I have
listened with what I must admit is a somewhat cynical disposition to the recent
discussions concerning all the implications of next week’s national
elections. A great deal of drum beating
is going on over how, if the Republicans regain the Senate and hold on to the
House, things will change. My sincere
wish is that such would be the case, my expectation is that little or nothing will
actually occur.
Why? Because if we change “leaders” but we don’t
change the fundamental moral character of those leaders, why should we expect
different results? I honestly wish there
existed a tremendous difference in the moral centers of John Boehner and Mitch
McConnell vs. those of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. Unfortunately, what we are presented with is
four career politicians whose single minded interest is either holding onto
power or stripping the other party of theirs.
Does anyone really believe if the Republicans replace the Democrats in
the Senate there is suddenly going to be a genuine move toward passing and
enforcing laws which are based on Biblical morality rather than pragmatic
politics?
But why should
we be surprised that venal, self-seeking, narcissistic individuals are going to
advance legislative agendas based on anything other than, ultimately, what the
polls say will get them elected or re-elected?
And, what is stunningly heartbreaking, every one of these legislators
have been voted into high office by the good citizens of the United States. Painfully, we are getting exactly the
representation in Washington that we, as a people, deserve.
Sometime in
the past twenty or thirty years, a critical change has occurred in how Americans
select and view their elected officials.
I remember as a youngster much was made of a candidate’s moral
character. His reputation for honesty
and moral purity was important. Sure,
there were exceptions, but they were just that, not the rule.
But as our
country moved away from God officially and publicly, with rulings against prayer
in public school and an overt movement toward declaring what had been immoral moral,
such as the legalization of homosexual practices and of abortion on demand, there
came a concomitant slide in the public’s view of a politician’s moral
character.
A revealing
moment for me in just how far that slide had gone occurred during Bill Clinton’s
presidency. When it was revealed that Clinton had carried on a sexual affair
with Monica Lewinsky in the White House itself, and subsequently lied about it,
the public opinion polls that followed were telling. Approximately a third of the American public
felt the President should be impeached, another third felt like his competency
as President was more important than his moral failure, in other words, the
economy was moving well, foreign policy seemed under control, so what did it
matter if he had an affair with a woman half his age and lied about it, and
another third saw the affair as irrelevant, he was likeable and should remain
as President.
This expression
of public opinion revealed just how far American’s expectations of their
leaders had changed. In a kind of
official unofficial way, it was now permissible for a man to be a moral reprobate
if he was perceived to be doing his job.
Two thirds of the citizens of the United States of America were now of
the opinion that a man’s moral character was not a critical factor in whether or
not he should hold high office. That
severance of character from competence has since extracted, and will continue
to extract, a price which our country can ill afford to pay.
The idea that
a politician’s character has nothing to do with the decisions they make and
legislation they support is utterly ridiculous.
Of course it does. I find it
difficult to believe that people want nothing to do with a dishonest auto
mechanic or plumber, but will elect and re-elect proven liars and thieves to public
office. This incredible dichotomy is
both discouraging and damaging in multiple ways.
With few
exceptions, and thank God there does remain a few, most politicians of either
political stripe in Washington are not people of Christian faith practicing
what they believe. For the most part, it
is quite the opposite. Their morality is
rooted in the mores of the moment. As I
have watched with dismay politician after politician cave and “evolve” on the
issue of gay marriage, it has simply revealed how many genuinely lack a moral
center. And this, unfortunately, applies
to members of both parties.
Regardless of
how the elections turn out on November 4th, my expectations of any
positive moral changes in how Washington will govern this country remain
low. I have no reason to believe that men and women
driven by personal ambition and outsized ego are going to make decisions on the
future direction of this country that will turn things around. Two thirds of the American public, according
to the latest polls, feel like this country is headed in the wrong
direction. Yet, they will return to
office or elect more politicians whose character, or lack thereof, got us here
in the first place.
Of course, now
that I think about it, it’s about as consistent as bemoaning the number of
drunken drivers on the road and then legalizing marijuana, or complaining about
the number of unwed mothers even as we answer the issue with contraceptives for
twelve year olds and instruction manuals on sexual techniques. Has this country completely lost its
collective mind? Is there no longer any
recognition of cause and effect? I have
heard all my life that one of the best definitions of insanity is to keep on
doing the same thing and expect different results. If we keep sending people of the same moral
fiber to Washington, why should we expect anything to change, except for the worse?
I sincerely
hope I’m wrong. I pray for this country
every day. I hope we will see a moral
revival in our national leadership that will move this country back in the
godly direction it desperately needs. If
that happens I will joyfully eat crow and celebrate the turnaround.
But I’m not
really holding my breath for any big changes come November 5th.
