No politician is perfect - not even Jeremy Corbyn

Tomorrow comes the end of a very long three months for the Labour Party. They will, supposedly, be instating Jeremy Corbyn as their leader. He is the champion of British radicalism currently, with so many who left to the Green Party returning to Labour and so many lefties who had not voted Labour since pre-Tony Blair suddenly feeling loyal to the Party. He is the sort of leftie populism that many want to hear more from our Westminster politicians, especially against the Tory majority Government now in power.  However, I have noticed a worrying trend about him amongst the left: the blind eye that many take concerning ANY criticisms of his politics. 

I get it. Corbyn has appeared an underdog, it appears a far-left candidate gets unfairly treated by the established journalists we have. The BBC, usually a respectable organisation, has taken to a very comfortable centre-right which had tainted their journalism for quite some time. Even I, a centrist at heart, felt that their over exposure of Farage was obvious in the Election this year and they didn’t really seem to bother to balance their reports. And the Telegraph obviously has some partisanship bias; it is often known as the “Torygraph” by so many. Even the Guardian, once an okay insightful paper, has become sludge in recent times and it has resulted in it writing very…bad articles on Corbyn, to put it mildly.

But my problem with “Corbynmania” has been that it equates any hint of criticism that you’re secretly some variation of Tory (in my instance a “Yellow Tory”). Even when Owen Jones has strayed away from his own bias and been critical or when the New Statesman has opted to do a more critical piece, suddenly the entire media is launching a war against Corbyn. And while I can understand the frustration of the left – the Labour Party has been claiming bias since Harold Wilson led the party – it is not very help or constructive to pick a leader without knowing anything that one might consider a fault. 

For instance: I voted for Tim Farron after re-joining Liberal Youth and am glad to have done so. Why? Because in a time where we have betrayed ourselves, I think a grassroots long-time member of the Party is the one to bring us back. He never was a part of the previous government, giving us a fresh Liberal-strong image as a party. And to quote my own Party, it’s now more than ever that Britain needs a bit of liberalism pumping into our veins. Despite his involvement in building up the party and his strong message, there is a black cloud concerning social politics – he is supposedly against gay marriage. 

It was the first question for everyone: Are you a homophobe? When he couldn’t answer in a 10-second soundbite, suddenly that was all he was. I would like to take this opportunity to inform you, he vote for the Gay Marriage Act in 2013, he merely abstained from one of the readings (the second, I believe). And Tim Farron sits in one of former safest seats for the Tories in the country, transforming it into his own. He is a conservative Anglican, meaning there is a certain clash of his liberty and of his faith. I’ve spoken to Anglicans who are LGBT who understand that this is a tough line for them spiritually and personally. 

It is difficult to excuse, however, especially as LGBT issues are so personal for some people (myself included). But I made a call – to elect someone who I think will defend my personal liberties despite disagreeing with them or to not do so on the grounds he abstained from a reading this one time. Considering Farron was calling for 60,000 refugees to come to Britain 4 weeks ago, as well as visiting Calais, I’m quite glad that I made that decision. But I was in fact aware of that issue during the leadership election and I’m glad that I was because it meant that I could make an informed decision.

Why can the same not happen with Corbyn?

This issue is not limited to the Labour frontrunner, of course. If you go across seas, the populist “democratic socialist” Bernie Sanders is protected by the fact he’s “more left than everyone else”. I agree with a lot of Sanders’ political ideas for the United States but, I also recognise he is pro-Israel, a position I’m not quite in agreement with. In the same way I can appreciate the radicalism (albeit not agree with it) of Corbyn but, we can’t simply shutter ourselves away from positions which make us uncomfortable. For instance – many claim that he is far left to the point of being a Eurosceptic, something much of the left has difficult stomaching. 

So then you have to prioritise issues/policies. Why? Because that’s what we do with every other politician. Jeremy Corbyn has been around since 1983 – why is it suddenly he’s a saint like figure, above everything that every other politician is? And similarly, Sanders has been in US Politics since 1975 – why is it suddenly that he’s not got a single bad mark on his record? [An interesting side point: the women against these two men are continually, openly criticised….even by those who agree with them. Interesting that, isn’t it?] 

So for example: Corbyn has been known to hang around George Galloway. This is perhaps comparable to how we condemn David Cameron for being a member of the Bullingdon Club or his friendship with Rebecca Brooks. I’m all for holding our politicians accountable, for actually calling them out on their faults. And I don’t think anyone on the far left to the far right are perfect. It’s just not capable in the wheelings-and-dealings of the political world. But, of course, to suggest any of this evokes the great hivemind of the far left which seems to plague most comment threads on a New Statesman article. 

Immediately I am a Tory, as mentioned, that I am suddenly “the enemy.” As an amateur blogger I’m suddenly painted as the big, scary Media instead of someone who is trying to think critically. It is vital that we, as an electorate, think about what we’re voting for. And by all means the message of Corbyn are valid but this blind eye thinking is not necessarily beneficial for people who do not vote for him, people who are Jewish, people who are Palestinian, who are pro-European Union or to anti-European Union. Because even if people are still Pro-Corbyn after learning this information, at least they know this information. 

We should not blind ourselves to faults – no politician should be placed on a pedestal and we should be aware for what we’re voting for. No exceptions.