Voting A.B.B.

by Ruth A. Sheets

The latest of many many polls has the upcoming presidential election essentially tied.  I find that incredible. Generally, an incumbent is reelected when he does a good job, that is, improves the economy from the time he took office, ends an established war, passes legislation to support the middle class, and takes care of the poor to some extent.

President Obama’s reelection should not even be in question this year since he presided over a country whose stock market rose more than 5,000 points, pushed a health care program which, although not perfect, does increase significantly the number of people who will be covered, and designed a stimulus program that employed a lot of folks to improve our infrastructure.  He also has championed a tax reform that would increase the share the haves will contribute and gives extra money to the middle class who will spend it to help the economy.  He is continuing the war in Afghanistan, but has ended involvement in Iraq.  His support of veterans far exceeds anything by previous presidents.  He wants to get us to the top of the world in energy and innovation.

So how can he be tied with someone who has no clue about the life that more than 99% of the population lives, who is a war hawk with no experience of what such hawkishness will cost, who has no concrete idea of what would build the economy?  Mitt Romney is not even in the same league as President Obama in his ability to empathize with Americans.  He believes that he got where he is only through hard work and his own brilliance (which, of course, he didn’t; it was his family’s wealth that gave him the leg up).

Why would poor folks even consider Mitt Romney? He thinks that the programs in place are sufficient to help the poor, and are even harmful since they promote laziness and a bad work ethic?  Why would women support someone who is in favor of restricting all kinds of rights for women?  Why would small business people support someone who has no sense of how valuable government support of company start-ups is?  Why would any public worker like police, fire fighters, teachers, etc. support someone who, along with his party, blames these workers for being the vampires who are sucking the life out of the economy?

What is it that Romney supporters see in him, a mediocre politician, businessman, and governor? 

I believe it is not so much what they see, but what they do not see.  The antipathy of many Americans toward President Obama is directly related to his racial mixture.  He is self-identified as African-American. 

Some of the Romney supporters tried him four years ago and were expecting miracles.  If one looks at his record, it does not include miracles, but some significant achievements.  President Obama got one chance.  He did not give every American exactly what they wanted, so he is branded a failure.  A minority person gets only one chance and the results must be amazing or, kick him out.

On a smaller playing field, I have experienced this phenomenon.  As a seriously visually-impaired person, I have known since childhood that to be seen as equal with non-disabled persons, I have to be very much better at whatever I am doing.  When I make a mistake, it is not like a non-disabled person’s mistake.  I must fear for my job, position, or reputation.  Asking for help is seen as a significant, sometimes crippling weakness.   Then the double whammy hits.   When I am better at something, the resentment of people around me can be isolating and painful.

Being the first of anything is hard, but in this culture, being black and first is nearly impossible, even for someone as talented as Barack Obama.  If he can’t be painted as incompetent, a fool, or some other stereotype of African-Americans, he is called an elitist.  He gets the double whammy too. 

So, why do so many people support Mitt Romney? People who have no economic or political reason to?  The answer, no matter how inept Romney is, he isn’t black and there are a lot of people who vote A.B.B, Anything But Black.