I want to start by saying that I work on a Congressional campaign for an incumbent Democrat, and have worked in politics on various campaigns since 1997. That said, this is a personal diary and not meant to be affiliated to any campaign, candidate, or Member of Congress.
I have some thoughts on not only the shooting of Congresswoman Giffords, but also her staffmembers and constituents who were, to put it bluntly, shot in the line of duty.
Politicians and Members of Congress
Sometimes it is easy to forget a very simple fact about our representatives and those that campaign to represent us. Chiefly that they are all real people, with families, friends, and personal lives.
Caricatures are part of the job, and have been in western politics for centuries. We use them here - the Orange Man, the crying jags, the plastic surgery, their spouses and children when they get into trouble, Tweets and Facebook postings, etc. all lend "color" to campaigns and our politics.
That said, it is easy to forget that, as people, not only do they have feelings, but they are not perfect. Should we hold them accountable for their failings, both personal and political? Absolutely. However, it is important to remember something about them as we write and speak.
Government officials are on the job all the time. I remember clearly working for the first member - a challenger that had just defeated a 3 term incumbent in 2000 - talking with me and her campaign manager not long after taking office. We were discussing what she would do on her first break in session, and she looked us both in the eye and said "What I really want to do is go to Safeway, do some grocery shopping, and not have to answer questions about the various issues that everyone wants to talk to me about. But that's not possible anymore, is it?"
The people we are talking about when we have our discussions - and yes, our fun - are people that are trying very hard to figure out how to live their life now that everything has changed. They have just gone through a campaign where people were paid tens of thousands of dollars to look through every part of your personal life from school to today. Yes, they did ask for this job. Worked hard for it, in fact. But that doesn't mean that it is any easier for them to transition into, nor does it mean that they are not people and fellow Americans.
I'm not saying that we should not call our elected officials on hypocricy, or hold them accountable for their votes and decisions both political and private. I guess what I'm saying is we should follow an easy rule - before we speak (or type), take a breath and think before we speak. A change of a word or a sentence could mean the difference not only to the people we are discussing, but as to whether or not we are taken seriously by those around us - or just as importantly whether or not what we say is taken the wrong way by someone that is unstable.
Staffmembers
Campaign staff and political staffers - and I'm talking about the people on the ground, not the consultants (I'll get to them in a minute) - are in precarious positions. We are the people that are at the front desks when you walk into the office and are the ones answering the phones. We are the ones that are at the sign in tables at events, and standing by our boss as they are out at public events.
On campaigns, people are making anywhere between $1,500 a month (for a volunteer coordinator) to $7,000 a month (for a campaign manager) often working anywhere from 60-100 hours a week. (I remember my first campaign where we jokingly said we were going to for a union to fight for "the 80 hour work week"). In Congressional offices, the pay is actually not good for lower level aides - sometimes as low as $22,000 a year. We do it for many reasons, from our belief in particular candidates, to our love for the political process, to our belief in our country, to wanting to make a career.
We are the ones that deal with people with mental issues that walk in to the office and need to be talked down. We are the ones that deal with vile, very personal things said about us and the people we work for by people that we have never met. We are the ones that get the emails that are sent in ALL CAPS and with threats. We the ones that are being screamed at and spit at by people that are going over the edge on the street out front of the events.
Yesterday, one of them was shot and killed and two of them were shot and critically injured - at a public place meeting with anyone that wanted to come up and discuss their government with their Congressmember. It is not only a fear we have all had in the back of our minds at one time or another, it has the potential to chill our democracy and our interactions with the public. We do not have any kind of protection. Our personal information, including where we live and our income, are public record.
The next time you or someone you know wants to interact with a staffmember, please remember this. Passion is important, but so is a basic personal respect. Whether you are calling a staffmember for Congresswoman Bachmann or Senator Sanders, remember that the staffmember (or intern) you are speaking to are people that are working very hard for very little to do what they believe in. So stop the ALL CAPS, the screaming, the strange threats, and the vitriol.
Rather, tell them why you are contacting them, why you believe what you do, and your contact information. And maybe a thank you for taking the time to talk with you. Not only is it the decent thing to do, you are much more likely to be heard.
Consultants, "Talking Heads" & Political Leaders
Pollsters, media consultants, mail consultants, fundraising consultants, political leadership - listen up.
Your messages that you are using, the decisions you advocate, the words you say on CNN, MSNBC, Fox all have consequences.
There are a lot of good consultants out there, many of whom worked their way up through the campaign process. That said, it is important for you to realize that the advice you are giving has an effect on the discourse.
I'm not asking us to all be please and thank you all the time, nor am I saying that we should not make our case or point out inconsistencies in what our opponent is saying. Politics, after all, was once famously described as a "contact sport" for good reason.
But when there are consultants and leaders out there, and I will name a few - Frank Luntz, Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin, Ann Coulter - that make a concerted effort to use inflammatory words, images, and media to win power, there is a huge consequence to those on the ground.
Many people realize, however ugly the rhetoric, that it is politics and are able to some extent seperate the rhetoric from the personal.
But, more importantly, some aren't. Ann Coulter may think that she is simply tweaking the left and "feeding red meat" to the base. But the reality is that to those that aren't stable this is more than rhetoric - it's truth. It's marching orders.
When you dehumanize your political opponents - not just take on their views and actions but literally make them less than human - you are opening a door to tragedy. You may think that "targetting" districts is political speak, but the unstable take it a very different way.
Words have consequences, not to the many, but to the few that will take things to the next step. And its not "others" that will be hurt or killed - its people. Fellow Americans.
To political leaders, specifically those on the Republican side but it would do everyone well to consider, I am not going to go back and vent my anger at the rhetoric up to this point. Rather, I am going to ask you to take a close look at what has happened and how you need to change.
A young man that you have worked with in the halls of Congress is dead. Two more are fighting for their lives, as is one of your fellow members. Maybe this killer was unstable already - I've seen the you tube clips - and the rhetoric may or may not have had any kind of effect on this particular tragedy. That said, the next one may not be the same situation, and you would do well to consider that the next time you ratchet up the rhetoric.
Not only do I call on you to watch your own language, I specifically call on you to call out those that are inflammatory in their language. You don't have to call your fellow party members out on their political beliefs, but you do have a duty - yes, a duty - to denounce speech that may lead to death. That means "Don't retreat, reload". That means "Second Amendment remedies". And to my fellow Democrats, that also means "Republicans want people to die quickly".
Candidates, you also have a duty when you choose your consultants. You and your staff should do your due diligence. You should look at their past work and see if you can agree with what they have done. There are a lot of what I consider to be "dirty" consultants, and as long as you continue to hire them, they will continue to do it.
And finally, to my fellow activists and bloggers and those on the other side, "Demoncrats", "Repuglicans", "Repukes", "Socialist Communist Nazis" and other turns of phrase aren't any better. As I read through comments and diaries on this and other sites and on Facebook, I have always just passed over anything that used these words, because it shows a lack of not just civility but thought and isn't worthy of my time. You should, too.
We have all seen the diaries and comments of people that show a mental health problem or lack or anger control, perhaps even something that would lead to a threat on an elected official or their staff. It is your duty not only to call out these commenters and diarists, but to let the staff of the offices know about them if you feel that it is possible for it to go beyond rhetoric.
Final Thoughts for this Diary
Tomorrow morning, I will be back at work, looking at my plans for the next month, including public and semi-public events for my boss. Things that have only been far in the back of my mind are now in the forefront. Do we need security? What did that ranting, strange email to the campaign account really mean? And who is listening to us being called "Socialist", "Anti-American", "Baby Killers" who want to "Destroy our way of life" are sitting by their radio, in front of their computer, or in front of Fox News and saying "I've got to stop them".
We have a choice in our country right now. We can point fingers at the Sarah Palin posters, the previous events of Giffords opponent or the last rantings of Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter and scream "It's your fault!". And I understand that - I really do. But we need to do something else that is far more important.
We need to join with our neighbors, including our Republican and Tea Party neighbors, and have this conversation about the rhetoric of today's political discourse - we can't change the tone of our politics alone, we need them to join us.
Because, quite simply, people's lives depend on it.