Stone Pigs

Posted By Alan Partis on April 29, 2009

The switch by Pennsylvania’s Senator Arlen Spector from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party is, quite frankly, amusing and bemusing at the same time. The amusing part is all the talking head analysis that seems to think this poorly reflects on the Republican Party. The bemusing part for me is trying to figure out why the Democrats accepted him — but that, in an of itself, says quite a bit more about the Democrats than the Republicans.

The conventional wisdom as promoted by the mainstream media talking heads is that this is a sign that the Republican Party is fracturing and has become more narrow and intolerant of diverse views. In some ways this is a true statement, but not in the way it’s being presented.

A political party should stand for something and another word for that ‘something’ is principles. So what’s really going on here is the Republican Party is shedding from its midst those people who do not share the principles of the Republican Party. At its very basic, the Republican Party stands for a republican form of government i.e. the type of government designed and put forth by the founders of this nation. The type of government espoused in our Pledge of Allegiance: “… and to the republic, for which it stands …” It’s obvious from Mr. Spector’s voting record that he does not hold the principles of a republic near and dear to his heart. He was a RINO, a Republican In Name Only.

The Democratic Party, in the mean time, holds forth for a simple democracy whereby majorities rule without regard to the wisdom of their rulings (at it’s very core, a democracy is nothing more than ‘mob’ rule). In their effort to achieve majority status, the Democratic Party must then assemble peoples from all corners who are willing to collect as one under their banner in spite of a great deal of conflicting goals of the various factions in their midst. In other words, the only overriding ‘principle’ in the Democratic Party is that they have no principles.

Arlen Spector will make a perfect Democrat.

What this country needs most, especially at this point in time, is people and parties that will take a stand firmly convicted in their principles while passionately and maturely debating and defending their principles without malice or deception but with honesty and intelligent thought. The problem is that these people are almost nowhere to be seen in politics, the mainstream news media, or anywhere in the public arena of discussion.

So I find the media’s complete misinterpretation of the event both expected and amusing. I’m bemused, however, over why the Democrats let Mr. Spector in.

By Senator Spector’s own admission, he’s switching parties because he realizes that he was very likely to lose his upcoming Republican primary race. As a Democrat he is expected to face no opposition in the primary … after which he’ll face his Republican opponent in the general election.

So where’s the logic here? If Spector expected to lose to this Republican challenger in a primary election, what makes him think the outcome would necessarily be any different in the general election? More importantly, why would the Democrats think that? Do they not see the apparent futility of this arrangement?

The strategist in me says they are just playing Spector for a useful idiot who will vote with them for the remainder of his term, after which they will drop him and run another candidate for his Senate seat. Even this theory makes no sense though. He was obviously already willing to vote with them as a Republican. And if they felt he was that vulnerable to defeat, why not just let him remain a Republican and beat him in the general election (assuming he would win his primary). If the Democrats agreed that he’d probably lose to his primary challenger, they’d still be running someone else against that person so they’ve gained nothing by bringing him in.

Nothing, that is, except for the public relations ‘coup’ and story line being broadcast by the mainstream media.

So once again, all the Democrat Party has really done is demonstrate their allegiance to perception over principle.

Category: Elections, Observations
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