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February/March 2005
Message From the President
Are President Bush’s Values the Nation’s Values?
Paul Kurzman, ACSW, PhD
With the Presidential election now at a sufficient distance for reasoned reflection, I have been thinking more about why President Bush won, and what it will mean for our profession, and for the clients we serve. While I am sure some NASW members voted for President Bush, rather than Senator Kerry (and this is the great privilege we all enjoy in a democracy) consistent with NASW PACE’s endorsement, I voted for John Kerry.
The senator’s support for mental health parity, proper funding for
“No Child Left Behind”, opposition to the privatization of
Medicare and Social Security, and his firm support for women’s reproductive
rights were among his positions that I found persuasive. In short,
I found Senator Kerry’s moral values were closer to those of the
social work profession than those of his opponent.
Many pundits, however, claim that President Bush won because he more closely
reflected the values of the American people. I would challenge this
notion. These experts tell us further that the President’s
support for a Constitutional Amendment and for State bans on same-sex
marriage made the big difference in the election. But the facts
suggest something different. For example, a provision to ban gay
marriage won easily in Oregon, yet the clear majority of Oregon voters
cast their ballot for Senator Kerry. Political scientists at Stanford
have in fact concluded that the presence of these “marriage initiatives”
on state ballots did not help Bush win in states that he otherwise would
have lost. That idea is simply a myth. (One cannot help but
note an irony here. If marriage is the “gold standard”
for adult relationships among Bush supporters, why wouldn’t they
want it as a standard for everyone?)
While I claim no expertise in political science, I think the reason why
Bush was reelected is because most of the American people did not
feel comfortable in November with making a leadership change. If
one takes a look at the reasons for the defeat of recent Presidential
incumbents, they generally can be found in the electorate’s interest,
even eagerness, for a change. This is why most experts feel that
Kennedy beat Nixon, Carter bested Ford, and Clinton defeated Bush [41].
I think the reason President Bush won this election can best be expressed
in two words: September 11th. According to an ABC national
poll, on Election Day, the majority of voters “felt America was
safer now than before 9/11”. Whether that was true or not,
America had not been attacked in the three years which followed, and the
American people gave President Bush the credit. The election came
down to a referendum on terrorism – not on moral values.
Most voters, I think, were reluctant to change the captain of their ship
during a continuing storm, even if they felt the ship might well be headed
in the wrong direction. Just as Americans reelected FDR for an unprecedented
fourth term during the height of World War II, they again felt safer with
the leader they knew than with one who had not yet taken a turn at the
helm.
For us, as social workers, the “good news” – if that
is a fair term to use – was noted recently on the editorial page
of the conservative Wall Street Journal with the following headline:
“Poll Finds Lack Of Support For President’s Policies, But
Respect For His Traits In A Crisis.“