Posted on Sun, Mar. 10, 2002
Senator doesn't reflect well on Kentucky
By John Ed Pearce
HERALD-LEADER COLUMNIST
With a sigh for bygone days when Kentucky enjoyed high rank among the
states and sent to Washington men of stature, dignity and influence, we
note that Mitch McConnell (God, forgive us) has announced his hopes of
returning once more to the U.S. Senate.
In stating his willingness to sacrifice himself again upon the altar of
public
service, he insists that he comes before us as neither Republican nor
Democrat but as "your United States senator," a truth that we must, to
our
shame, confess.
Why Kentuckians, who have traditionally offered at least lip service to
admirable conduct, have continued to send back to Washington a man
whose chief talent has been an insatiable money-grubbing, defies
understanding.
Perhaps there is deep within us a strain of masochism, a need to demean
ourselves in the eyes of others, as evidenced in our selection of legislatures
or tolerance of the persistent athletic scandals that rack the University
of
Kentucky.
For the sad fact is that McConnell has distinguished himself in Washington
only by his identification with the degradation of the electoral process.
In a
Pavlovian vein, he leaps into action at the mere mention of the words
"campaign finance reform."
He not only defends the indefensible tawdriness of our bought elections,
but
he also serves the cause as the most dependable fund-raiser in his party.
He has made a career of shaking down the big corporations and the rich
for
money with which public offices are bought.
These are not funds used only for his own races. The money is intended
for
Republican coffers in general, and as a tree-shaker par excellence, he
has a
voice in saying who gets how much of the fruit that falls. Thus he retains
his
influence among the party faithful in a virtual round-robin of spoils.
The constitutional right of every American to buy a candidate for office
has
become his mantra, his retort to every effort, by either party, to enact
some form of clean-campaign law. He has made his bed on the 1976
Supreme Court ruling in the case of Buckley vs. Valeo that holds that
money equals speech, which has been contorted to mean that controlling
money is tantamount to limiting free speech, and that the First Amendment
prohibits limits on campaign spending.
Thus, at every effort of the Senate to design a law that, if it cannot
limit
spending, can at least lessen its impact through clean-money or
clean-election laws, McConnell throws himself before the gates to repel
the
assault of reformers.
Just in the last couple of weeks, McConnell leapt to defend the forces
of
greed against efforts to pass a bill aiming at election reform, pointing
to
frauds committed under current law as, somehow, by some contortion of
logic, a reason to keep the system as it is. After Florida 2000, there
is
reason, of course, to defend the system that seated a non-elected
president, but not an honorable reason.
But the display of his oratory on TV at least provided Kentuckians evidence
that they have representation in the Senate. For it is seldom, save when
the
golden money flow is threatened, that McConnell is featured in Senate
proceedings. McConnell does not dally among the moneyless classes. But
he is seldom a critical player when the vital issues of the day are at
stake.
He is a money-raiser, a runner of errands between the GOP moguls and
their rich targets, somewhat like the kid the big guys send out for beer.
Is this the best Kentucky can do? Shall we not again attain an image of
prestige?
This state has sent great statesmen into the national arena: John
Crittenden, Henry Clay, Alben Barkley, John Sherman Cooper. Must we now
be content with a bill collector?
John Ed Pearce can be reached by e-mail at JohnEd2@aol.com.