Published: October 10, 2008 11:44 pm            

Character important when voting for president

Oh, the handwringing! Oh, the gnashing of teeth!

Oh, my oh my, this is such a “negative”presidential campaign.

Yawn, yawn, yawn.

The media is all a dither because it’s three weeks before the election, and campaign ads are calling candidates’ character into question or bringing up controversial relationships candidates have had in the past.

You’d think this is the first election our national media has ever been through!

There’s nothing new here. This is what campaigns are all about. Candidates say they want to take the high road, then when it gets down to it, they start telling voters what’s wrong with the other guy.

There’s nothing wrong with it. The difference this year is, one of the candidates is black. One of the vice presidential candidates is a woman. And, because there is a minority and a female in this race, many want to label any kind of character questions on them as racist or sexist.

I don’t have a problem with questioning a candidate’s character. I don’t have a problem with questioning a candidate’s former associations or background. I think it is all fair game, particularly when it comes to electing a presidential ticket for the United States of America.

Frankly, I’ve seen a lot worse mudslinging take place in the past. But, another thing that is different this year and will continue to be a part of the election landscape is that it’s not only the traditional media involved, but thousands of bloggers. More people can now publish their opinions or comments on candidates than ever before because of the Internet. Google on any of the presidential or vice presidential candidates’ names, and you’ll find thousands of written pieces about these people. Anyone with a computer can now publish.

I think questions of character are certainly fair game. I think voters are being irresponsible if they don’t ask serious questions about the credibility and the character of the candidates before them. I don’t care the race or the gender of the candidate, voters and the media need to scrutinize these people.

When you add it all up, I think a fair question every voter ought to ask himself or herself is if they think any or all of these candidates could pass a background check to work for the CIA or the FBI or even your local police department. After all, these people will have the highest security clearance of anyone in the land. They will be privy to the most delicate information. The winner will be the most powerful individual in the world.

When you think about it that way, it gives you pause, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, these candidates don’t have to go through a background check to run for government office, but they would have to go through one to actually get a “job” in many parts of our government.

So, quit whining about the “negativity” of the campaign and start paying attention to what these people have done, where they’ve been and who they’ve been associated with. Character does count. Now so, more than ever.



Allen is managing editor of the News & Eagle. She can be reached at editor@enidnews.com or 548-8163.