Fw: do what you will

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Doesn't it just show up as text in message? ________________________________ From: Ben Edwards <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, September 13, 2015 10:37 PM To: Neera Tanden Subject: do what you will Dear Hillary, The other day I mentioned to Neera that I wanted to write you a note, to express my feelings about how I see your candidacy, how I feel the overall race is going, and where I believe it is headed. The reason I want to share this with you is that I feel optimistic about the still very long road ahead. And Neera will tell you that I am generally not a very optimistic person. So I myself have found it strange, and I hope you will benefit from hearing my thoughts, which are probably not of the usual Washington variety. Let me say first that I strongly believe you are the most qualified person now running for President, that you should and will be President. I am a proud non-participant in social media, I don’t watch TV news, and my usual news sources are NPR and the New York Times. This surely has its disadvantages, but I think it also gives me perspective, and an ability to look at the bigger picture. As an artist, my role is also to look at trends and patterns in society as a whole and to ask where we are going and what it all means. I have learned to trust this perceptive ability, and to listen when a strong feeling makes itself known, because usually it’s announcing a truth that is not yet widely apparent. I remember earlier this year, before dozens of Republicans had entered the race and Bernie Sanders hadn’t yet come along, feeling very positive about your running for President. I consider myself a defiantly “liberal” Democrat, and, I believe like many Democrats, I have been quite disillusioned by the Obama Presidency. But I felt that you could be, as you frequently say, a fighter, whereas the Obama vision of Democrats and Republicans united in harmonious bipartisanship can now only be seen as hopelessly naive. They are never going to just go along. Someone needs to stand up to them. I’m sure you know that you are a polarizing figure. But no one doubts that you won’t roll over for them. When the email story broke several months ago, I was angry. I could completely understand why you did it, and it may be true that you did nothing wrong. But I feel, and this is why Neera will call me cynical, that unfortunately the truth doesn’t matter. This may be too obvious to state, but it’s the appearances that matter, and the narrative that arises from such perceptions. I was angry because my perception was that an unnecessary cache of ammunition had just been provided to the Republicans, fodder for months and months to come. I suspect that many Democrats feel just as I do. We are completely sympathetic, but it appeared to be a failure of judgment. A few nights ago, I told my Mom that you had apologized, and she was indignant. She mentioned that Colin Powell and Dick Cheney had done the same thing, and she decried the hypocrisy. In substance, I agree with her. But I sense that many, many people needed to hear an apology just so that we could put this episode to rest, once and for all. I am so happy that we’ve reached this moment, because now we can all move on. There is a groundswell of sympathy for your position. But it can only be released if it looks like you are doing all you possibly can to put this issue to rest. Going forward, any more lingering will appear for what it truly is: the same old harassment that you’ve always had to put up with. Unfortunately this story has played perfectly into the countering narratives of Trump and Sanders. To really understand what’s going on, one must recognize the deep cynicism and mistrust that exists across the country, not just of Washington but of all systems of power, from Wall Street to the corporate world, Silicon Valley, the Koch Brothers, and on and on. To many people, I among them, the system seems hopelessly broken and corrupt. You can find similar feelings on just about any point on the ideological spectrum. In 2000, the election was basically stolen (and reforms never enacted), and tragic events unfolded in the Bush years. In the crisis of 2008 and the deep recession that followed in 2009 was a breaking point for the frustration. This is what unites the Tea Party and the Occupy movement: very, very deep frustration. People have had enough, but their feelings are chaotic, unguided and unfocused. What we really need is an experienced leader, but what the people want is someone to focus this anger and frustration. So at the very moment you were looking like just another politician with something to hide, we witnessed two straight-shooters enter the scene, telling people what they desperately long for: the truth, or at least what they perceive as the truth. However, I believe that once this swoon of newly focused energy has run its course, when you look at the actual substance behind the candidates, when you get down to the truly rather boring details of policy and proposals, their shallow roots will ultimately reveal themselves. The fact is that neither Donald Trump nor Bernie Sanders is qualified, at least in my mind, to be President of the United States. Unfortunately, this moment of revelation may not come for quite some time. It may not come until well after Iowa and New Hampshire. But I believe it will come. And that’s why my message to you is to hang in there, to fight on, and to know that through all those debates and town halls and everything else you’ll have to do, that you will show yourself to be the best candidate, because you are. People will not be able to see this unless they feel they are being told the truth. Donald Trump can sound like a Neandertal but we can also admire him because at least we’re being told his version of the truth. It’s a sad commentary on our political system that such a hunger exists. As a liberal, I need to hear such truth from you as well. I need to hear an answer on Keystone, for example. I know the facts well enough to know that it is mostly a symbolic issue. But this is where President Obama failed: the American people need a leader, not a manager. How can I trust the President when for years the words “climate change” are never even acknowledged, and then in his remaining months he sees it as part of his legacy? How can he show concern for the people of Alaska on the front lines of climate change right now while simultaneously allowing Shell to drill for oil nearby? I understand the complexity of the issues, but I can’t blame anyone for being cynical. People can see a pandering narrative from a mile away. There is another factor at play in the overall narrative which may be perceived but unnoticed at the conscious level. I have been studying narrative structure, particularly the idea of the hero’s journey, derived from the work of Joseph Campbell. There is a moment when the hero is called to adventure, to leave the comforts of the normal world and to take the plunge into the new dangerous realm. But there is also an initial “refusal of the call”. The hero is reluctant, afraid, unsure. The hero is needed, but she doesn’t yet see how important a figure she will become. I believe that for a “Washington politician” it is vital to have a narrative of being called to service. Trump and Sanders may bypass this refusal of the call because they are naturally outsiders and it’s already built in. They were compelled to jump in. Things have just gotten so bad that they couldn’t take it anymore. The entirety of their careers before getting into the race were refusals. However, if you look at the narrative developing around Vice President Biden, in his reluctance to enter the race, he is creating, consciously or not, an extremely compelling story of the hero’s adventure. I believe that unless you foster a narrative of truth and clarity, of telling people what you really think, clearly, even if it’s not what they want to hear, then you are inviting a Biden candidacy, and this would be a very worrisome development. This could be the moment to begin that new narrative. As we approach the debates, I and many Democrats would really like to know what you think about how to fix this country. I would much rather get an honest answer on Keystone, as well as many other issues, even if I disagree with it, than not to get an answer at all, or worse, a “politician’s” hedge. There is one more perception I would like to share with you, one I’m sure you’re all too familiar with: the New York Times is out to get you. I have always loved the New York Times and it is my primary news source, but they have shown themselves to be biased in their coverage of you. I don’t know whether their story the other day about the campaign’s Southern strategy was part of this or not. But this is exactly the kind of story that is extremely unhelpful. I cringe when I see any hint of such overconfidence by the campaign. Arrogance is currently working for Trump because he’s an outsider. But I believe your course in all things should be humility. I’ve always felt that your strongest moments were in the spring of 2008, when the primary season just seemed to drag on and on. The newness of Obama had worn off, though there was still much excitement, particularly at the idea of the first African-American President. It seems that it will prove to be easier for the country to elect its first black president than its first woman commander-in-chief. Through those long months you showed yourself to be tough, smart and direct, and if President Obama had not been making history, I think everyone could see that you would have. Your grace and humility throughout that process was a welcome change from Obama’s growing overconfidence, and it was this contrast that cast you in a most sympathetic light. This could be achieved again by showing humility against the soon-to-be stale story of Trump’s bluster. I hope that these thoughts have been helpful to you. I can only imagine the difficulty of managing the task of an exhausting campaign, listening to competing voices and opinions about what you should or should not do. I wish you luck in the coming debates (more than four, I hope), and I’m looking forward to hearing what you have to say, about all kinds of things. Please remember that while our culture seems perpetually skewed toward the flavor of the month and the loudest voices in the room, there are many of us who shoulder on and quietly go about our business. You may not notice us, but we’re there and we’re paying attention, and as long as you give us the reason to, when the time comes, when actual votes are cast, we’ll make ourselves known in the voting booth. Neera likes to call me cynical, but I still believe that the vast majority of people will ultimately reject hatred and hot air, and will embrace the person who shows herself to be the rational choice. I think to be the Democratic nominee, you just need to be yourself, and to allow us to choose you. Ironically, it might end up being the polarizing figure who in the end unites us. That would make for a great narrative. Sincerely, Ben Edwards