Thursday, April 16, 1998 | 11:03 a.m.
POLITICIANS CONTINUALLY come under fire for what they do or don't do. Sometimes the fire comes from unexpected quarters and the elected officeholder and/or candidate is surprised when people he or she has helped, turn up the heat and fire the shots. Attacking elected officeholders and office seekers is truly an American blood sport. In recent years, it has become more of a slaughterhouse activity than a sport.
Author E.J. Dionne Jr., has written the book, "Why Americans Hate Politics." Someday it will be appropriate for an elected officeholder to write why they have come to hate politics as it is now practiced in the United States. I'll bet that near the top of the list will be the demands made by the extremists in their own political party. Those are the party people who believe that they and they alone elected the person to public office and therefore expect every demand be met when they call.
Extremists and single-issue special interest groups can become especially unnerving to officeholders working for the overall betterment of society. No matter how many times they vote in support of the special-interest policies, it takes only one "wrong" vote to bring down a hail of criticism. This makes the officeholder mutter something about having friends like this they don't need enemies.
Experienced officeholders soon learn to turn a deaf ear toward the continuing flow of demands from special interest groups or extremists. If the officeholder has done a good job for the general public, they will probably be returned to office. They have learned that much of the sharp criticism coming from single-issue leaders and narrow special interest groups doesn't impress a large majority of voters. If they do disagree with some of the votes cast by the officeholder, the intelligent voter looks at the overall conduct and policies of the person seeking re-election.
It appears that even national campaigns have become somewhat dominated by extremists from both parties and those who deny membership in either party. This trend has done little, if any good for our country. Dionne, in his book, points out that the damage may not stop at the edge of the oceans touching our coasts. He sees it this way:
"In recent years, much has been written about the rise of 'negative campaigning' and of the 'killer' television spots that instantly bury a political candidate's chances. Much has also been said about the rise of the 'character issue' and the seemingly incessant interest of the press in the private lives of politicians. A candidate's sex life or his draft record dominate the public discussion. What were once called 'issues' are cast to one side. Taken together, these developments suggest that politics is destined to become ever more seamy. Democracy takes on all the dignity of mud-wrestling. When American political consultants descended upon Eastern Europe to help 'guide' newcomers to democracy in the ways of modern politics, there was much alarm. Why should newly founded democracies be 'guided' toward the dismal stuff that we Americans call politics?
"In explaining these sorry developments, we have tended, I believe, to focus too narrowly on the political process and not enough on the content of politics."
Dionne goes on to remind us that, "True, we still praise democracy incessantly and recommend democracy to the world. But at home, we do little to promote the virtues that self-government requires or to encourage citizens to believe that public engagement is worth the time. Our system has become one long-running advertisement against self-government. For many years, we have been running down the public sector and public life. Voters doubt that elections give them any real control over what the government does, and half of them don't bother to cast ballots ...
"The abandonment of public life has created a political void that is increasingly filled by the politics of attack and by issues that seem unimportant or contrived. In 1988, George Bush made the pollution of Boston Harbor and the furloughing of a convicted murderer central issues in his campaign for the presidency. Neither Boston Harbor nor prison furlough mattered once Bush took office. The issues that will matter most in the '90s -- the challenges to America's standard of living from global competition, the dangers in the Middle East, the impending collapse of Communist power -- were hardly discussed at all in 1988."
It all comes down to receiving the kind of government we create by our own demands, actions or lack of action. Actually, we more often receive a better government than we deserve. Men and women in public office should always remember what the late House Speaker Tip O'Neill wrote in his book "All Politics Is Local." He never looked down the road to the next election. Tip believed that his 50 years in public office was possible because he took care of the people by doing the right thing.
Tip also told the story that every person in public life should remember when attacks seem to come fast and furious. "Congressman Charlie Weltner of Georgia liked to tell about a letter he received from a constituent berating him for his voting record, his personality and just about everything under the Georgia sun. The writer promised to devote all his time during the remainder of Charlie's term to defeating him. The letter writer then signed his name, and to the left at the bottom were his and his secretary's initials, as is the custom.
"Except at the bottom was the following line: 'I have to type this stuff, but I don't have to believe it. I think you're great!' The secretary's initials followed.
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