A Hard Look at American Democracy: The Need for Reform

Thoughts from the Middle

A Hard Look at American Democracy:

The Need for Reform

By

Robert Fischer

Over the past several decades, an increasing number of Americans have lost faith in our government.  I have written that our representative democracy was conceived as a government “by the People.”  However, our founding fathers, in order to assure enlightened decision making, created a representative system.  While the system and their ideas have been modified through amendments over 200 plus years, it is apparent that the time has come to review our system and make some much needed adjustments.  Individuals who enter the political arena today are far removed from those who were elected to represent Americans during its first 100 years of existence.  The gentleman farmer politician, who was reluctant to run for political office but pressured to represent their neighbor’s interest, is no more.  The majority of the current political players are what most would call career politicians.

Our government today is dysfunctional.  Tax payer dollars are spent without adequate accountability, sometimes on projects that seem to have no purpose. Consider the Alaska Bridge to nowhere!  Troop commitments in Afghanistan, Iran and Syria drain billions from our domestic economy.  After years of military conflict in these regions, we have little to show for our investment.  We not only have lost dollars, but numerous military and civilian lives.  Party politics tend to carry more power than the good of the nation.  Bipartisanship is often lacking.  As I write this piece, the federal government is shut down over a political battle over a southern border wall.  Gridlock!!  Something is very wrong.

Whatever is a wrong needs to be fixed.  Who needs to fix the problem?  We the People!!  The Constitution put us in charge; we can fix the system. The rules governing elections and the bureaucracy surrounding our legislative process need to be reviewed and changed when necessary.

Let’s begin at the beginning.  Our founding fathers believed that citizens would select the persons who would be their representatives.  While this was mostly true in the early decades, it wasn’t long before party politics became an equal partner in the selection process.  Today, parties select candidates that they believe will help the party.  The party not only selects the candidates, but by using professional writers they also shape the candidates words for a political platform.  The days of speeches given “off the cuff” or written by the candidate are long gone.  To make matters worse, the parties are controlled by big money interests.  These same political parties also control the electoral process through what is called gerrymandering.  I’ll have more to say on this in a future “Thoughts.”

What does this mean? The idea that anyone can become president is a pipe dream. It takes so much money to run for major political offices that the average person cannot afford the expense. He/she must rely on financial contributions; and contributions come from those who believe that the candidate will support their agenda. Thus, the candidate makes campaign promises that benefit those who have contributed to his/her cause.

Furthermore, our candidates are generally supported by the major political parties. These parties select candidates with one primary criterion in mind: the person’s ability to ensure the party’s success! Through polling, the parties determine what message “sells” with the public. And from that point on, the professional writers shape the message for the candidate. Thus in most cases, the public never really knows the candidate’s authentic beliefs and values.

After years of listening to campaign rhetoric, many voters have turned cynical. In many elections, the votes end up casting their ballot for the least offensive candidate, or they simply don’t vote. Voters yearn for a true message – one delivered from the heart, not a rehearsed speech written by political writers.

What can we do about our suspicion that as voters, we are being sold a message? How can we get people with integrity, and devotion to ethical principles, to run for office?

First of all, we need to broaden the field of candidates – not limit the field to just candidates from the two major parties. This would ensure that we have candidates representing more than just far-left views and far-right views.

Second, we need to get “big money” out of the game. Unfortunately, money and politics seem to go “hand in glove.” When each party raises over $500 million in an election cycle, there is likely something being bought – i.e., policy decisions. It can be assumed that many senators and representatives who have been financed by big money often do not vote based on personal convictions or the will of their constituents.  Of course, the money problem is an entire discussion in and of itself. The bottom line, however, is that there is far too much money involved in politics, and because of moneyed interests, our democratic ideal is undermined. In other words, all votes are not equal!

It appears that the American people have failed to realize that “we are the government.”  Instead of governing, we have allowed the political parties, moneyed interests and various institutions to take the power of government away from the people and place it within their own hands.

For the optimists out there; we can make a change.  Margaret Mead optimistically said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”