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Last week I wrote about my excitement over the Wisconsin primary this past Tuesday. What I didn't confess was how much I agonized about which candidate I would vote for.
I was raised Republican by devout Catholic parents, who were originally Democrats in the late 60's through 1979, when I was born. My father, a Reagan Conservative, instilled his political values in me at the ripe age of five years old. I could barely read or write, but I knew the difference between a Democrat and a Republican. One of my earliest memories is when my father quoted Ronald Reagan, saying, "I didn't leave the Democratic Party. The party left me."
My father admitted he disliked Ronald Reagan when he ran for President in 1976 against incumbent, Gerald Ford. His dismay over Ford's alleged involvement in the Watergate scandal, and his disgust with the pardoning of Richard Nixon by Ford, led my father to vote for Jimmy Carter.
But it was during Carter's administration that the economy suffered double-digit inflation, oil shortages, high unemployment and slow economic growth; which prompted my father to give Ronald Reagan a second chance in 1980. Out went the party of JFK, in came the Reagan Revolution.
Through the years since 1980, my parents discussed important conservative values with me and my siblings. One of those values was upholding the sanctity of human life. As Catholics, we believe that life begins at conception. While my father discussed the economy and the Cold War at the dinner table, it was my mother who taught us the importance of waiting until marriage before bringing children into this world. I think it was the fear of God, and what my mother (and father) would do to me (and a boyfriend) if I became pregnant out of wedlock, that kept me virtuous.
Knowing my upbringing I'm certain you can understand my loyalty to my party. I've been a Republican all my life. It's what I know.
It's fair to say that my parents sheltered me from things they felt I couldn't handle. I was in junior high when the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal broke out and my mother turned the channel each time "the stained dress" was discussed on the news. Later in high school, my father demanded to know what I was learning in civics and history classes. If the lessons seemed biased, he sent me back to class with a list of counter arguments and questions for my teachers to explain and answer. He wanted to be certain I was hearing both sides of the story.
If I didn't understand a political issue, my father would pass the newspaper and tell me to read every article on the subject. We watched the news every evening. I read every Rush Limbaugh book my father recommended. We subscribed to conservative magazines and newspapers. I read the biographies of past presidents starting with the current office holder and working my way backwards, because of my father's influence. (I got to Franklin Roosevelt and then I needed a break.)
But the most valuable lesson my father taught me was to think for myself. "Gather the facts," he'd say. "Do your research. Then, make your decision, and stand by your choice." And more importantly, "You better be able to back it up."
What does this have to do with voting, you ask? Everything.
In order for me to choose which candidate I thought was best, I had to reflect on who I was. I had to make a list of which issues were important to me. I had to think of my future, my husband's future, my son's future.
Three weeks ago I wrote the following here at BlogHer:
"The first election I was legally able to vote in was 2000. I voted for George W. Bush because I let my disgust for Bill Clinton taint my image of Al Gore. In 2004, I re-elected Bush because I had given birth to my son two months prior and couldn't elect John Kerry. He didn't seem concerned with ending abortion. But in the past four years, the Republican party has failed me, and I feel pulled toward the Democratic party instead."
Little did I know then, that I would vote for Barack Obama on February 19th, but I did. And I've got plenty of reasons to back it up.
I've matured a lot in eight years. I
