Stupid
Maybe I shouldn’t have said “stupid,” as it seems to have put some people on the back foot. The proposal by Orrin Hatch now being promoted by Arnold Schwarzenegger to allow a foreign-born President has at its root the desire to see a conservative Republican popularly elected (without the intervention of the Supreme Court, that is). My guess is that Senator Hatch doesn’t see George II lasting much longer and figures Arnie as having a good chance in 2008 (whether against Kerry/Edwards or Hilary Clinton, the latter of whom probably scares him very much indeed). That we have a clause in the Constitution prohibiting an alien President is really only there with the excuse that a generational commitment to citizenship is demonstrative of having the best interests of the Union in mind and so that no foreign prince could ascend the American “throne,” but I doubt Schwarzenegger would attempt to merge Austria and the U.S. or install a Hapsburg over us, so it may be that there are other, sufficient clauses in the Constitution to protect the nation from such eventualities. Godel may have formed a mathematical proof that the U.S. Constitution allows for the imposition of a fascist dictatorship, but again, despite his admiration for Kurt Waldheim, I don’t think Arnie’s going there, much as I suspect Hatch, Bush, Cheney, et al. of being desirous of such an alteration, in form if not in name. What I do think is pretty stupid, though, is that we continue to allow these things to happen. Schwarzenegger is a clever man – his political skills were honed in body-building competitions, where he was famous for being able to psychologically devastate his foes – but I doubt his skills as a chief executive. In fact, I think it gives him too much credit to suggest that he even had extensive input into his own campaign for governor. He is a tool: personable and willing, certainly, as is George II; but nothing more, as is the case with George II. Both men were elected and neither deserved it. Undermining the Constitution would continue the stupidity, whether by amending it to create a charismatic candidate from an Austrian actor or by the Supreme Court acting beyond the scope of its powers (let’s not even mention “activist judges,” o.k.?). Unfortunately – and this is the really stupid part – too many Americans don’t hold their representatives in government to a sufficiently high standard; they’re not even voting. The usual rule is that 10% of a population cause 90% of the problems, but we appear to be operating in the reverse. If only 20% vote, we can’t expect a worthwhile result. Davis may not have been much better in office than a carved block of wood and Gore may have exhibited campaigning skills of a similar order, but if we’re not more of us out there at every election and paying attention to what’s going on in between, we might as well have that dictatorship, fascist, Hapsburg, or Bush.