Sunday, December 21, 2008
Camelot Barbie Chronicles: The Voting Record Red Herring
by W. T. Howes
The New York Daily News created some buzz in the press and on the web when it obtained and released the official record of Caroline Kennedy’s voting history. Their analysis was that she had missed nearly half of the elections that she has been eligible to vote in since she registered to vote in New York. Frankly, this is a red herring. Instead we need to focus on her lack of experience and learn what we can about her policy positions.
Caroline Kennedy has only voted in half of the elections in which she was eligible to vote since registering in New York, according to The New York Daily News. Big deal. The key to this little statistic is that almost all of the elections that she missed were primaries. You don’t need a PhD in Political Science from Harvard to know that almost all primary elections are uncontested. It is hardly a sin to miss voting in an uncontested primary election. It is hardly unusual either. (That being said, I never miss voting in even an uncontested election.)
The voting record analysis is a red herring. The focus should be on her lack of experience and any policy positions we can discern.
From what we can see so far, she is an unabashed West Side Lib:
Gay marriage - SUPPORTS
Gun control - BRING IT ON
Union card check - SUPPORTS
Immigration - Supports the Kennedy-McCain Plan (Go figure)
