Presidential Politics in My Time

Last Sunday I watched a CNN interview with Jake Tapper and Pete Buttigieg. The first question was whether or not his sexual preference would go over well with black voters in the south. His response was stating that he hopes black voters sees what it will mean to them to have him as president.  I'm paraphrasing of course.  It got me to thinking about how much politics has changed since I became a voter in 1994.

First, lets be honest.  Presidential politics in my time means I have to be ready for people to be upset with my point of view.  I rarely post about politics because it unnecessarily divides us and it is quite sad to see good people argue online over a challenging political landscape.  Lets also be clear.  I do not care what your political preference is.  I am happy you participate, but hope you know how important it is to participate.

Moving on.  I remember my first presidential election.  I voted for Bill Clinton.  I remember the baggage that followed him from Arkansas.  Still, I knew he was type of leader that I was going to identify with despite his marital disasters.  It was simple to me.  I felt like I understood what our country needed and I felt that he was right for the job.  Simple as that.

It is no longer that simple. Since then, politics has taken a far different route and even farther from where our founders wanted it to go.  In my dream world, I am hoping we are electing Presidents based on their ability to be a public servant.  I definitely felt that way when I voted for Barack Obama twice.  I do not feel that way about Donald Trump.  Lots of Republicans feel this way despite so many leaders clinging to his occupancy of the White House.  We all knew what he represented when he was elected and somehow, he was.

President Trump was not elected based on his ability to be a good public servant for the American people.  He was elected based on probably the best election campaign strategy to date, even if he allegedly had help for a foreign country.  This is politics in my time.  We are electing the campaigns of candidates and not the actual names on the ballot.  Let me put this another way.  We have a really good way of marketing products, but the products are not very good.

Call me old fashioned, but I want to know what kind of person you are asking me to vote for.  What is their political experience?  What is their professional experience?  Do these things help make the candidate good for the job of President?  I know what is running through your mind right now.  You are probably thinking no candidate that emerges seems good enough.  No real fix of a problem is done over night.  We have to start voting for the right people.  If we make this a priority, only the right people will run for office.  Otherwise we are only voting for an election strategy.  That may be Presidential politics in my time, but it doesn't have to be fore my children when they become voters.