Conservatives have shown disloyal opposition

Thank you to columnist Charles Krauthammer for a lesson in American democracy ("It's Nonsense to Suggest the Country Is Ungovernable," Feb. 20). The country is governable provided we elect leaders willing to govern.

I agree that President Barack Obama, as Mr. Krauthammer says, failed to "sell" the country on the need for health care reform. But the blame is not solely the administration's. Mr. Obama wrongly trusted our supposed leaders from both sides of the aisle to actually govern in the best interest of the country. Instead we got sausage cooked up by a mess of interests -- not in the best interest of the country. So, let's agree that the system worked. All parties in leadership failed.

What distresses me most is that conservatives seem to seek out every real and imagined cause for impugning this White House. Where is the respect for the office? Where is the civil benefit-of-the-doubt that perhaps Mr. Obama may be right about some things? To me theirs is not a loyal opposition. On the contrary, it is a disloyal opposition that punishes those who break rank and unhesitatingly judges negatively.

Get off the soapbox and get to work creating the future for this country. That means changing -- it may even require accepting that some ideas from this administration may be right.

 

JIM LENKNER
Park Place