. I can't imagine backing a Presidential nominee who did not believe in global warming.
But what if that candidate had a superb record on war issues, and education, and health, and constitutional rights, etc.? Would I vote for him/her? I don't know. That would be a tough call that I would not want to make.
There is a small but significant and growing number of young evangelicals from the south that have decided that global warming is a Christian value. These people are mostly not pro-choice, but they have decided to vote on global warming issues -- not because one issue is more important than the other, but because they want to get something done.
Let me repeat that. We don't always have the option of ranking the importance of issues. A lot of them are inter-related. So we focus on what we can get done.
Is this compromise? Sometimes. Many people are critical of the government for compromising and never getting anything done. Why is this? Some elected officials are very passionate on their various issues. In my humble opinion, I think part of the reason for inaction is that they run to their separate corners on issues far away from the other side and stake out their position without making time for the other necessary and very pressing issues that need their attention. The public then allows themselves to become very angry and bitter about their inaction and lash out in frustration at just how important it is to us that they pass certain issues. I don't doubt that we should push certain issues. Like I said, many of us have a "deal-breaker" issue and that would be very hard to back off of.
But what then happens to We the People? When all we do is stake out our separate corners on hot button issues and don't discuss and cherish that which we hold in common? If we have the courage to engage on the issues that we have in common, we are labeled as kumbayah. But is it? For example, is setting aside my differences with my mayor's stance on the war in order to get better education in my schools a kumbayah give-in? I don't think this kind of finding and working on common ground is a bad thing. I wish elected officials could make this subtle connection that this is a good thing and at least some stuff would get done.
On the flip side, this thinking does not mean backing off of the hard divisive issues or backing off our principals. But it does mean that there are a number of real problems that we can work on together. I'm not just talking about our government. I'm talking about us -- how we interact in this election and moving forward.
We are forming an enormous tent. Millions upon millions of people. people with huge differences of opinion on major issues. Wow. How do we reconcile our very real differences? Are we going to expect ourselves to "get on the same page" overnight or in the next few months? I kinda don't think so.
There are some very basic issues that many people are rallying behind. We are attempting to create an atmosphere of inclusion and accountability -- not just government accountability -- but resurrecting our own old-fashioned duties as citizens. This is pretty powerful stuff. And should not be overlooked if it can really happen.
We are at an historic moment. And this election is going to get harder moving forward as more and more people jump on board and log on. New people from all sides of the political spectrum who are here to at least explore the call for a more progressive government. Can we make this an election campaign and a future where we can actually get some stuff done instead of raising the battle cry for a few divisive (but important) issues?
Only three Democrats have taken the White House in the past ten elections. Can we work together in this election season? And much more importantly, can we work together as a country. Yes we can.