George W. Bush Converted Me to Democracy, Made Me A Democrat

I need to state my political allegiance because I feel that it is important in this day and age to be open and honest.

I have labeled myself an independent for a number of years, but that ended during the Bush presidency where I felt it was important to join a united front against that man. When I saw him campaigning I was disturbed. As an individual with an average to above average IQ, there is no question that George W. Bush would be a subpar president at best and hell on wheels at worst. What I did not know at the time is that he would surpass my worst expectation.

Being an independent I can honestly say that I vote for the individual whose skills and level of competence best match the job at hand, rather than a particular party. That has typically served me well and I have voted for someone from every single major political party or another. Sometimes the libertarians make good member of the state legislature or the county board of supervisors, green party members are good on a local level, democratic senators seem to be the most competent, and republicans are good in moderation in most positions.

Voting is just like facilitating a job interview, you have to ask the right questions, trust the answers and expect a high level of excellence on the job. That's how I see it and how I exercise my right to vote.

Back to Bush. I don't care what party you are with, whether you are Republican or something else, you need to acknowledge that Bush is NOT a bright guy. He's not completely stupid, as the many quotes saying things such as "He is much sharper in person" (ad lib) confirm. But the real debate should be about how important it is to each constituent that the president is intelligent.

The 2008 presidential election seemed like a referendum on this issue when Sarah Palin was basically laughed out of the election by a majority of voters. She is also a little dim.

Do I mind throwing these epithets around? Normally yes, but when the fate of the free world and the entire world is at stake, I think it's excusable to call it like I see it.

So Bush made me a democrat. Because I would not, could not vote for someone who I wouldn't trust to housesit for me, let alone live in the whitehouse and run my country. So I picked a team, the one which seemed less damaging, and I haven't regretted it since.

I still vote independently in local and state elections, but I stopped voting for republicans altogether. This wasn't all Bush' fault, it was also due to the conniving of Karl Rove, Cheney doing a good impression of Dr. Evil from Austin Powers, Colin Powells innacuracy at the UN followed by the cancellation of the Roadmap to Peace, and his resignation, 9/11 occurring, the fight against the 9/11 commission, no bid contracts, torture (which I always knew was happening), failure to sign the Kyoto Protocol, nomination of Harriet Miers for the Supreme Court, everything about Alberto Gonzales, Tom DeLay, and the list goes on...

I got tired of republican antics, which have meant campaigning and representing their constituencies with hypocrisy on a regular basis. And I have tried to respect the GOP, but they have lost credibility with me. So I voted for Obama, and I campaigned for Obama and I do not regret it at all, because U.S. politics under Bush and the Republican majority was making me feel dirty, like I needed a shower.

And I liked John McCain for years. I read his book "The Faith of My Fathers" and I loved it. It was charming and warm and spunky, and I rooted for his family. I still do. if it was between John and Hilary I might very well have voted for him, but Hilary was not the candidate, and then when the primaries were over, John disappointed me, he sold out his own instincts, not to mention ethics and started using Rovian methods and became a shadow of his former self. I turned on McCain, when he turned on himself, and I hope he comes back to us.

In the meantime, in the interest of full disclosure, I am politically independent, but I have voted for democrats, more often than not in the last 8 years. And though I wish the GOP would get it together, I do not endorse them at this time, and I frequently laugh at their actions, because it is a healthier reponse to laugh rather than cry.