A House Divided Against Itself Still Stands

Reading the article on former Congressman Lee Hamilton endorsing Barack Obama, got me thinking. At the height of the abolition movement in America, in a speech accepting the Republican nomination for Senate in Illinois in 1858, Abraham Lincoln uttered one of his many famous quotes, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” Since George Bush won in 2000 (electoral votes, not popular votes matter liberals, so get over it) all the political rhetoric I’ve heard is that we are a divided nation. In fact, Lee Hamilton used the phrase when giving his endorsement of Obama.

From the Indy Star:

“I begin by asking myself what kind of leadership the country needs at this juncture and I think, for me at least, the answer is that you want a candidate that will try to bring together a country that is very evenly divided, a country in which partisanship has been very sharp and to try to get a candidate who will create a new sense of national unity and will try to transcend the divisions within the country,” (emphasis mine)

(Read more after the leap)

I believe Rep. Hamilton was referring to the fact that our nation’s voting block is closely divided, but it’s similar rhetoric that has been used over and over through the years and through almost every war we’ve been a part of and every social issue that has caused marches on Washington DC. Yet we find ourselves still standing. In no way am I advocating for protracted division. I do hope that at some time we as a nation can foster some sort of unity. But these divisions, whether caused by political parties, the media or movements, have existed since our very founding. We were a nation divided on whether we should fight for our liberty or continue to stand under the oppressive regime of King George.

What I’m saying is, that for all the talk of being a “nation divided” we find ourselves still standing. A candidate like Barack Obama, who had one of the most liberal voting records in the Illinois State Senate and took those same liberal ideals to the U.S. Senate where he still has one of the most liberal voting records cannot foster unity. He can’t even do it in the Democrat party running against a moderate, by comparison, like Hillary Clinton (I never thought I’d label Hillary a moderate). What makes us think he could bring unity to a nation so split on so many issues that we wouldn’t continue to be a house divided? A bunch of celebrities making a youtube video and singing a speech of his? His empty rhetoric of change and hope? The fact that he’s diametrically opposed to all the issues of the party that’s running against him and Hillary? (Something tells me there’s still division there) By the way, can anybody tell what his change or hope will be? Is it just replacing our current president who is term limited? If so, then John McCain could bring the same hope and change and frankly, I want him answering the phone at 3:00am and not Obama. Sorry, Obama Girl.

In the end all of our politicians say we are a nation divided. It’s true and yet we still stand. But it does make for a good sound bite.