What Elections Tell Us About Us

Bob Schieffer On Progress And Politics, And How They Define America

(CBS)  Weekly commentary by CBS Evening News chief Washington correspondent and Face the Nation host Bob Schieffer.

---

If I learned one thing during this campaign season it was this: campaigns are about more than just who gets elected. They tell us all about us - where we've been and where we're going.

When I saw those black kids and white kids working together at Old Miss to make sure everything was perfect for the first presidential debate, it just reminded me just how far we've come since I had last set foot on that campus back in 1962.

Back then, a riot broke out and two people were killed, as a mob tried to prevent one black student from enrolling.

Way to go, Old Miss.

How many times can you call a campaign historic? But this one was, and is.

All those reports that America had lost interest in politics turned out to be dead wrong - just check the TV ratings and the crowds.

Public rallies are back. John McCain drew record crowds in Virginia yesterday; 100,000 turned out to see Obama in St. Louis.

We're not only still serious about politics, it remains our favorite contact sport.

Way to go, America!

For sure, we learned more than we needed to know this time about plumbers. As a young guy I belonged to the carpenters' union, so I wanted equal time for the guys with the hammers, but what can you do? We'll just have to live with that one.

And here is one other thing I learned: Until Chris Parnell started imitating me on "Saturday Night Live," I never realized how much I sound like Tom Brokaw.

I've got to work on that.

[hugo522]

Mister Schieffer

The United States is with no doubt at the leading edge of technology in many fields. Why is it that it''s voting system has so many deficiencies ?
Registration fraud, voting machines badly calibrated, 3 hours waiting in a line to cast a vote (will be even more the 4th of November)
A fair and efficient voting system allowing all qualified citizens to cast their votes easily and fairly is the foundation of democratic institutions. It assures the legitimacy of people who have been elected.
I believe one of the most democratic countries of the world deserves a better voting system.


Pierre-Hugues Archambault

Ottawa, Canada.

[hugo522]

Mister Schieffer,

United States is with no doubts at the leading hedge of technology in many fields. How come it''s voting system have so many deficiencies ?
Registration fraud, voting machines badly calibrate, 3 hours waiting on a line to cast a vote (will be even more the 4th of November)
A fair and efficient voting system allowing all qualified citizens to cast their votes easily and fairly is the foundation of democratic institutions. It''s assure the legitimacy of people who have been elected.
I believe one of the most democratic country of the world deserve a better voting system.

Pierre-Hugues Archambault
Ottawa, Canada.

[ko591]

Here we are preaching to another blantantly biased "news" website. Like their counterparts, they will do whatever it takes to get their "man" into the whitehouse. How about showing a little dignity. Lets have a peek at Barracks college thesis. Lets follow the money trail of his 700 mil in contributions. Are you afraid of what you will find? Have you already found it? We know he is a marxist with an extreme socialist agenda. I guess for the American voters and the media - ignorance is bliss.

[fairness3]

I am still waiting for Bob Schieffer to get Obama to answer McCains very direct question " Why did you change your mind on how you would receive campaign donations?" And why did he say he would sit down with McCain over this issue and then didn''t. Bob Schieffer I am disappointed in the fact you didn''t press Obama to answer. You may not think it is relevant, but to me as an Independent voter it was and still is.May-be you could have him on the show and ask him the question again. I am interested in his answer.

[jjp735i]

"What Elections Tell Us About Us"

Elections tell us how stupid we really are. We vote the same idiots back in to office. Year after year after year after year in some cases. And what do we get? A do nothing Congress, a Congress that fails us in every possible way.

Billions is bail outs for companies who ran them selves into the ground. Freddie Mac paying Congress to kill a bill that was aimed at the problems months before it happened. Some in Congress taking the lobbyist cash, while others chose to ignore the problem. And so on and so.

We see the problems year after year. We see the lobbyist paying for bills aimed to suite their companies needs and yet we continue to vote in those very same idiots who failed us.

[prohb]

You know what we really need ...it is to become RESILIENT both as individual and as a country. Immediately upon assuming office President Obama should emphasize what Kennedy said, "Ask not what your country can do you but what you can do for your country!" (not as Bush said and just go shopping after 9/11) President Obama should be a uniter and emphasize that we are all in this together...that we can solve the problems of finance, of energy, of jobs, climate change, and health care as long as we work together. We should not depend on government to do everything%u2026.. we have got to do some things ourselves%u2026. we have to be willing to do volunteer efforts to help others also. A democracy is participatory! WE HAVE TO BECOME A RESILIENT PEOPLE AND NOT WHINERS. For example - The police in New Orleans said that there would have been fewer problems immediately after Katrina if people had taken Red Cross First Aid Training and practiced basic first aid protocols. It would be easy to take a class on this.
Come on! We can do this, America!

[alaskavoter]

ALASKA GOVERNOR RECALL!
I am an Alaskan life voting Republican. This 2008 Election, I will [with pleasure] vote Democrat!

This Alaska Governor Palin has Destroyed and continues to attempt to Destroy "MANY GOOD ALASKAN PEOPLE(s)%u201D Professionally and Politically during her "VERY SHORT" term position as Mayor in a small community Wasilla, Ak (Approx 5,000 + residents during her reign) and currently the Alaska State Governor.

McCain%u2019s V.P. selection Sarah Palin unequivocally has NO business being the Alaska Governor, let alone, a USA Candidate for Vice President%u2026..

Maverick??.....%u201DAMERICA SHOULD BE FEARFULLY CONCERNED%u201D

I voted for Sarah Palin in Alaskans 2006 Governor Election. MISTAKE!.... Never Again%u2026 I repeat-NEVER AGAIN!!....Alaska Governor Palin is an absolute Embarrassment to the Alaska People(s) and "IS PROVEN%u201D Over and Over to be an insatiable LIAR!!..
.
How can she possibly ASSUME to possess the ability to clean up America, when she cannot clean the progressive ''''MESS" She has created, then left Alaska to run for the United States V.P. Yes, she .departed leaving %u201CHERSELF and HER husband todd palins%u201D Mess FOR Alaskans to Clean-Up!!

MCCAIN, you should be ASHAMED of yourself!!!! This victim (palin) has no business in this Presidential Arena.

Posted by: Alaskan Voter
History of Palin News & Investigation Report adn.com/Newsweek
Thank You,

[alaskavoter]

ALASKA GOVERNOR RECALL!
I am an Alaskan life voting Republican. This 2008 Election, I will [with pleasure] vote Democrat!

This Alaska Governor Palin has Destroyed and continues to attempt to Destroy "MANY GOOD ALASKAN PEOPLE(s)%u201D Professionally and Politically during her "VERY SHORT" term position as Mayor in a small community Wasilla, Ak (Approx 5,000 + residents during her reign) and currently the Alaska State Governor.

McCain%u2019s V.P. selection Sarah Palin unequivocally has NO business being the Alaska Governor, let alone, a USA Candidate for Vice President%u2026..

Maverick??.....%u201DAMERICA SHOULD BE FEARFULLY CONCERNED%u201D

I voted for Sarah Palin in Alaskans 2006 Governor Election. MISTAKE!.... Never Again%u2026 I repeat-NEVER AGAIN!!....Alaska Governor Palin is an absolute Embarrassment to the Alaska People(s) and "IS PROVEN%u201D Over and Over to be an insatiable LIAR!!..
.
How can she possibly ASSUME to possess the ability to clean up America, when she cannot clean the progressive ''''MESS" She has created, then left Alaska to run for the United States V.P. Yes, she .departed leaving %u201CHERSELF and HER husband todd palins%u201D Mess FOR Alaskans to Clean-Up!!

MCCAIN, you should be ASHAMED of yourself!!!! This victim (palin) has no business in this Presidential Arena.

Posted by: Alaskan Voter
History of Palin News & Investigation Report adn.com/Newsweek
Thank You,

[PhysaliaOS]

I wonder what it would take to add a "None of the Above" option to the ballot?

If that selection won the majority of votes in the National Election, then the election would be a do-over. The current candidates would be disqualified from running again. We could limit the current Administration''s authority to that of a "caretaker" while we get the chance to pick again. The do-over wouldn''t have to be an 18-month process; we could shorten it to just 60 days. Forget about the primaries (why do we limit ourselves to just one from each party - they can all run). But once again, a "None of the Above" would appear on the ballot.

Eventually, with the high personal cost of a campaign, we''d weed out all of the "power hungry" career politicians that are pushed on us by special interest groups, and we''d finally get down to maybe having a list - maybe even a short list of one - authentic Americans who are willing to come to Washington as a part-time calling and return to their lives when their term is over, not begin a career of indebtedness to lobbyists and PACs.

I wonder what it would take to have a referendum process in National elections, where we the people (from the Gettysburg address %u2026 that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth) could proposed legislation, rather that limit that power to members of our corrupt Congress? Could we FINALLY get term limits on Congressmen? They sure aren%u2019t going to support the idea!

[PhysaliaOS]

One statement in the article proclaimed "We''re not only still serious about politics, it remains our favorite contact sport." TRUE!! Unfortunately, it appears that Americans flock to the polls, not to pull the curtain and select the candidate THEY think is the best choice for our country, but rather, like picking a football team in Vegas, Americans flock to the polls to see if the can pick the candidate everyone ELSE is going to pick, so they can be on the winning side.

Way to go, America!

[samthetvcat]

---"Bob Schieffer, You did a great job on the debate. Thanks!"---
Posted by troutfisher4

Oh yeah, Mr. Schieffer your moderating was great! That question about all the negative stuff that had been said about the candidates could have been really awkward, but it was very tastefully done and an important question that nobody else has asked - thanks for getting us some good answers!

[samthetvcat]

---"All those reports that America had lost interest in politics turned out to be dead wrong - just check the TV ratings and the crowds."---

What if it means we''re turning in because we like the entertainment aspect of the election - I''ve never seen candidates appear so often on the covers of People Magazine or on Entertainment Tonight talking about their favorite ice cream and whatnot. And aren''t a lot of people supposedly getting most of their news from like John Stuart''s show and Saturday Night Live?

Even the Primaries were almost like American Idol where every week we got to tune in and see the next installment of the reality show with each of the candidates giving ''transformational'' speeches in either victory or defeat - also an attempt to get people to come out and cast their votes in next week''s contest.

Man, I just pray Barack''s going to end up more Carrie Underwood (able to deliver on the talent displayed during tryouts) than Taylor Hicks (equally talented, but popularity only limited to the art of the quest for votes) . . .

[troutfisher4]

Bob Schieffer,

You did a great job on the debate. Thanks!

[Redoubt]

Nuts? You want nuts?

Here we are, arguably a global superpower on the verge of electing one of two completely unqualified repacements for the current unqualified administration.

We are nuts for supporting any of them, and certifiable for even trying to defend ourselves in doing so.

[upto1947]

Bob Schieffer is a first class nut. He needs to on the paper, toilet paper.

[upto1947]

What Elections Tell Us, That we have nuts running, and that we have more nuts voting for them.

[albertw40]

I always appreciate your insights. They add something positive to the discussion, even when they have to deal with hard issues. And when there is something naturally positive, like today, I leave the site feeling uplifted. Thank you.

[hugo522]

Mister Schieffer,

What amazing is American democracy! Your democratic debates are the most open, free and unpredictable among all democratic countries in the World. Every American must be proud of it. They must also be proud to have to choose as their President between an African-American candidate and a Caucasian-American (if I can use this word). It is really what America is all about. Giving opportunities for all those who are American to do their best for their country.
America is not a perfect country. America is a free country. That is why America can improve. And sometimes dramatically.

P.S. You did a great job in moderating the last debate.Your contribution for American democracy have been recognized by everybody.


Pierre-Hugues Archambault
A Canadian friend