Upcoming election

I had a lovely conversation with my Mother last night. We were talking about the primaries and potential presidential election. Which candidate is the best? Who should we vote for?  As I have been watching leadership and who I respect or who I want to represent me, I have been seriously wondering about the candidates themselves.  For example, one of my colleagues was serving in the State government as a representative. He invited me to sit with him while they make their votes.  He highlighted to me a vote that was about to come up related to higher education. He said that in his role in higher education he should vote this way, but his own personal feeling was to vote another.

How does he accurately vote to represent his constituents? Do they vote for him because of who he is? Or, do they vote for him to support him in his role in Higher Education? Or, do they vote for him because he represents their interests?

This causes me to think about the arguments around Bill Clinton and his indiscretions with women. He admitted he lied about having intimate relations with Monica Lewinsky. Republicans were mortified!  He had lied under oath! Later Democrats claimed that Bush lied about the Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq.  You may have heard: "Bush lied, people died." What is the role of moral character in the voting process?  Do they have to believe the same way you do on every issue? Are you more interested in their intelligence, or are you more interested in their values?

So, my last question to you is...is it OK for our candidates to be less than honest depending on what they lie about? Are we voting for their stand on the policies? Or, are we voting for the person? When it comes to family policy, what are we voting on?

I look forward to your discussion...