Bucks County Herald – July 9, 2009

Mark Sanford, Patrick Murphy Gays in Military, Demise Of Republicans

Dear Friends,

Good morning. South Carolina’s Governor Mark Sanford has most Americans scratching their heads, including me. He told the world that spousal forgiveness after an affair depended upon whether it was about real love or just simple lust? Always searching for scientific answers, I asked Mighty Betsy.

“If I wandered off the reservation,” I queried, “Would you forgive me if I assured you that it wasn’t about love…it was just about sex?”

Her response was unprintable. You know that I’m a devout coward so I’ll change the subject. But before I do, here are my favorite comments from journalists observing the debacle of Governor Sanford.

Writing about the transparent culture of American politics, Dick Polman gave this offering in the Inquirer (June 28). “No secret is safe in our transparent culture,” Polman began. “Maybe that explains why we know about John Edwards and his [pornographer] videographer; David Vitter and his hookers; Eliot Spitzer as Client No. 9; Larry Craig and his men’s-room footsie; Vito Fossella and his love child; John Ensign and his trysts with a senior aide’s wife; and Mark Sanford crying in Argentina on the taxpayers’ dime.”

Here’s the advice that Karen Heller gave Governor Sanford in the Inquirer (June 30). “Don’t compare yourself to King David,” Heller began, “It’s not humble. It’s also stupid. Don’t quote Corinthians (love “is not arrogant or rude”) in an e-mail to your mistress after being arrogant to your state and rude to your family.

“Finally, it’s time to concede that organized politics and religion are seriously flawed bedfellows,” Heller continued. “The Republican Party is in free fall partially for trying to stake impossibly high moral ground, then falling far below it, whether in an airport bathroom or on a hike on the Argentine love trail. When Sanford stumbled, who was left in the party to pull him up? Rush Limbaugh…Who, naturally, blamed Barrack Obama.”

Gail Collins offered this gem in the New York Times (July 4). “People,” she wrote, “what is going on with governors in this country? Are we doomed to see them go bonkers one by one, state by state?”

And now, to something serious.

Congressman Patrick Murphy will be the point man for President Obama’s strategy to overturn the “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy which expelled more than 11,000 gay military personnel since 1993.

“It is vital to our national security,” Murphy told Morning Call reporter Josh Drobnyk (July 2). “We have troops fighting in two wars…and we need every qualified, able-bodied individual who is able to serve.”

Public opinion favors changing the policy. A Gallup poll in May found that 69 percent of Americans favor allowing gays and lesbians to openly serve in the military. Only 26 percent were opposed.

Murphy is the perfect congressman to lead this fight. He’s a decorated airborne officer who served in Iraq. The gay community has criticized President Obama because he’s not aggressively fought to overturn the “Don’t ask” policy.

Murphy was a key congressional player when Obama began his run for the presidency. The Bucks County congressman is one of Obama’s confidants. Having Murphy lead the fight for the abolition of the “Don’t ask” policy tells me that Obama’s reluctance is about to change. We’ll see.

“It seems to be counterproductive to keep firing people who want to put their lives on the line for their country,” Inquirer columnist Dick Polman wrote (June 14). “More than 11,000 gays have been kicked out since 1994; taxpayers have spent well over $400 million to process the discharges. Hundreds have been Arab linguists. Dan Choi, an Iraq vet who is fluent in Arabic, received his firing notice last month after he came out on national TV.

“At this point, America and Turkey are the sole founding members of NATO to maintain a ban on open [gay] service,” Polman wrote.

Congressman Murphy’s mission will receive a welcomed assist from another Obama stalwart, Senator Edward Kennedy. We’ll see how well they do. My bet is that most of the congressmen and senators understand that America’s attitudes have changed dramatically. But most are afraid to take the first step. That’s about to change.

Next week, I’ll have a comment about Sarah Palin who dropped a bombshell last week. With 18 months to go in her first term as Governor of Alaska, she’s quitting. Why? Is she readying a presidential campaign in 2012? Will she choose Rush Limbaugh as her running mate? (That’s a joke, friends.) Is she accelerating the demise of the Republican Party? Will the Republican Party go the way of the Whig Party, which the GOP replaced in 1856?

Or is there a skeleton in her closet about to jump out?

I’ll also take a look at the changes in American attitudes. We are a very different people than we were in the 1960’s. Stay tuned.

Sincerely,

Charles Meredith

PS. I’d like to hear your views about topics, which interest me, as well as inquiring about topics that interest you. My questions for next week are: 1. Are you willing to have your federal taxes increased to insure that every American gets health coverage? And 2. If Alaska’s soon to be retired Governor Sarah Palin runs for the Presidency in 2012, will you vote for her? You can reach me at MeredithIII@comcast.net.