February 16, 1997

Why George Washington Distrusted Political Parties

We approach George Washington's birthday -- squeezed in with that of our other great president, Abraham Lincoln – as the presidential institution reels from grievous abuses. More's the pity, for our first president warned us in his Farewell Address of consequences stemming from the evils of political partisanship. His key word is "revenge."

The modern era of political revenge began toward Richard Nixon for a bit of "jackassery" ballooned into a "constitutional crisis" called Watergate. Today, Bill Clinton is plagued by a series of scandals dubbed Whitewater which he hopes won't result in impeachment.

In between Nixon and Clinton we had retaliations involving House Speakers Jim Wright and Newt Gingrich, Supreme Court nominees Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas, Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Jimmy Carter. President Ronald Reagan escaped Iran-Contra by the skin of his teeth.

George Washington sought in his farewell to give his countrymen one last piece of advice:

"I have already intimated to you the danger of parties, with particular reference to the founding of them on geographical discriminations. Let me now warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the spirit of party generally.

"It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less stifled, controlled, or repressed. In those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness and is truly their worst enemy.

"The alternate domination of one faction over another -- sharpened by the spirit of revenge natural to party dissension -- is a frightful despotism.

"This leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual.

"Sooner or later, the chief of some prevailing faction -- more able or more fortunate than his competitors -- turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation or the ruins of public liberty.

"It serves always to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration. It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another. "It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption which find a facilitated access to the government itself through the channels of party passions."

We saw the beginning of this revenge process in the election of Nixon. He rose to public notice as chairman of the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947. He successfully prosecuted and imprisoned Alger Hiss for giving State Department secrets to the Soviet Union. Hiss was president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace when communism was fashionable among liberal intellectuals.

Then, as a winning presidential candidate, Nixon took away the Democrats' geographic stronghold with his "southern strategy." To this day, Democrats have not given up trashing Nixon.

As Nixon changed the ideological bent of the Supreme Court from liberal to conservative, liberals in and outside Congress mounted false and malicious campaigns to defeat his judicial nominees -- Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas being notable examples.

Finally, it was a liberal press that brought down Nixon for trying to cover up a break-in at the Democratic National Committee office. Stupid. But no public money was embezzled. No one got hurt or committed suicide. No illegal foreign bribes were solicited. Nevertheless, Nixon resigned one-step away from an impeachment trial by revengeful Democrats.

The feud continued when revengeful Republicans -- led by Congressman Newt Gingrich -- hounded Speaker Jim Wright into resigning. The American Federation of Labor got even in the last election by demonizing Gingrich with a broadside of negative advertising. He finally was nailed with the last of 434 ethics charges -- 433 having been dismissed as unfounded or frivolous. Milk companies should put Gingrich's picture on their cartons, for he seems to have disappeared. Clinton's turn in the revenge cycle is coming up real soon. In addition to the various Whitewater charges, he must explain why illegal, foreign donations were accepted from the Chinese embassy and Indonesian bankers.

That spinning noise you hear is the Father of Our Country in his grave.

It is fair to say that the victims of political revenge sometimes get what they deserve. Yet, we need to assess the get-even attitude which spawns relentless investigations of each other by our major political parties. Congressional hearings, independent counsels, and newspaper revelations are destroying faith in the federal government.

Reform must start within the political parties. They must insist on squeaky-clean candidates of unquestioned integrity. These will come forward only when the revenge machine is turned off.

Let Clinton be the last scoundrel.

PARTING SHOTS

Americans either get the kind of leaders they deserve, or deserve the kind they get.

* * *

Mr. and Mrs. Clinton attended a prayer breakfast last week during which they admitted "trying to get even" with Republicans "for being so mean to them." Some one should tell the Clintons that salvation comes only after repentance.

* * *

Democrats are caught between a rock and a hard place. They threaten to filibuster a request for $6.5 million by Sen. Fred Thompson, chairman of the Executive Oversight Committee, to investigate illegal contributions in the last election. Democrats want to allow only $1.5 million.

Thompson cheerfully acquiesces -- saying that with limited funds he will have to focus on Democrats only.

By Lindsey Williams, columnist for Sun Coast Media Group newspapers