MY SILENCE IS OVER

politico.com

The last sixty or so days, I have been incredibly silent about our nation’s politics.  I have written no words to express my attitudes and feelings about this presidential election.  There has been plenty to write about but I was unable to engage and put my mind to work.  Thankfully, I awoke from my slumber just in time to communicate what little influence I might add to this conversation. 

I have missed plenty of opportunity to write of my concerns regarding these two candidates.  I have missed ample openings to dissect and evaluate the failings of each candidate and their campaigns.  Even today, I am tempted to dredge up many of these stories over the last two months and put my own spin to them.  Just thinking about it now makes me laugh to think of what golden opportunities there have been to punch holes in both of these men.

No, I am confident that each day going forward to that fateful day in November will be filled with opportunity for me to cast aspersions on Mitt Romney and accolades toward Barack Obama.  For now, I will resist going backward and choose to move forward with the conversation.  I will occasionally refer to the debate performance of our two candidates but will refrain from recapping a story that has been told and retold over and over again.  I will say however that I can’t and won’t leave Mitt Romney’s forty-seven percent comment alone like President Obama during the first debate.

Truth is - the forty-seven percent comment will pepper nearly everything I write for the next 26 days.  If the President’s team has any sense at all, they will continue to focus all of their attention on the forty-seven percent comment.  To me, it is what the election is all about.  This one comment by Mitt Romney tells the tale of this election.  It is fairly that simple to me. 

Tonight’s Vice-Presidential debate will be fun to watch.  Everyone is expecting Joe Biden to be the bulldog and to hammer away at Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney.  No question that Biden won’t hold his tongue like the President did.  No question that Biden will step in it somewhere during the debate performance.   Certainly, the Republicans hope for this but many of us who support the Vice-President and his counterpart hope for the same.  We want Joe Biden to be Joe Biden.  We want the guy who said to the President, “this is a big (expletive) deal.”

Joe Biden is the heart of the middle class.  He is a champion of the people.  He is one of us.  President Barack Obama needs Joe to be Joe tonight reminding all of us that he is a real genuine American middle-class man.  A fighter and a survivor-just the kind of man we would want in the trenches with us.  A guy who understands what life is like for those of us working nine to five, raising a family and trying to make sense of it all.  That’s Joe.  He gets it.  Frankly, Joe is probably the only one of the four candidates who truly knows what it’s like for the rest of us. 

Count on Joe not to dismiss the forty-seven percent comment.  Count on Joe to drive it home all night long.  He’s one of the forty-seven percent that Mitt Romney spoke of and Joe Biden is proud to be.  Joe’s success tonight may or may not capture the pundit’s attention or praise.  One sure bet is he will speak to the hearts and minds of the Democratic Party faithful.  Joe’s success will come on Friday and throughout the weekend when our Democratic checkbooks are opened and checks written, credit card numbers punched in.  The base will get the message and the dollars will roll in. 

My oldest son commented to me last night that he would give up a World Series win by the Cincinnati Reds, a National Championship by The Ohio State Buckeyes for a Barack Obama victory in November.  Here’s hoping he doesn’t have to give either.  The silence is over.  I’m back and ready to rumble.