The Epileptic Vote…


Imagine what the Republicans would have done if the shoe was on the other foot: If the head of the Court, a Democrat was discovered to have some debilitating disease, a disease that could adversely affect his performance...

The roar for his dismissal would be loud , clear and persistent. And once the dirty tricks boys got to work, there would be no end of exaggerated attacks.

Some might suggest that any group that would pursue such policies would be guilty of bringing us headlong into the abyss, an end of decency with no way back from the edge….

But that does not preclude the fact that such tactics have been ongoing since the 60’s promulgated mainly by those of one party.

I cannot help think what the Republican Right managed to do Senator Eagleton in his candidacy for Vice President. They completely destroyed him because they had discovered that he had been treated for depression at one time.

The Right Wing demolition team of the Republicans has been hard at work since Nixon’s day when Donald Segretti’s tactics sought to destroy Edmund Muskie, then a candidate for president, for crying in a speech because of some comments made about him. Was the innuendos and rumors spread about Muskie a display of consideration or the kind of values that the republicans believe that only they are equipped to judge?

No it is unfair, wrong-headed and cheap and it doesn’t deserve to be underwritten by those who believe in winning at any price…

The “Dirty Tricks” team never missed a beat and we missed out on a good honest candidate who was more than qualified for the presidency.

Recognizing the effectiveness of their methods, Lee Atwater expanded on Segretti’s tactics thinking that they were the greatest thing since white bread and used them to decimate the New England candidate for the president, Dukakis, by making him look foolish, and then demeaning him in the public debate--another character assassination tactic used effectively by the Republicans.

And who among us can forget how the Republicans dug as much dirt s possible on the Clintons during their first term in office by trying to implicate them in Rivergate and the Travel fiasco and by even going as far as to say that the Clintons plotted the death of one of their high ranked staffers.

Nor should we forget how these same tactics were used again and again up to the present time to destabilize the Kerry campaign by trying to attack his credentials as a legitimate war hero.

We don’t expect it to end now or soon because it has proven such an effective smear tactic.

The question to be asked is what would the republicans with their taste for rumor and innuendo do if the leading member of the Courts were a democrat and this kind of opportunity presented itself, keeping in mind that that Judge Roberts vote is often the swing vote .

We all know the answer to that: If Roberts were a democrat, he would be castigated for not doing the right thing and resigning so that “a more healthy and objective judge” could take over and make decisions not affected by this disabling disease—even though the facts of his disease do not indicate that between disabling attacks, he would not be fully able to perform the functions of his position…..

Such reprehensible tactics to gain an advantage at the price of someone’s honor and reputation would be beneath the democrats
to even suggest it.

However Judge Roberts while mending is now in the delicate situation of having to decide whether he might become disabled again and whether he is at his full potential to perform the responsibilities of the lead judge of the Supreme Court. The key question is he capable of performing his responsibilities to the full extent required and consistent with the best interests of the people of this great land.

This is a subject that is fair play because so much depends upon it and one would hope that it can be discussed from an objective frame of reference that is free of pressure and allows the judge to explain his position for his decision.

It is quite likely that the Judge will decide that it is in the best interests of this country that he step down in order to allocate his remaining years to challenges considered less demanding and consistent with his health and inclinations.

But for now we wish him God speed in the anticipation that he will be able to resume his responsibilities and not be subjected to what we know he would have had to endure if he were in the opposition party.


Les Aaron
The Contrarion