Who’s the best?

If you spend any time reading forums or blogs on the internet these days you will almost inevitably run into somebody claiming that the problem with the leadership (or lack thereof) in this country is the fault of the voters, because, after all, they are the ones that put the current administration in office. While technically true, I have to ask, “Who were we supposed to elect?”

The 2008 Democratic Primary Election Ballot here in Arizona had 24 names on it. So even with 24 choices, nearly 93% of the votes were cast for Hillary or Obama (the only other candidate to get more than a fraction of a percent was John Edwards). So why, with that many to choose from, did we still only go for the top two player? That’s easy to answer, it all comes down to the almighty dollar. In this day and age you cannot get elected unless you have some incredibly deep pockets. We vote for Hillary and Obama, not because we are certain they are the best candidate for the job (how can we be certain when there are at least 18 names on the ballot we’re seeing for the first time?) but because they have the most most money, get the most TV/radio-talk-show time, get the most media attention, and the most print-space. We don’t get to choose the best person to represent our party in the big election, we get to choose the richest.

We’ll likely never know who the best person to be president is because that person doesn’t have the dough to make themselves known. The best thing we can do, as voters, is vote our conscience instead of our political party line, and fire those that betray us.

Get registered to vote and make your voice heard in November.