by Michael H. Blank
I will admit, I had a very low confidence in any particular projection for what the outcome of this election would be. I certainly don’t think I would have had the Republican trifecta very high on my likely outcome list. That said, we’ve been here before, not too often in the overall recent history of the world, but in my roughly half century of life, I have seen it before. Given those memories I would like to officially give my invitation for the incoming administration and congress to NOT repeat the past, which, even as I write this, there are some concerning signs they maybe quickly planning on doing.
If the Republican party has one defining trait that I have witnessed in my lifetime it has been the ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. It is almost a miraculous talent that they’ve demonstrated to do this again and again. They’ve even done it when they’ve had to overcome great odds to manage to screw up the almost unscrew up-able. When they’ve defeated the opposition, they’ve managed to invent their own. They have become like shadow boxers with a perfect record of losses against non-existent opponents. They’ve capitulated to minority political opposition that had no real ability to block them, other than saying nasty things about them that I guess just hurt their feelings too much for them to persevere. If all else fails, they’ll find the least important and frequently least popular platform positions to elect to make a sudden sacred hill that they immediately and unnecessarily die upon.
I know old habits are hard to unlearn, but please try. Our Republic is dependent upon it. For over 200 hundred years our Republic has worked more or less well with a tidal system of ideological control that has kept any single concept from pushing the system too far one way or another, but after more than a few dysfunctional periods of control from the more conservative and classically liberal side of the equation, we find ourselves far from an ideal balance. Recent reports have claimed numbers as high as 80% of unelected, federal government managers are planning on not working with the new administration. I don’t care which political ideology you hail from; this should be an extremely concerning number. These are unelected employees. Your employees, quite frankly, have decided that they don’t work for you anymore. They have decided they work for one political ideology and no other. They have broken the vow of their office and their covenant with the citizens of this Republic in doing so as their sole job is to serve the citizens of this Republic, not a political ideology. That is what they do in countries where there is only one political party, and they are not government employees but party members. This is a leviathan that if we allow it to raise its head, without removing it, will cost us our country just as certainly, if not more so, than any invading army.
This leads me to the first strong recommendation which is to focus on the things that matter most to the country at large.
// Let’s start with immigration. This is a grenade with the pin pulled already, but it is one that both parties have let go for far too long. This one issue alone could dictate more positive or negative connected outcomes, it is hard to overestimate the impact of either success or failure. That also means this would be an excellent issue to show what real political leadership looks like. There will be a tsunami of opposition no matter what is done because there are so many forces involved and also because the Democrat party knows that a successful management of this issue could spell disaster for them. It will require leaders who won’t take the bait from the opposition, but who will also stand up to doubters from their own constituency. Perhaps I am asking for too much, but what I am asking for here is true patriotic bravery and personal perseverance with enough conviction to see this task through. Now, I want to be clear, I’m not talking about so much compromise that they give away the farm, nor ramrodding through a plan with no explanation or consideration. I am talking about doing it the right way.
That brings me to the second strong recommendation.
// Take the time to talk to the citizens of the Republic which you currently govern, and that means all of them. Stay out of the echo chamber. Listen to the opposition for the slightest chance of finding common ground or useful suggestions. Explain the course of action that you are investigating and then implementing clearly and concisely and directly to the citizens of this country. Make them frequent, make them accessible. The best way to dispel fears and falsehoods is to stop hiding behind curtains and in the dark. You have access to the new conduits like X and the older formats like TV and Radio, so use them. Find people who can communicate from among the administration and have them communicate. I believe a lot of bridges can be built just by letting people know they’ve been heard, even if what they want to have happen wasn’t chosen, the fact that they weren’t ignored is very impactful.
This is another point that needs to be addressed.
// Don’t be afraid to consider and review alternatives courses of action, even if they are unconventional. This used to be understood, but that is what true leaders do. You don’t have to alienate one group to include another. This is a false scenario that has taken over most modern discourse. The false truncation of choices so that you are either picking option A or option B and that those options must be in conflict and that there is no C, or D or E. Adults should know better. Leaders damn well better know better. I refuse to believe that in the span of a lifetime, particularly with so many members of congress lingering on for almost as long, we’ve completely lost this ability. I know it has become clear that it is easier to allow this false choice to prevail and to manipulate groups into as few camps as possible, but I don’t think any of us can argue that the outcome of these herded expedience has brought us to a point we want to be.
I will conclude with the combined admonishment and inspirational comment that we are where we are because we have failed as a nation, both citizens and elected officials, to live up to the lofty and admirable standards that our founders and founding documents have laid out for us. We must embody our better natures that, I believe, still reside in the heart of every citizen of our Republic. We have to stop framing each other as enemies, we have enough of those in this world, and don’t need to make more out of each other. I would rather see us try and fail than to presume ourselves failures as we have done far too often lately. I hope you will too, and in that spirit, I hope all of us encourage this administration to live up to its potential. I hope it proves worthy of those who have high hopes of it already and surprises those who fear nothing but the worst from it. I truly believe both of those goals are obtainable and not mutually exclusive as we are told so relentlessly. For all our all sakes, we should decide that it is worth the risk to have faith in each other lest we lose this incredible country and the potential for a wonderful world for ourselves and our children that I believe isn’t nearly as far away as we fear.
