Horowitz: Paris Shakes Up Presidential Race
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Our response as a nation and the specific responses of the Presidential candidates to this resurgent threat to our homeland will test our ability to come together and overcome the polarized partisanship that now dominates our politics as well as give voters a window into the capacity of individual candidates to provide the kind of thoughtful and measured comments that one would expect of someone who aspires to be the leader of the free world.
In the wake of 9/11, spurred by the leadership of President George W. Bush, the United States as a whole stayed true to the “better angels of our nature”, unifying to take the fight to Al Qaeda and resisting the urge to demonize our fellow Muslim citizens. Over the past 14 years since 9/11, polarized partisanship, the rise of narrow ideology, and finger-pointing rather than searching for solutions has come to dominate our politics. These trends were already visible in 2001, but unfortunately, all have accelerated. This makes the task of providing a unified American response—one that reflects both our strength and our values---more difficult.
I am not arguing for marching in lockstep or for withholding legitimate criticism of President Obama or his policies. Robust debate on the path forward is important, but it should be marked by a civility, recognizing that while we may disagree on the best policy response; we all want the best for our nation. That is critical to our ability to bring other nations along for a coordinated, effective and stepped-up effort against ISIS. As we have many times in the past, the United States must once again set the example of how a Democracy can rally and pull together, despite profound and deep differences of opinion among its' citizens and leaders.
This task is complicated by the fact we are in the middle of a Presidential race. Some candidates are already failing the tests of prudence or seriousness. Attempting to score cheap partisan points, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) said on FOX and Friends, “I recognize that Barack Obama does not wish to defend this country.” The absurdity of that statement should speak for itself; but just in case it doesn’t one just needs to recollect that it was Obama who ordered the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden.
Not to be out done in pandering to a primary audience, Donald Trump at a rally over the weekend as reported by CNN,, said, “You can say what you want, but if they had guns, if our people had guns, if they were allowed to carry --" Trump said, pausing as the crowd erupted into raucous applause, "-- it would've been a much, much different situation."
Hillary Clinton’s nakedly self-serving attempt to use 9/11 as an explanation for her historic closeness to Wall Street during Saturday night’s Democratic debate also fell well short of what we should expect from our next President: Clinton said, “I represented New York on 9/11 when we were attacked. Where were we attacked? We were attacked in downtown Manhattan where Wall Street is. I did spend a whole lot of time and effort helping them rebuild. That was good for New York. It was good for the economy and it was a way to rebuke the terrorists who have attacked our country.”
The days ahead pose a test for our nation and our Presidential candidates. I hope when we look back on them, we will recall a time of American renewal and seriousness of purpose. But of course, that remains to be seen.
Rob Horowitz is a strategic and communications consultant who provides general consulting, public relations, direct mail services and polling for national and state issue organizations, various non-profits and elected officials and candidates. He is an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at the University of Rhode Island.
Video wall courtesy of Gary Knight/flickr
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