Diversity thwarts GOP's `Big Tent'
Gary Caruso
Capitol Comments
It must be a leap year! Following this column's last publication, an article contending institutionalized bigotry within the Republican Party, I received an avalanche of e-mails that rivaled the recent great Internet hacking attacks on Amazon and eBay. Positions ran about half and half, but they did tilt slightly in disagreement with my opinions. They were typical of the Notre Dame community of the 1990s.
Twenty-five years ago, the student body was overwhelmingly liberal-thinking and Democratic leaning, in opposition to the Vietnam War and seeking a better life full of tolerance and peaceful coexistence. Today's students are predominately conservative and Republican, a reflection of the changing times. I too am more moderate today, changing from the height of my liberalism. However, the diversity of the Democratic Party keeps me from wondering over to the mythical "Big Tent" Republicans have tried to sell the American public.
Republican chairman Jim Nicholson zeroed in on the "pandering" of Vice President Al Gore and former Senator Bill Bradley who debated at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. What Nicholson sees as courting to the special interests of African Americans is in the eyes of Democrats the inclusion of those whose history in this country has been marked by discrimination. My dictionary defines "pandering" as the courting of a group that "excludes" an element of society like the practices of fundamentalists from Bob Jones University.
Several of the e-mails I received asked if the entire student body should be held accountable for the actions of the administration. Some went so far as to ask if Notre Dame students should be compared to students at Bob Jones since Notre Dame administrators insist on denying gay and lesbian student groups recognition, advertising and meeting on campus. My answer is a clear and unequivocal "yes."
When a student accepts Notre Dame, that student accepts everything that comes with the adventure in South Bend ... poor football, great women's basketball, upcoming men's basketball, parietals, exclusively single-sex dorms, a prohibition against birth control, gays, pro-choice advocacy and Satan worshipers. I can recall when students in the mid-1980s protested until the dining halls brought back Cap'n Crunch cereal. Yesterday Cap'n Crunch, today tolerance and inclusion.
Many of my e-mails protested my contention that Republican presidential contender Texas Governor George W. Bush courted the bigoted, right-wing vote in South Carolina. Since then, Bush has publicly lamented that he could have handled the matter better. What Bush forgot was that a presidential candidate is sometimes louder when he does not speak. When Bush's rhetoric did not disavow BJU policy, the symbolism suggested support for the Bob Jones bigotry against Catholics. Bush's blunder has alienated many northern voters and most of New England.
President Clinton is a new Democrat who single-handedly revived the Democratic Party with his centrist views. His moderate stands and his inclusion of women and minorities has made the government a reflection of American society. However, 15 of his judicial nominees are stalled in the partisan Republican-led Senate.
Yet, for the first time in many years, Democratic appointees on the bench exceed Republicans 389 to 386. According to the Alliance for Justice, the 13 Federal Circuit Courts of Appeal have 99 Democrats and 81 Republicans. Clinton is responsible for more diversity on the bench than ever before, having appointed 57 African Americans, 20 Latinos and 100 women by the close of 1999.
But for all that, Republicans still control the Federal judiciary partly because the Republican Party was a monolithic, and somewhat racist party under Ronald Reagan and George Bush. Presently, nine of the appeals courts and the U.S. Supreme Court are majority Republican. Fewer African American appellate judges sit on the bench today than when Jimmy Carter left office 20 years ago.
More than half the circuit courts have either no African American or no Latino jurists, according to the alliance study. Despite a substantial minority population of Latinos and African Americans in the three largely southern circuits, only two of the 40 appeals judges are African Americans.
Tonight John McCain and Bush square off in Virginia, Washington and North Dakota. Expect Bush to get the better of the three contests. Tomorrow, Al Gore and Bill Bradley debate in California. Thursday, the Republicans debate there. Next week, on Super Tuesday, Al Gore and George Bush will nail the lids closed on the nominations.
When I think of a compassionate conservative who is a leader, I think of Bill Clinton who brought his party from the left and included more women and minorities in government than presidents Reagan and Bush combined. When I think of government executives who get results, I think of Clinton and Al Gore, who have guided a national economy and society to the greatest prosperity in this nation's history. The reason so many governors have been able to reform programs and cut taxes is due to the robust economy and the willingness of the current administration to experiment with welfare and education on the state level.
Vice President Gore tells a great story about Republican kittens for sale. After two weeks, the owner crossed off the word "Republican" and wrote "Democratic kittens." When asked about the change, he replied, "That's because the kittens now have their eyes open." Talk about a big tent.
Gary J. Caruso, '73, is serving in President Clinton's administration as a congressional and public affairs director and is currently assisting Vice President Gore's White House Empowerment Commission. His column appears every other Tuesday.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Viewpoint Stories for Tuesday, February 29, 2000
