Dear Senator,
You may think that your position on health care reform pushed you over the top in the last election. It didn't.
You probably have polls saying that the money rolled in because of your position on climate change. The polls are wrong.
I know you think you won that spot because you spoke out for immigration reform, or equal rights for gays, or removal of the noose around the neck of American labor, or for your position on a woman's right to chose. Believe me, there are many of us who would like to think that was the reason, but it's just not so.
You weren't elected for your policy on jobs. You weren't elected for your thoughts on the war. You weren't even elected to bring pork back to your home state. And, in case you're the victim of some really bad analysis, you certainly weren't elected to restore some bipartisan spirit to Washington.
So why were you were elected? It's quite simple really.
You were elected because your predecessors proved so inept, so dishonest, and so self-serving that the American public would no longer put up with them. That's all there is to it. The one thing, the only thing, that the voters expect from you is this: competence.
Now, as good fortune would have it, the people who last proved so devastatingly lacking in competence were those who opposed equal rights, opposed the respect for scientific data, and promoted the virtues of selfishness and greed above all else. That's a big win in several ways. Any objective review of history will show that respect for others, honoring science and education, and promoting the benefits of working together as a community are winning positions. So you should feel good about being on ground that's morally, factually, and economically defensible. It should really help you in displaying competence.
But with that advantage in your corner, expectations are even higher. It may be good enough for your opponents to play rope-a-dope. You have to be not-a-dope. The time for you to talk a good game is way, way past. The ball is in your hands now, and you have to shoot it.
Now that you have the opportunity, if you fail to display competence... it's going to turn out badly. And no speeches, no position papers, no colorful campaign signs are going to cover it.
Here's more bad news: you are off to a godawful start. You look weak. Timid. You look like you probably need help in the morning to get your tie on straight and your shoes tied. You look like a loser. And you're going to be a loser if you don't straighten up, get your game face on, and start acting like walking and chewing gum at the same time isn't beyond your capabilities.
See, we didn't just think you had positions that we liked. We thought you were capable of acting on those positions. Seems like maybe we were wrong.
But hey, the day's not over yet. Come on, prove that you know how this game is played. Go long. Split the defense. Aim for the fence. Pick yourself a metaphor and go with it. Want a place to start? Take that sorry mess of a health care bill and fight for something that (and here's a radical idea) would actually help people instead of insurance companies. Don't do it because it fulfills your promise on health care. Do it because it tells people you're able to fulfill their greatest expectation. Do it to show you're competent.
But Senator, you better do it soon. That hole you're standing in? It's getting deeper by the day.