In an era when America is desperately in need of hope, energy, and positivity…we get this. Time was when Newt Gingrich viewed it as his mission in life to take down a sitting President by any means necessary. You might think I’m referring to Barack Obama, but this is actually about Bill Clinton, whom Gingrich and the House Republicans he led hated with a fury that knew no bounds. It was personal, it was mean-spirited, and it was no-holds-barred. That was then (1994), and this is now. What was once old, corrupt, and venal has now been repackaged as visionary, inspired leadership ready, able, and eager to boldly lead America into the grand future it deserves. Back to the future, indeed….
I’m not going to bemoan or detail Gingrich’s track record, because most of us recognize him for the slime trail he leaves wherever he goes. No, my concern is with the direction the country is going and the country we choose to be. Do we want to be a country ruled by our baser instincts- fear, ignorance, and reaction? Or do we want to be a country where truth and honesty are at the forefront of our national discourse? Do we want to look forward and create a future that can be? Or will we be satisfied dragging this country back to a past that really exists on in our cloudy and defective collective memory?
For my part, I refuse to believe that America is a place that will allow itself to be governed by fear, ignorance, and rank hypocrisy. That’s not to say that Gingrich might not still see the light and come up with a positive vision to sell to America, but zebras don’t change their stripes, right? Chris Matthews is right; Gingrich represents the dark side of American politics: self-interest, dishonesty, pandering, and hypocrisy. If character is an indication of leadership style, and I believe it is, Gingrich has little of value to offer this country. Eventually, I believe most Americans will recognize that Gingrich holds others to a much different, and much higher, standard than he holds himself.
We deserve better, and in this case I believe that we’ll get it. I have to believe that Americans don’t want a country ruled by a hypocrite and moral reprobate with an appalling lack of self-awareness. Eventually, I believe that Americans will see through Gingrich’s facade and recognize him for what he is.
Then again, the American Sheeple did give us eight years of George W. Bush….
