Rock the Vote

One of the reasons why it is so hard for a Senator to run for president is the problem of the voting record. John Kerry and Bob Dole both had to deal with this issue, and it is one of the reasons why only two Senators won the office in the 20th century (John F. Kennedy and Warren G Harding, in case you are interested).

This is the problem. A senator has to vote on a LOT of bills, and a governor doesn't. And every one of those bills is a potential campaign landmine. First of all, since people aren't very good with statistics, it is easy for a politician to say (as George Bush did)- "my opponent voted to raise taxes 75 times". It doesn't matter if he voted to cut taxes 600 times (as Kerry responded), or even what the votes were about. The damage is done. The logical answer to this charge would be "Yes I did. Are you saying that you feel that taxes are never appropriate? Do you want to discuss the details of each vote?" But of course, you are never going to get that nuanced discussion in a 3 minute debate slot.

Even more insidious is the way that legislation is crafted. A rider can be added to any bill, making a simple vote of conscience virtually impossible. So you end up with a bill that provides funding for our troops in Iraq, homeland security, and for making November the official Ku Klux Klan appreciation month. Soooo... what do you vote? Yea or nay? "MY OPPONENT VOTED AGAINST YOUR SAFETY AND FREEDOM!!!"

OK, a little poetic license, but not really off the mark. As of this writing, the Senate is faced with voting on a must-pass, down to the wire, no time to argue, $388 billion spending bill. If it isn't passed, a good chunk of the government will just shut down. And Republican lawmakers have added a provision that would strengthen anti-abortion leverage in public funding. So given the fact that this approach essentially rules out any kind of meaningful debate on the issue, a senator is faced with either voting for the bill (and supporting a position that conflicts with his or her values) or opposing the bill and risking a government crisis. And either vote will be thrown in their faces the next time they run for office.