In the political world, it has come down to the issue, person, or event able to grab the most headlines. We no longer seem to be moving in the direction of conviction or ideology when dealing with the issues of the day, but vying for the sound bite and the interview by a celebrity news person.
The evidence for this opinion was seen last week when Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky took to the Senate floor in Washington and filibustered for more than 13 hours. Since the long marathon on the Senate floor, Paul was called almost every name in the book, and mostly by those who claim the same party affiliation. As Sen. Paul took to the Senate floor, news outlets began to announce his intention to lead a filibuster because of a concern he had expressed in not receiving the answer he sought from the President on the use of drone strikes against American citizens on American soil.
We could take the majority of this article and rehash the points made and the counterpoints made since the filibuster but the issue, at least for me, is what we are seeing happen in the political world and the desire to be first, with the largest amount of ink being used, to report the event or issue. We seem to no longer be at a place where we have shared vision or dreams for this nation, but we are seeing the celebrity politicians get in line to have their name out front and to have their sound bite on the news the longest and loudest.
Full disclosure causes me to admit I was pleased to listen too much of what Sen. Paul said, and agreed with the sincere and passionate way he was presenting his case on the issue. At some point during Sen. Paul’s speech, I realized the headline seekers within the Republican Party would not be happy because of all the space in the media being given to the filibuster activities.
There was an axiom in leadership in a day gone by when it would be said, “It is amazing how much can be accomplished when it does not matter who gets the credit.” That axiom has now been laid aside and the push is to have the celebrity politicians getting all the glory and credit for anything said or done on an issue. The two senators from Arizona and South Carolina let it be known their displeasure of the way Sen. Paul conducted the filibuster, even to the point of accusing him of just pulling off a “stunt.”
From where I stand, it sounds like “sour grapes” to me, coming from these two senators, especially the way we see them grabbing headlines and seeking interviews that will place them in positions of prominence. With all that needs to be done to give leadership, it seems we could, for such a time as this, seek to find solutions rather than fighting for headlines.
Follow Ray Newman on Twitter @RayNewmanSr
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