We can’t afford another Senator Simon

Oak Lawn (IL) Reporter ^ | 3/25/04 | Michael M. Bates

[Mike Bates]

Democrat Barack Obama is the odds-on favorite to win Illinois’ open Senate seat this November. Mr. Obama has said he’ll pattern himself after the late Senator Paul Simon.

Mr. Simon was regarded very highly by members of both major parties. I have no reason to doubt that the stories of his honesty and personal decency are true. He seemed, unlike the many pols who flip flop all the time, enormously principled and voted his conscience. The problem, from this conservative’s perspective, is that the Senator was hopelessly, numbingly, irredeemably liberal.

So is Mr. Obama, who in the primary campaign ran television ads featuring images of the late Senator. He also gained the endorsement of Mr. Simon’s daughter, who says that Mr. Obama is "cut from the same cloth" as her father.

My guess is the Senator, who died unexpectedly last December, would have endorsed Mr. Obama had he lived a little longer. He remained politically active until the very end. Too bad he wasn’t buried in Chicago; he could still be a registered voter.

You’ll recall that Mr. Simon endorsed Howard Dean for the presidency only days before he passed away. That endorsement struck me as remarkable insofar as he had been elected to the Senate the same year as John Kerry. They spent a dozen years serving together. Then again, perhaps watching Mr. "I voted for it before I voted against it" at close range for that length of time was the reason Mr. Simon favored an obscure former governor of a tiny state over Kerry, who’s beginning to make Mr. Dean look rational.

But I digress. Barack Obama suggests he’ll be another Paul Simon. That’s profoundly disturbing. He says of Mr. Simon: "For 50 years he was at the forefront of every progressive fight, often giving voice to people who otherwise would not have been heard."

Let’s consider the people for whom Paul Simon didn’t speak. Taxpayers are one example. In his last six years in the Senate, the highest grade assigned to the Illinoisan by the National Taxpayers Union was a "D."

He rarely spoke for Americans who believe a strong national defense is an essential element to maintain peace. In his last year in office, Senator Simon was given a zero rating by the Center for Security Policy, a nonpartisan organization committed to peace through strength.

Paul Simon didn’t talk for the entry-level worker with marginal job skills. His consistent support for increases in the minimum wage inevitably led to greater unemployment among those he misguidedly thought he was helping.

He didn’t speak for parents who’d like to see God back in public schools through constitutionally protected, student-led prayer. When Mr. Simon had the opportunity, he voted against it.

The Senator didn’t speak for the millions of citizens who wanted to see welfare policy overhauled. Clinton had vetoed welfare reform twice, but finally agreed to it. When he signed the legislation, Paul Simon said that Clinton "is marring his legacy by signing this bill. He may gain a few more votes on Nov. 5, but he is hurting history’s judgment of his performance."

This wasn’t the only time Mr. Simon concerned himself with Clinton’s legacy. He was one of only three Senators to vote against holding an investigation of the Whitewater affair. Though the Clintons, as usual, protected themselves via amnesia, the investigation led to nine guilty pleas and three jury convictions. Yet the conscience of the Senate, as Mr. Simon was described by no less a moral authority than Teddy Kennedy, didn’t even want to look into it. Paul Simon didn’t speak for the Americans who did.

Senator Simon didn’t speak for the victims of violent crimes and their survivors. He staunchly advocated the abolition of capital punishment.

At the same time, he was a strong supporter of the death penalty for unborn children. Mr. Simon supported using tax dollars for abortions. He opposed judicial nominees he suspected of pro-life leanings. Even the extraordinarily grisly partial birth abortion procedure was acceptable to him. No, Mr. Simon never spoke for unborn babies.

Nor will Barack Obama. He’s much too liberal, just as his hero Paul Simon was. We don’t need another politician at the forefront of every "progressive" fight.

As the late Senator’s daughter declared, Mr. Obama may well be cut from the same cloth as her father. It’s simply not a fashion we can afford any more.

[Carry_Okie]

Well done. That is how to frame political issues.

The Slave Party is all about indentured constituency, maintaining cadres as dependants in order to extort their votes.

[Carry_Okie]

A speechwriter in the making.

[buffman]

Great article. It is so frustrating to live in a State where the outcome of elections is pretty much preordained. The victors will be demorat and liberal in most cases. I live in a county where the lefty congressman runs unopposed every 2 years. A good man tried to beat him back in 96, to no avail. In Illinois we can believe in "right" causes but our vote will mean nothing. So the reincarnation of Paul Simon will occur this fall, looks like. Too bad.

[azhenfud]

"It is so frustrating to live in a State where the outcome of elections is pretty much preordained. The victors will be demorat and liberal in most cases. I live in a county where the lefty congressman runs unopposed every 2 years. A good man tried to beat him back in 96, to no avail. In Illinois we can believe in "right" causes but our vote will mean nothing."

Your frustrations seem awfully familiar. The powers from on high preordain who what we can cast our votes of confirmation for. Then they disregard us.

[ken5050]

Kudos..most excellent essay...please put me on your ping list for future efforts...BTW, I thought the race was view a toss-up now...you seem to imply that Obama has it locked up....any new polls...?

[NormsRevenge]

oBAMa BumP.. Good job! Simon was one of 3 senators to vote against an investigation of Whitewater.. which begs the question, who were the other 2?

[stars & stripes forever]

Jack Ryan will be the next Illinois Senator if conservatives get out the vote. Many conservative Democrats are VERY uneasy about the social agenda of the Democratic Party.

[Carry_Okie]

In Illinois we can believe in "right" causes but our vote will mean nothing.

Great excuse! So now you can do... what?

What Mr. Bates has shown you is how to take these arguments into your community. The message is simple: Liberalism PRODUCES the poverty, corruption, and crime upon which it depends. It creates jobs only for bureaucrats, enforcers, and gatekeepers. It keeps people poor and coddles the shiftless brats of inherited wealth. It has parents working to pay taxes so that the state can turn their kids into dependents. It ruins communities and cultures because it is destructive to families.

Now, get out there and TELL PEOPLE THAT. Go to coffee shops. Babble about it in church. Plant those seeds.

[wjcsux]

He remained politically active until the very end. Too bad he wasn’t buried in Chicago; he could still be a registered voter.
IMHO, this is the best line of this really great article.

[SierraWasp]

"...irredeemably liberal."

Good one!!!

As Liberalism has NO "socially redeeming value!"

Having been born and raised in the Land Of Lincoln... Tell me... How come so much of the Great Lakes States have gone so danged liberal since I left in 1955???

[sauropod]

Well written and hard hitting.

[BartMan1]

Did you see this...?

[IncPen]

Thanks, a great read.

Ask me about the red-headed mother of seven's opinion of Jack Ryan. She thinks he's a snake...

[Mike Bates]

oBAMa BumP.. Good job! Simon was one of 3 senators to vote against an investigation of Whitewater.. which begs the question, who were the other 2?

Jeff Bingaman (NM) and John Glenn (OH). The vote was 96 to 3 with one senator - Teddy K. - not voting.

[Mike Bates]

Thanks to all for the kind words.

[NYC GOP Chick]

Excellent find - thanks!

[Mike Bates]

BTW, I thought the race was view a toss-up now...you seem to imply that Obama has it locked up....any new polls...?

No polls of which I'm aware. I view Obama as the favorite because Illinois has moved solidly into the Democratic ranks in recent years (only one state-wide office holder) and because so many of the Republicans are, IMHO, RINOs.

[raloxk]

Obama will probably win but his margin of victory will be substantially less than Kerry's in IL

[Mike Bates]

Could be, although Kerry doesn't appear to be exciting all that many black voters, while Obama is. Or so press reports suggest.

[raloxk]

After Carol Mostly Fraud and Lisa, never tried a case in my life, Madigan, IL voters will elect anyone so long as they are a D. Hard to believe that this is the state that voted for Ford over Cater by 2% and gave Reagan a larger margin of victory in 1980 than he had nationally.

Illinois south of I-80 and west of I-355 needs to suceed from the rest of the state. It would actually be as conservative as Kansas and about the same population too.

[facedown]

Jack Ryan will be the next Illinois Senator if conservatives get out the vote.

Absolutely! Turnout is always important but it is what this election is about at both the state and national levels.

Hatred is driving the left. We need to motivate our side to equal intensity, if not in kind.

[buffman]

Are you kidding? I am talking about St. Clair County. Doing such as that can lead to a busted head.

[DMZFrank]

While I agree that Jack Ryan should be the next Senator from the State of Illinois, he might not be. Unlike Carol Mostly Fraud, this guy is articulate, polished, charismatic, and presents a great appearance. He is the type of black liberal that the liberal press loves to extol. They will give short shrift to the bankrupt liberalism of his ideas and focus on the opportunity that the Illinois electorate has to make history and send this anointed liberal political saint to the Senate. If ever a political race should be about ideas and philosophy, then this one should be it. It's hard to imagine a starker contrast between the ideas of the candidates. Barack Obama thinks that the purpose of government is to equalize outcomes between different groups of people, and Jack Ryan thinks the free market and individual merit should prevail. I fear that this race will be framed by the mainstream media has an opportunity for Illinois to show the nation how progressive we are by voting in the socialist Barack Obama.

[Carry_Okie]

I am talking about St. Clair County.

I lived in downtown Oakland for nine years. I now live in Santa Cruz County, California, home of the UN Agenda21. You can't tell me anything I don't already know about tough neighborhoods or communists.

Do it anyway, one vote at a time. That's what "lives, fortunes, and sacred honor," really means. Those are the stakes and always have been.

[Mike Bates]

He remained politically active until the very end. Too bad he wasn’t buried in Chicago; he could still be a registered voter. IMHO, this is the best line of this really great article.

[buffman]

The photo is terrific. Thanks.

[wjcsux]

That is great! LMAO first thing this morning!