	Bob Hostetler > Writing

Not Always Right

by Bob Hostetler

In the interest of full disclosure: I voted for George W. Bush. I fully expect to vote for him again. I'm conservative in nearly every sense of the word (my favorite color is brown, for crying out loud). But though I consistently lean to the right, neither I nor the leaders I enthusiastically support are right all the time. Nor are those to the left of my position always wrong.

Take Howard Dean, for example. I agree with very little the man stands for. I think a Dean presidency could well be calamitous. But his now-infamous "I Have a Scream" speech after the Iowa primaries did not show evidence of an unhinged mind nor of an ungracious spirit. If you've seen the whole thing onscreen (instead of just repeated soundbites of his concluding "animal screech"), you might note: He was smiling, though he had just suffered a very disappointing night. He was passionate, though he had worked and talked himself hoarse. He was trying to encourage his loyal supporters, though perhaps (and here's where he certainly went wrong) not guessing how the media would spin his less-than-erudite speech. His politics and tactics may be (and I believe are) all wrong, but if any are judging his candidacy by a single soundbite, they're far crazier than Dean.

Or take President Bush. In my judgment he has been a wise and inspiring leader. He has made tough and courageous decisions. But he has been wrong to fiddle while government spending has raged like wildfire. He has been wrong to allow spending to expand on many necessary fronts without clearly, forcefully, and systematically asking the American people--and Congress--to sacrifice on other fronts. The stimulus provided by his tax cut is good economics and good politics, but a burgeoning deficit is neither.

He was also wrong to let outstanding jurists like Miguel Estrada and Janice Rogers Brown twist in the wind for month after month while a Democratic minority in the Senate prevented an up-or-down vote on their nominations to the U.S. Court of Appeals. It's baffling that a president who exhibits such courageous leadership in the war on terror would deny adequate support to his own nominees. It's disconcerting that he would allow such respected nominees to be politically lynched without joining the battle.

I am afraid he's also been wrong to propose a new immigration policy that will offer amnesty to an estimated eight million workers who have come to into this country illegally. There may be good political reasons for such a policy, especially in the long run, perhaps. And, of course, it recognizes rather than ignores a reality that already exists. But it also legitimizes the actions of lawbreakers, demoralizes the already thin U.S. Border Patrol, and will very likely make our borders less, not more, secure in the future (which is a moral and political imperative in our post-9/11 world).

If only that were the end. But the president, apparently seeking to capitalize on the enthusiasm generated by NASA successfully landing an umanned rover on Mars, quickly proposed a new era of space exploration (and spending). He announced the goals of a manned moon station and a manned mission to Mars. I'm all for science and discovery, mind you. But unless there are piles of free money on Mars to pay down the deficit, let's see if we can control spending on this planet before we conquer new ones.

It's an election year, I know. And politicians who want to attain or continue in power must think of consitituencies, voter blocs, and "the vision thing." But that's not an excuse for poor decisions, because, as one master of ethics put it, "the one in authority. . . . is God's servant to do you good" (Romans 13:4, NIV). Power, whatever party or politician wields it, ought to be used to do what is right--politically, yes, but also fiscally, legally, and morally. Power that is wielded simply to hold onto or expand power, whether by the left or the right, is wrong.

This article appeared in the February 6, 2004 edition of the Hamilton Journal-News.

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