Just Make Up Your Mind

"They have the potential to control the fate of the world. They look just like everybody else, and they live among us. Nobody knows what they are thinking or what they will do. They are the... Undecideds."

No, that's not an ad for Hollywood's latest blockbuster. It's a description of the most inexplicable demographic in American elections. Others may talk about rich voters, poor voters, white collar, blue collar, African-American, Caucasian, older or younger voters. But for me the most interesting group are those who still haven't made up their minds. And of course, my big question for them is, "What are you waiting for?"

I understand and respect people who want to get to know as much as possible about a candidate before deciding how to vote. They don't just want to vote for a Democrat or a Republican because of party affiliation, or for a liberal or a conservative because of political philosophy. They want to get to know the candidates before they make their decision. But how well do they have to get to know these people?

This campaign has been going on for two years. What is left to learn about the candidates? We know about their marriages, where they went to school, how they dress, and their views on every subject. We know more about them than the people we're going to walk to the polls with.

How many of you waited to fall in love until you checked out everything that special person had said or done since they were born? How many of you forced your spouse to debate that rival you liked twenty times before you made your choice? When you were a kid deciding who was going to be your best friend on the playground, did you insist on seeing all the kids' tax returns?

I'm not saying that voting for the possible president is an unimportant decision. But I am saying that it seems that by this point, people should know everything they could possibly want to know about the three candidates. At the beginning of this month, nearly 4 out of 10 Democratic voters in North Carolina said they were undecided. What's left to learn about Obama and Clinton? Their favorite pizza topping?

Jenna Bush just revealed on "Larry King Live" that she's not sure who she's voting for. What do you think she's waiting for?

All right, maybe it's possible that some people have gone back and forth between Obama and Clinton because their positions on most issues are so similar. But how do you explain all the people who are deciding between McCain and one of the Democratic candidates? This time around, it is such a clear choice, the Republicans and Democrats have such different positions, that I don't know how someone could feel that it's a coin toss for them. They're almost the opposite of each other on so many issues. When the Undecideds go to dinner do they say to themselves, "I'm either going to have something really bland or the spiciest thing on the menu?" Are they torn about their vacation plans? "I'm either going to backpack in the Sahara or get a suite at the Four Seasons." Are they saying to themselves, "I don't know what to do tonight. I'm either going to watch 'American Idol' or read Proust?"

Again, those who defend the Undecideds might compliment them on their deliberation. However, when interviewed, many of the Undecideds say things like, "I don't know who I'm going to vote for. I guess I'll decide once I get into the voting booth," or "I'll see what my heart tells me on that Tuesday." In other words, many of them aren't actually going to make a particularly informed decision after all this time. They're just going with their gut, which they could've done months ago.

Maybe the Undecideds like being wooed. Maybe they like being talked about on the endless political talk shows. Or maybe they just can't make up their minds. That is their right. And they certainly make a political race interesting. I just hope I'm never behind one of them in a buffet line while they're deciding what to take for their dinner. I might starve to death.

Monica Lewinsky, God, And The Campaign

It never occurred to me that the Monica Lewinsky Affair would be a part of this Presidential campaign, and I certainly never thought it would be brought up by Hillary Clinton. I was wrong. At the recent "Compassion Forum" at Messiah College, without using Lewinsky's name, Senator Clinton alluded to the pain she went through because of Bill's affair. In terms that must have been clear to everyone who watched, Clinton said that her faith helped her get through her very public struggle and challenge. Those who are both for and against Senator Clinton agreed that she was obviously referring to the Lewinsky affair. She certainly wasn't talking about the pain of standing in the express line at the supermarket when the guy in front of her had eleven items instead of ten. So, why would she want to make the public think of Monica Lewinsky at this time?

I may be cynical, but I think there's a very simple answer. Despite that the separation of church and state is one of our country's basic principles, in recent years the line between the two institutions has become more and more obscured. Today it seems to be a requirement that politicians are not just religious, but that they are more religious than their opponents. For whatever reason, John McCain showed the good sense to skip the "Compassion Forum," but I guess the Democratic race is too close for either of them to take a chance of letting the other one get ahead in the God-off.

By bringing up the Lewinsky mess, I think Senator Clinton was saying, "My faith is greater than Obama's. In fact, it's so great, it even helped me forgive my jerk of a husband. Try to top that, Barack."

This Presidential campaign has been riddled with religion. We've had the flap with Obama's minister. Then there have been the false rumors spread about Barack being a Muslim. Hillary Clinton has said that speaking about her Methodist upbringing publicly does not come naturally to her. She has said this publicly over and over again. I don’t think there has been so much talk of religion in a campaign since the Nixon-Kennedy race in 1960. Of course, Kennedy assured the nation that his faith wouldn't be involved with his political decisions. Today, candidates seem compelled to assure the country of the exact opposite.

Have you ever heard of Messiah College before? I haven't. How would you like to have to play them in basketball? Your team probably wouldn't have a prayer. And imagine the looks you'd get, walking around with a sweatshirt that says, "Messiah" on it. It sounds a tad bit extreme, doesn't it?

But there was no way Obama and Clinton would have missed this event. At the "forum," Senator Clinton was actually asked, "Do you think God wants you to be President?" What do you think the Founding Fathers would have thought of that question?

How did we get to this point? Certainly, President Bush deserves some of the credit. Too many times, he has characterized the war in Iraq as a holy war. According to him, we represent all that is "Good," and we are fighting "Evil." The President seems unaware of the irony that these are the same words that those we are fighting have used to characterize themselves and their fight.

Both Democratic candidates represent themselves as agents of change. Apparently, this change doesn't apply when it comes to religion in politics. Skipping the Compassion Forum or telling reporters throughout the campaign that their religious beliefs are none of anybody's business would've been ways to demonstrate their sincerity about change.

Maybe the candidates have rationalized it as just one more thing they have to do to win – like kissing babies, bowling, or eating Philly cheesesteaks. But wanting to win so badly is no excuse for ignoring one of the most sacred, oops! I mean, important principles of our democracy.

Senator Clinton's desire to win is so great that she now exploits what was probably the most humiliating event in her life. And it's a shame, because it was an event that she handled with so much dignity at the time. But dignity walked out of this campaign months ago. Now it's all about winning. And I'd say that Clinton wants to win so badly that it shouldn't shock any of us if someday soon we see a commercial for Hillary that ends with, "This is Monica Lewinsky, and I have approved this ad."