Republican Debate Petition

Before I begin writing this post, I would just like to say that I am glad my grandma does not even know how to turn on a computer. If she knew I wasn't supporting Hillary Clinton, who she says has run the White House before and can do it again, she might disown me. Gotta love spunky little Grandma Ama (and for those of you who don't know her...I call her little because she's only 4'8"). Anyway, on to the post. I have never been involved much in politics. It all frustrates me, nearly as much as student loans and taxes. Last tax season I was nearly brought to tears in H&R Block because the man who was doing our taxes was completely boching them up. Finally, Kyle looked at me and said, "Are you comfortable with this?" to which I promptly replied, "No." We asked for a new person to help us and all was good. I'm dreading it this year. DREADING IT!

Anyway, politics give me a mild version of that feeling. Since I'm sort of an "adult" now I have been keeping up with the primaries much more than I would have in the past. The Republican field is down to two and almost one candidate. I received a link from a friend to sign a McCain vs. Huckabee debate petition. http://www.petitiononline.com/jkb1961/petition.html. The petition states the following:


To: Sen. John McCain

A Republican debate was scheduled to take place on February 28th, 2008. It was to be sponsored by the Ohio Republican Party. This debate has since been mysteriously cancelled. A rush to judgment has ensued following the Super Tuesday elections on February 5th in which more than 21 states held primaries or caucuses. Sen. John McCain gained an enormous advantage and squeezed out Gov. Mitt Romney. Gov. Mike Huckabee was left standing as the Party’s only other viable candidate.

We believe: 1) Sen. McCain should earn the respect of the Republican base by debating Mike Huckabee in one or more formal Lincoln-Douglas style debates. 2) that failure to publicly engage Gov. Huckabee in debate before March 4th should be considered a gross attempt to grab the nomination without properly demonstrating a viable candidacy. Thus, we hereby petition Sen. McCain to accept an invitation to debate Mike Huckabee with all due haste and prove or disprove his worthiness.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned


Makes perfect sense to me. If there are only two Republican candidates left in the race, why not let the voters get a clear picture of who to vote for? It seems that only those who are unsure of their strength as a candidate would shy away from such an event. I think Senator McCain is aware of how well Mr. Huckabee has performed in the debates that have been held and wants to shy away from any sort of event that could lessen his momentum as he bids for the Republican candicacy. But, then again, I'm not a politcal analyst, so what would I know?

I'm not sure how great of a leader either man would be but I primarily want a person with upright moral convictions to hold the office of President. Any leader can surround himself with a good cabinet to get the skills needed to successfully run a country. What we need is a leader who has integrity and honesty. That is something a presidential candidate cannot make up for by surrounding himself with highly skilled politicians. I hope this sort of mindset will drive each of us as we vote for the next Presidential candidate and our local politicians. If our leaders do not value honesty, integrity, and fairness, political advisors will not be able to compensate for these weaknesses.