America and Election 2000 essays

America and Election 2000 essays Unless you have been hibernating in a cave somewhere off the coast of Madagascar for the past six and a half months, you know about and have experienced the historical year 2000 presidential election. Since day one there has been mass coverage not only of the candidates, but also of their families, friends, and business associates. One periodical that did an excellent job of covering the facts about this election, especially between November 8th and November 19th, was the New York Times. The editorials and op-editorials in this newspaper were powerful opinion pieces that questioned political position, the Separation of Powers, and the responsibility of the candidates. These editorials and op-editorials finally gave the nation an inside look at what was going on behind the scenes and what was happening during the election. First I would like to discuss the responsibility of the candidates. What exactly is responsibility? Does Vice President Al Gore or Governor Bush display this quality of leadership? According to the New Lexicon Webster's Encyclopedic Dictionary of the English Language, responsibility is the state or quality of being in control or having to give satisfaction and through the eyes of Mr. Leon Panetta, neither candidate is truly worthy. After reading Mr. Panetta's article, I sensed that there seemed to be an aura of pettiness surrounding this campaign. That both candidates were taking issues and situations to the extreme. Basically, that no one was ready to take the role of the defeated. In turn a nation full of people are suffering from the egos of two men who want to be the leader of the country, but aren't giving satisfaction to the nation. Therefore are these two men living up to their "responsibilities," or are they only being selfish and looking out for themselves? Leon Panetta, former White House chief of staff under President Clinton (1994-1997), writes in his November 14th op-editorial that, ASo far both (A...