Liberals Are Biting Their Lower Lips

Bill Clinton made it famous.  Whenever he wanted to demonstrate to the public that he felt our pain, he would bite his trembling lower lip.  He would next look directly at us through the television lense and emote like a champion.  Here was a person who cared.  Here was a president who could be trusted.

Journalists at the time reported on how seamlessly Clinton could go from political chatter to on-stage empathy.  They said it was like turning on a light switch.  All of a sudden, his eyes went teary and his voice began to quiver.  The question then and now is was this real? 

To judge from his subsequent behavior, one of Clinton’s overriding motives was to get rich.  He has also apparently maintained an interest in power and pulchritudinous women.  How much he genuinely cares for the interests of the little guy is therefore up in the air.

I wonder about these things because many decades ago my naïve idealism was challenged by harsh realities.  One of my first jobs was working in Harlem for the New York City Department of Welfare.  I was a caseworker responsible for seeing to it that eligible clients got their checks.

My goals at the time were many—and probably inconsistent—but one was to help poor people in need.  I was appalled by poverty and wanted to do the best I could to alleviate it.

But then came a moment of disillusionment.  My fellow caseworkers began talking about going on strike.  The union reps were everywhere, stirring up enthusiasm for a walkout.  Their objective was unmistakable.  They intended to get us more money.

Our salaries were modest; hence I could not object.  Nonetheless, their tactics left me cold.  Rather than sound mercenary, the strike leaders argued that they were just trying to help our clients.  If caseworkers got additional funds, they would obviously provide better services.

This was nonsense!  What was said for the benefit of voters was merely public relations.  The real goal was to look sympathetic.  If we could convince folks that we cared about the discomfort of people in poverty, they might care about us as well.

This was hypocrisy—pure and simple.  Perhaps some of the more ardent unionists believed it, but the rest of us knew better.  What most caseworkers cared about was getting a larger paycheck.

Now we hear from liberals that President Trump was not sufficiently empathetic in his initial response to hurricane Harvey.  He should have reached out more directly to those who had been devastated.  In other words, he should have been more like Clinton.

Liberals seem to have developed eternally quivering lower lips.  They are forever biting these to demonstrate how compassionate they are.  It does not matter to them whether Obamacare was successful.  They are indifferent about declining school achievement scores or rising crime rates.

What liberals care about is appearing to be benevolent.  It matters little to them whether Trump actually helps flood victims.  If he doesn’t say the right words with the proper tone of voice, then anything he achieves is irrelevant.  If his wife doesn’t wear the right shoes, nothing else counts.

Were liberals actually empathetic, they would be concerned about the beatings dealt out by Antifa.  They would decry the methods of these hooligans and sympathize with the victims.  Instead they too engage in public relations.  Their chief concern is that they not be identified with these thugs.

To be blunt, liberals are also hypocrites.  They are gold plated hypocrites!  However much they gnash their teeth and accuse others of not being kindhearted, they care more about appearances than results.  In my book, this makes them less moral than they are forever claiming.

Genuine concern for others is not about emotional outbursts.  It isn’t about giving hugs or crying at a moments notice.  Genuine concern is confirmed by what people do.  If they hang in there and provide actual relief, they are establishing their bona fides.

Hypocrisy has, unfortunately, become the currency of the realm.  Nowadays it is scarcely noticed—especially by those immersed in it.  My hope is that lip biting goes out of style.  Let it be replaced by doing good, as opposed to posturing as good.

Melvyn L. Fein, Ph.D.

Professor of Sociology

Kennesaw State University