Winning and Not

SCOTUS nominee Kavanaugh advances to the next step in a wobbly process. It is still alive, the process. I suppose that is a form of winning. The fact, however, that the process has been snagged on several prickly points tells us that opposition – loyal or otherwise – gives proof that the larger process is alive and well.

In the above case, the republican nomination remains alive and close to approval. But the democrat opposition has thrown all of it in doubt.

Although not yet definitive, a message of hope is coming into view: serious discussion of issues is aired in public. Transparency of motivation, power, and decision making is on parade. It is ugly but transparent.

In a democracy, especially in one heralded historically as one of the longest and most stalwart of survivors, values do make a difference. The downtrodden do make a difference. Women make a difference. Opinion and logic make a difference.

The oddest thing about all of this is that we think it is special. The truth is our system of governance has been hijacked by career politicians who have forgotten who they answer to and from where all power comes – the people.

I’m 75 years old. I’ve been a student of public policy and governance most of my life. It grabbed my attention in my teenage years. I’ve gone along on the ride for at least 60 years. My memory is good. My education is better. My logic well tuned.

America in 2018 is not the model of what the framers of the US Constitution had in mind. Both houses of congress have been distorted by power, money and greed. Along the way ideology has crept into the mix as though it is the pinnacle of what is important. It isn’t. The people are and their well-being. The commonweal is the whole point of the American system of government. The health and welfare of the people of the nation are the focus and the beneficiary of the system. To accomplish that aim, the governmental system must be representative, policy based, fair and just.

It is not difficult to see our system is broken.

Some reforms are needed. Here are a few:

1.      Get big money out of politics

2.      Get politics out of the judicial system

3.      Install term limits at all levels of government

4.      Keep the voters in charge of the entire system through their ballots

5.      Abolish the Electoral College; it is out of date and no longer necessary

I think that covers the causal issues of today’s primary problems. Kavanaugh’s confirmation should be aborted; he should withdraw his own nomination. He does not have the temperament or non-partisanship to be on the highest court of our nation.

That would herald one win and one loss. But there it is. The power rests with the people.

October 1, 2018