You may be wondering why I am tackling this subject. I see this topic of incessant discussion as
one of the most heated and poisoned. And
because of its contentious nature, it also prevents much of the good at heart
from ever being recognized or even remembered.
So I’m going to tell you what is wrong with the state of America’s
politics and how I feel it should be corrected.
America is like a marriage.
In a marriage you have two unique people coming together with varying viewpoints
and experiences. Since the predominant
political viewpoints are Republican and Democrat—these two will represent the
experiences and opinions each spouse brings to the marriage. You can decide which spouse takes which
viewpoint. I know who I think each is,
but that would defuse the point of my writing this blog…so I leave it to
you. So, here we have a marriage of two
seemingly different entities, from completely different backgrounds, families,
sometimes station in life, and even many cultural differences. And their marriage contract—the thing that
holds them together and holds them to their promises to keep their entire
family (still America) safe and strong--is the Constitution. Like all marriages there are ups and downs,
there are miscommunications, childish tirades, the silent treatment, and hurt
feelings. But as any couple knows, the
only way to keep a union working and strong with so many differences is through
compromises. Compromise seems to be a
swear word in the political world these days.
And yet, it is still important.
Viewpoints are so polarized that no one can or is allowed to
compromise without compromising their political hierarchy. I watched this conundrum in full play during
the last two Presidential elections. I
did my homework and did research on each candidate. The candidates’ political views began
extremely moderate—great compromising material for a polarized country. But as the campaigning continued (and in the
President’s case—through both elections) I watched as their respective parties
made each man pull away from middle ground.
By the end of this last election, both men were by then—at
least on paper—polarized. But they
started with the ability to find common ground.
Compromise is a necessary component to any working
relationship—especially ones as important as marriage…or the upholding of a
great country. In fact, it was
compromise that made THIS country possible.
Every year on the 4th of July I watch A More Perfect Union: America Becomes a Nation, a great movie to
remember how, miraculously, a group of highly opinionated men with varied
backgrounds could come together and create the Constitution of America. If these men didn’t understand how important
this Union was, they would never have been able to reach common ground. But they did.
They knew that America—not their own opinion—was worth fighting
for. Now, that doesn’t mean they weren’t
fighting to protect what they truly felt was important. They did.
They tried to find common ground for 4 months before the Constitution
was complete. Most relationships that
are lacking any true commitment would not have survived such a long and
grueling debate. But again, they knew
the significance of what they were creating together. After much back and forth the Great
Compromise of 1887 was reached and the Legislative branch was formed—mostly as
we know it today (there was more tweaking later on). Since this is not meant to be a history
lesson—just a lesson to learn from history—if you’re interested in learning how
it all went down in the simplest terms, check it out here on Wikipedia:
Or the whole kit and caboodle:
Now what are the consequences of a stubborn and polarized
country? Remember a not so little thing
called the Civil War? I sure do. What started this war? Poor compromising resulted in a climactic
death toll of fellow Americans. Technically,
the issue of slavery was addressed in the Constitutional Convention 74 years
before the Civil War began. And then
again with the Slave Trade Act of 1794…and again with the Slave Trade Act of
1807. However, none of these Acts ended
Slavery. They didn’t even manage to stop
the slave trade. Here we have an
excellent example of what NOT to do when compromising. The husband and wife couldn’t see eye to eye
on this issue. Here we had a newly
married country and instead of addressing their state differences head-on and
finding a solution that worked—they continued doing what would ultimately lead
to a separation. Luckily—there were some
great marriage counselors who worked it all out—with a lot of death and carnage
in the process.
What can we learn from this tragic example of poor
compromise? For starters, both political
sides need to be 100% devoted to making the compromise. They need to give what they know they are
willing to follow through. Politicians
need to find common ground and solutions and stop searching for ways to dismantle
what little compromise is eked out of this so-called political process. Imagine if the Southern states had looked and
found other means of economical increase in the time allotted to them by the
Constitutional Convention and then stopped slavery of their own accord. The civil war damaged the Southern economy in
ways from which it has never fully recovered.
If the states had made a true compromise, lives may have been spared,
homes left undivided, and once great cities would have remained.
This leads to another pressing question that needs
answering. Who should be doing the
compromising? Well, we all SHOULD. But, who runs this country? Better yet, who do The People think run this
country? Every Presidential election
year, the people of America finally start paying attention to candidates. “We’re electing the most powerful man/woman,
we’ve got to make sure we choose the best person.” Well, it is true that we need to choose the
best person for the current needs of America.
But the President is not all that powerful. What about Executive Orders? Eh.
Lots of presidents have given executive orders. According to the National Archives, President
Franklin D. Roosevelt gave over 3,000 executive orders, President Bush only
made it to 291 and President Obama has a lot of catching up to do with only 199. So, the president can issue an Executive
Order…as long as it isn’t contested by the Judicial Branch. This really isn’t that much power. The most powerful branch of government is Congress. If you don’t believe me, maybe you’ll believe
the words of one of our Founding Fathers: "...[I]t is not possible to give to each department and equal power of self-defense. In republican government, the legislative authority necessarily predominates." (James Madison from The Federalist Papers #51). The legislative branch is Congress. Congress, which is a supposed representation of The People, holds the most power—and rightfully so. However, in recent years, Congress
appears to be less about The People and more about politics.
According to Ron Elving of NPR, “The heightened partisanship
cemented in Congressional district lines has created safe havens where most
Republicans and Democrats no longer worry about pleasing anyone other than
primary voters. If the primary voter
goes with the incumbent, the incumbent is almost certain to go back to
Washington…The audience that must be served is the far narrower one that cares
about party and policy and issues—and works to elect candidates as devoted to
their ideology and as hostile to the other party as they themselves are…Republican
districts are now more Republican than ever, and most Democratic districts are
more Democratic than ever. [Please forgive the biased superlative somewhere in the
middle—and focus on his take-home message.]
As fewer and fewer members have “swing districts,” the necessity of
constant partisan emphasis grows worse and worse. Even the notion of compromise becomes
hazardous.”
Compromise is the essence of a working country, and yet, we’ve
created a congress where compromise is the enemy? This is wrong.
Since Congress doesn’t always feel the need to listen to the Regular Joe
voter like you and me, what can we do?
It seems a hopeless case. Nothing
is hopeless, especially, not in this great Country! We need to whitewash Congress. (Not going to happen—but a girl can
dream) We need to start voting for the
Jeff Smiths of this country (Mr. Smith Goes to Washington), both the
male and female versions (this can and should happen). Let’s remind congress who really runs this country…and
no, it is still not the President (although they’ve all looked really great on
stamps).
Compromise in not a luxury; it is a necessity. Polarity is destruction; it is not a
solution. We have to find common
ground. We have to. No relationship has ever survived the
inability to compromise. Not a marriage
and definitely not a Nation. While I don’t
feel we have another Civil War looming ahead of us, I do feel we are living a
civil war of the minds. We live in an
America where hostile politics are the norm and Boy Scout politicians are
destroyed publicly. It’s time that ‘We
the People” filibuster congress. Let’s
not sit down or stop talking until they start listening. And what should we say? That we’re tired of these childish
shenanigans. We want a country that
prides itself on being able to compromise and not on being a bunch of donkeys…or
elephants.
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