Steve's Stand on Principle

"In 1993-1994, I observed one senator closely as he cast several votes he obviously didn't believe in. One time, he came up to me, noticing the disapproval on my face, and said, 'Paul, understand, I have to get through this election.' This senator had served many distinguished years. I especially admired his ability to manage a bill on the floor. He was thoughtful, articulate, and a great debater. He was a great senator. And yet he was a shell of himself and miserably unhappy that election year. And he lost.

"I remember thinking to myself: The worst thing would be to lose your dignity, to vote against your convictions, and lose the next election anyway."-- Senator Paul Wellstone, The Conscience of a Liberal

One question that comes up for any candidate for public office is the relationship between the constituent and the office holder. There are some who argue that the office holder is little more than a vessel to act in a way the majority of the people want, and others insist that public opinion has no bearing upon their actions whatsoever. While I do feel that the opinions of a constituency matter, I think that ultimately the elected official must have the courage of his/her own convictions and act upon those guiding principles.

The only way this can happen it through transparency and honesty. One example of how not to do this is the current Republican spin on tax cuts and revenue. They argue that tax cuts can be made without any fear of consequences because the economy will be so stimulated that tax cuts will pay for themselves. However, there is no credible economist who agrees with this, and his is justified because evidence has shown that these have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too arguments just don't work, at least at our current levels of taxation. Therefore, any candidate who says that he/she is going to cut taxes and raise spending in a state with a balanced budget amendment is not acting out of principle or respecting his/her constituency enough to tell them the truth.

A true stand for principles involves telling the hard truths, regardless of how it will affect the next election. The voters deserve nothing less than total honesty and candor from candidates, and this is something I will deliver. This is why I have answered every questionnaire I received, even if I knew that it would result in a low score, with the exception of Life Gauge, which didn't give a survey at all, but attempted to extort promises out of candidates.

However, this does not mean that one has to keep the exact same positions from here to eternity. Sometimes, the situation changes or we learn more and realize that our position must change as well. I know that my political positions have changed on more than one issue since I was 18, but if this happens, I will show enough respect for voters to explain why such changes occurred. I realize that the only way to avoid stagnation is to keep an open mind, but you can count on me refusing to betray my conscience and the people who elected me by saying only what I think people want to hear.

This is not simply a quixotic stand upon my part. This is also a proven winning political formula. In 2004, Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) barely won Wisconsin in the 2004 Presidential election while Senator Russ Feingold (D-Wisc.) carried the state by 10 points in his re-election bid. This is because too many people said that they didn't know what Kerry stood for, while Feingold made his positions clear. This is a lesson that should be learned by anyone who would advocate a politics of timidity. You cannot expect people to stand up for you if you won't stand up for yourself. I will stand up for myself and the people of the 12th District, not special interest or focus group politics.