Stay with the Family

Is it hypocrisy or something else entirely? Coverage of President Obama's trip to Russia was sidelined a bit this week seeing as how the funeral for the late Michael Jackson took up much of the early part of the week. Still, those who follow the political news front fairly regularly seem to be having a field day of sorts with the fact that Obama took his family along with him for his trip. And if one is to read the comments section of an article (any article) covering this trip then you'll see just how much voice and partisanism exists out there. Maybe I'm just noticing it because it appears to have become a major talking point for all politicians in the last eight years but partisanism isn't something I noticed to this degree in years past but it's certainly alive and well in the American public as well as in the government.

In case you're wondering what I mean it has to do with the fact that Obama took his wife and daughters along with him to Russia for his meeting with President Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin. What appears to be the issue is that Republicans (or Conservatives or Right wingers as they are often referred to in comments sections) are claiming hypocrisy on Democrats (or Dems, or leftists, or socialists as they are often referred to in comments sections) for condemning Sarah Palin when news of her taking her kids along on visits around the nation while praising Obama for taking his children along on a trip to Russia. In addition, many who hate Obama see him as flagrantly spending taxpayer money in order to take his family along while 'hard working Americans' are homeless and jobless.

For those sad people I would simply say that if you have the time to post such comments to news articles online in the comfort of anonymity afforded by the internet then you aren't part of the 'hard working Americans' that are suffering from joblessness or homelessness. If you were then I don't think you'd be spending time on the internet trolling the news articles to post such detremental comments. This lashing applies to supporters of both parties. What difference does it make in the end what your opinion is on the matter. If you want to make it then put your name out there and make it, don't hide behind some random letter or ambiguous title condemning the person you don't support. Put your name out there and tell people what your opinion is. You'll see how fast people end the posting of such complaints.

But that's not the issue; the issue here is whether Obama was right in taking his daughters along with him or not and whether it was hypocritical of people who condemned Palin to praise Obama. I don't believe it is and I'll explain why. According to news reports made by most media outlets, Palin had her children accompany her on trips on occasion and this was taken care of by Alaskan taxpayers; where the issue comes up is that she took them along (and expected taxpayers or her hosts) to pay for her children when they weren't even invited to the event in the first place. In this case the Russian government has made arrangements to show the girls parts of Russia as well while their parents were going around and making political meetings.

What's wrong in that? I don't think there's anything wrong in it. Now some claim that Obama is simply using his children as publicity items meant to generate further support in the polls. Well is that any different than Palin who paraded her loving family on stage with her at most major poltical rallies that were shown on television or in the media? Didn't they have their time in the spotlight as well? But why stop at Palin; she's no longer even Governor and is now among Joe Six-Pack. Hasn't every President in recent history paraded their children around the world with them as ambassadors of goodwill? I don't think anyone can claim that they haven't.

It's a slippery slope that the President runs; and I mean any President, not just the current or former President or Presidents well in the past. They are expected to be in the public's eye but they are also expected to maintain some level of family connection. Now didn't the scion of the Republicans in the last decade (George W. Bush) spend enough time with his family? How many trips were made to the ranch in Crawford, Texas or how many times was he seen spending time with his family? Isn't it a good thing to keep a person grounded? I mean after all, although these people have been President, aren't they at the end of the day, just like you and me? Don't they want to kick back with their families as well?

To me the issue isn't whether or not taxpayer money is being 'wasted' but rather what sort of image it is sending to the world. By taking his children to Europe, Obama is exposing them to the world as a whole. Didn't it inspire Barbara Bush (W's daughter) to write a book that was appreciated in many circles dealing with AIDS in Africa? It's a slippery slope because to the world will either see him as someone with good family values in wanting to expose his children to the other parts of the world or he will be seen as someone who is only interested in pushing his own agenda. Whatever the case may be or whatever side you tend to support, all I know is that the schism that has occurred between what people see as good family values has degenerated into what political party you tend to support.