The Way I See It - Take politics seriously

Take Politics Seriously
By Doug Dickerson
Staff Writer
October 25, 2006

I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians.
- Charles De Gaulle

Fellow citizens:
As you read this, Election Day is slightly under two weeks away. As I wrote in this column last week, the 109th Congress has been a dismal failure on many fronts. This Congress has failed to deliver on some of the most important legislation facing our time. From border security, to port security, to a comprehensive energy policy, this Congress has worked less, been paid more and has placed its highest priority on protecting their jobs they rightfully should lose.

I would like to interject a few ideas for the public debate and consideration before the new Congress begins in January.
First, accurate and truthful accountability must be a priority. Just as schools issue students report cards on a quarterly basis, I think Congress should be scored quarterly as well. Congress should be scored on a variety of merits including, but not limited to: number of days in session; legislation introduced and legislation passed; votes cast; votes missed; all travels and campaign contributions received; number of days in their districts including the number of constituency meetings and services provided.We the people must demand accountability from those we elect to represent us. It’s time to send a message to Congress and remind them that they work for us, that their power is derived from us, and that their power can be taken away by us. If Congress fails to deliver for us, why should we promote them by re-electing them? A quarterly Congressional report card will allow the people to see their successes and the failures.

Second, its time to re-think term limits. Some of the best and brightest America has to offer will never walk the halls in Congress so long as the incumbents are entrenched in power. The noble idea of serving the people has been replaced with the arrogance of power, which too often leads to corruption and scandal.
Former President Ronald Reagan once said, “Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first.” And that’s the problem. What starts out as noble intent and purpose leads to doing whatever it takes to retain that power. In 1994, one of the tenets of the Contract with America, which ushered in the Republican majority, was term limits. Our own Governor Sanford was a member of that Congressional class, and to his credit, he campaigned and delivered on that promise. I think its time to re-visit term limits for the good of the people, not the empowerment and protection of the elected.

Finally, it is time to re-claim and become more involved in the political process. Voter turnout regardless of party affiliation is critical. According to statistics found at SCvotes.org, a website sponsored by the South Carolina Election Commission, Berkeley County has 75,795 registered voters.

In the 2006 primary, the Republican Party turned out 14,567 voters or 19.21 percent of registered voters. The highest turnout by precinct was Pinopolis, which has 1,454 registered voters of whom 646 voted, or 44.42 percent. The lowest turnout for the Republicans came in the Goose Creek 3 precinct. Goose Creek 3 has 538 registered voters of whom only 11 bothered to vote in the primary, or 2.04 percent.

Before you knock the Republicans too hard, the Democrats were worse. In the 2006 primary, only 2,685 Democrats showed up to vote, or 3.54 percent. The highest turnout by precinct for the Democrats was in the Eadytown community where 22.60 percent of the 637 registered voters, 144 in total, voted. The lowest percentage by precinct to turn out to vote was the Bethera precinct, where out of the 158 registered voters, none voted.

If the primary turnout is any indication, where the turnout by Republicans was 19.21 percent compared to 3.54 percent for Democrats, one does not need a crystal ball to predict outcomes.
There are just too many important issues facing us on the national and local levels to sit this one out. If you are not registered to vote, it is now too late. However, for those of us who are, I urge you – go vote!

©Summerville Journal-Scene 2006