It's Not What You Say; It's How You Vote
    By Dr. Wilmer J. Leon III
    t r u t h o u t | Guest Contributor

    Tuesday 03 July 2007

    To many people's surprise, Senator Richard Lugar (R-Indiana) stood on the floor of the United States Senate on June 26 and said, "In my judgment, the costs and risks of continuing down the current path outweigh the potential benefits that might be achieved.... Persisting indefinitely with the surge strategy will delay policy adjustments that have a better chance of protecting our vital interests over the long term."

    Based on this speech, many are now calling Senator Lugar "brave" and "thoughtful." It has been suggested by the media that Lugar is "breaking ranks with the president." First, let me be the first to welcome Senator Lugar to the ranks of the realistic and honest. It only took him four and a half years, 3,571 US troop deaths, 25,830 wounded US troops, the death or injury of over 600,000 Iraqis and $439 billion in taxpayers' money to get here. As the saying goes, better late than never. With that said, let's not get too caught up in the moment and the hoopla. The real measure of a man is not what he says, but what he does. In the political realm, it's not what you say; it's how you vote.

    I found it very interesting that right after Senator Lugar made his dramatic speech, his spokesman, Andy Fisher, said that Lugar's speech does not mean Lugar would switch his vote on the war or embrace Democratic measures such as timetables for troop withdrawal. Fisher went on to say that the White House has "known his position on this for quite a while." That is why in politics, it's not what you say; it's how you vote. Lugar has voted in support of the president on just about all measures, if not every measure, regarding the illegal invasion of Iraq and its continued occupation. Fisher continued by stating that Lugar wanted to express his concerns publicly before the president reviews his Iraq strategy in September - the thought being that Lugar's public pronouncement would put pressure on the White House to review their strategy of troop buildup. However, it is patently obvious that the White House does not care about Lugar's or anyone else's views, concerns or positions. The American people spoke very clearly in the last midterm elections, but to no legislative avail.

    Senator Lugar's position indicates to me that he and too many others, whether Republican or Democrat, are not really concerned with the human and long-term realities of this illegal invasion and occupation. Too many are only concerned with their perceived political benefits. For some, militaristic/industrial benefits are behind their support of the invasion. That is how no-bid contracts have been awarded to Halliburton and its subsidiaries, the management of US ports has been outsourced to foreign companies, and "Bush 41" and his friends at the Carlisle Group can reap record profits from "Bush 43's" illegal invasion and occupation. We have now shifted from issue-driven politics to ideology-driven politics.

    There was a time, not too long ago, when politicians with different views or perspectives and from different sides of the aisle could look at an issue and arrive at a compromise. They approached each issue with a desire to find workable solutions that included their constituents' perspective in the context of the greater good. After all, politics is the art of compromise and the ability of interested parties to negotiate the distribution of limited public resources.

    Today, issues are viewed and solutions validated through an ideological prism. Over the past forty or so years, there has been a shift to neoconservative politics and neoconservative Christianity (some may say fascist) ideology. In the neoconservative world, the question of the day is not are you Christian, but are you the "right" kind of Christian? The question is not are you conservative, but how conservative are you? Today, in order for a politician to prove himself/herself "loyal to the party," he or she must vote in a manner perceived to be consistent with the neoconservative political and Christian ideology used to judge the issue at hand.

    This is how Senator Richard Lugar can say that after four and a half years, 3,571 US troops killed, 25,830 US troops wounded, over 600,000 Iraqis killed and wounded, and $439 billion spent "... that the costs and risks of continuing down the current path outweigh the potential benefits that might be achieved," and be hailed by the likes of Senator Joseph Biden (D-Delaware) as being brave and conscientious, but continue to vote for the very policies that have led us down this destructive path. They are more concerned about being true to their ideology than about the issues and their realities.

    The real measure in the political realm is not based on what you say; it's how you vote that counts.

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    Dr. Wilmer Leon is the Producer/Host of the nationally broadcast call-in talk radio program "On With Leon" on XM Satellite Radio Channel 169, Producer/Host of the television program "Inside The Issues With Wilmer Leon" and a teaching associate in the Department of Political Science at Howard University in Washington, DC. Go to www.wilmerleon.com or email: wjl3us@yahoo.com.