American Theocracy Revisited

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/29/opinion/american-theocracy-revisited.html?_r=1&scp=4&sq=douthat&st=cse

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: barry levine 
Date: Mon, Aug 29, 2011 at 11:31 AM
Subject: re: American Theocracy Revisited
To: letters@nytimes.com


To the Editor:

  Mr. Douthat urges us to take comfort in the record of Republicans past who have betrayed their campaign rhetoric and their backers' hopes once in office. I am not comforted. That is no way to run a republic. Our form of government requires that voters choose a leader with the expectation that she/he will act as they would have wanted on unforeseen issues years after the election campaign.  Although campaign rhetoric corresponds only very imperfectly to a leader's future performance, it is the information we have.  If we are to ignore the rhetoric, our elections would be mere beauty contests.

Barry Haskell Levine