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Bob Graham: Political Mudslinging Could Spur Citizens To Get Involved

Many people believe the presidential campaign has sunk to new lows. Former Florida Governor and Senator Bob Graham suggests the name-calling and mud-slinging could be corrosive to democracy -- but it could also be an opportunity for people to try to change the country by getting more involved.

"It's my hope that one of the consequences of this will be a greater recognition that if I see a problem that I don't like, I don't have to depend on who gets elected," he said. "I have the ability to do something about it myself, if I am willing to invest the time, the skill and the persistence to make it happen."

Graham says this election may be a turning point in the nation's history because the issues facing the country seem to have taken a back seat to allegations leveled against each of the candidates. And it's up to us as citizens to change that trajectory.

"Democracy is more than just who gets elected," he said. "And the question is will the people see their distaste for what's happening in this election not as a turnoff to not doing anything, but rather as an opportunity for them to become more involved by using their own skills and talents and persistence."

Steve Newborn is a WUSF reporter and producer at WUSF covering environmental issues and politics in the Tampa Bay area.
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