Each presidential election cycle, we see politicians rushing around posturing by switching parties. In the past few weeks, we have seen Alabama Sen. Jerry Fielding go public to deny he was switching to the Republican Party, only to read the very next day that he had done just that. So much for the integrity of this retired circuit judge who gladly accepts Democratic support all his political life only to throw his party under the bus.
Of course, as is always the case, he had to be concerned about the lack of support for Democratic President Obama and the potential danger that imposed. I also recall another Talladega County jurist who switched from the Republican Party to the Democrats in 1994 — a terrible move since that was the year that Republican Newt Gingrich and his organization seized control of the Congress.
Is it unreasonable to demand more character and integrity from our elected officials? Shouldn’t we be able to take a politician for what he appears? Sometimes it would almost seem that our elected officials have a closet with two wardrobes: Democratic and Republican, applicable to which way the political wind is blowing that day — pledges and loyalty oaths notwithstanding.
Please, on Election Day, closely scrutinize the candidate’s personal integrity. How much does his word really count?
James W. Anderson
Talladega
