Badin vs. Fredericktown
Miamisburg graduation 2012
Valley View vs. Greenville
Ellen Belcher is the Dayton Daily News opinion pages editor. She writes about state government, education, the environment, higher education and all things Dayton.
Martin Gottlieb is an editorial writer and columnist for the Dayton Daily News opinion pages. He focuses on the political process itself and does such national issues as war, the economy, taxes and Social Security, as well as a hodge-podge of local and state issues.Home > Blogs > A Matter of Opinion > Archives > 2011 > January > 17 > Entry
Editorial: Obama, Boehner hit right chords after Tucson
It is perhaps a measure of the general good fortune of this society that the Tucson massacre has seized the attention of the nation, to the point of prompting an evening presidential speech five days later pre-empting normal television and to the point of prompting a national discussion about the nature of our politics.
After all, in some places, horrors the size of that in Tucson are common.
President Barack Obama recognized
that the event might be comparable to 9/11, obviously not in scope, but in the potential for bringing the country together.
There’s a certain irony in that, of course, because the first political impact of the massacre was to set off an appalling descent into finger-pointing and countercharges.
The president recognized that the country wanted something else. He delivered a speech that could hardly fail to move, ending with a memorable peroration about the little girl who was killed. He spoke of her idealism, her budding recognition of government, her assumption that her congresswoman must be a good person, a potential role model.
“She saw all this,” he said, “through the eyes of a child, undimmed by the cynicism or vitriol that we adults all too often just take for granted.”
“I want to live up to her expectations,” he said. “I want our democracy to be as good as Christina imagined it.” A good hope. Also worth noting is a public statement by new House Speaker John Boehner, of West Chester. That he shed tears surprised no one, of course. But it was good for country to see him shed tears for Democrats. That offered hope that things aren’t quite as far gone in Washington as they sometimes seem to be.
When Speaker Boehner spoke of a young congressional aide who was killed in the massacre, he referred to him as “one of our own.” He meant it. Some old-timers were reminded of a time when Capitol Hill was something of a community, when people were bound together by shared interests. It’s not nearly so true today.
Like the president, the speaker avoided the mud fight about who might be blamed for the shooting and who is trying to make political hay out of it.
Even before he spoke, Speaker Boehner was being given good marks by Democrats for the spirit with which he had dealt with the tragedy.
Ultimately, perhaps, one impact of Tucson will be to remind people who participate in politics for a living that politics is one boat, and that they are all in it, that they have more in common with each other than with people who aren’t engaged.
To some outside Washington, the very possibility of people in different parties having warm feelings for each other is a threat, evidence that some entity called “the people” is being forgotten by the political establishment. But often they mean not “the” people, but my people, the good ones, as opposed to the bad ones.
Soon enough, Washingtonians will return to their old fights. But for a while, at least, maybe some of them will be able to look at each other a little differently.
Meanwhile, it should not be forgotten that the politicians are not the only players in the nation’s political discourse. The vitriol and demonizing will continue so long as that behavior finds a market. The people have to send a message — a sustained message — about what they want.
TweetPlease share your comments on our facebook page.
