I flew airplanes off and on for 25 years. When I approached the aircraft, I read the maintenance sheets to see if there were any systems that might be below optimum, if the aircraft had been properly serviced and if the airplane was ready for my sortie. I had virtually nothing to do with getting the airplane ready for flight. Oh sure, I did the cursory walk around inspection to make sure it had three landing gear, and ejection seat, the proper number of engines and was not leaking fluids all over the ramp. Dozens of people had worked on the airplane, making sure it was ready to go and was safe to fly. I had to put my trust in all of those folks I never saw who left their fingerprints all over the craft. I had to trust all those people to do their jobs. That was on the ground. When you are flying, there is a different level of trust that must be invested.
If one is in a flight of four fighters loaded with bombs and missiles, one has to have profound trust in the other members of the flight. There may be great differences in experience and skill levels, but those four aircraft must arrive at their target on time and deliver their weapons with cold precision. After dropping their bombs, they must be able to transition to a fluid unit operating as one in defending themselves as they egress from the target area. One must trust the other members of the flight, regardless of their experience or skill level, to do what they have trained to do. Now, that is trust.
In a fighter squadron, trust is the coin of the realm. There are certainly personality conflicts as one might expect when dealing with large egos and great skills. However, from the newest lieutenant to the grizzly old lieutenant colonel, there is trust invested due to shared experiences and the incredibly powerful social norms and professionalism of being in an outstanding flying unit. There is an honor associated with being accepted into the warrior class, and the adhesive that holds the unit together is trust. It’s too bad we cannot find the ties that bind in our government. Because we cannot trust our government, we need to fall back on the checks and balances found in the Constitution.
In Federalist 10, James Madison wrote about the dangers of factions. In this argument for the checks and balances of the Constitution, our founders recognized that men, left to their own devices, will seek power and edification of their own special interests, thus disregarding the interests of those who elected them.
This skeptical view of human nature was based on thousands of years of human history where, at every turn, men always sought power and wealth, usually at the expense of other men. From the time of Adam and Eve, the human form on this earth had fallen and was unworthy of trust within the culture and society. God recognized these failings and gave to Moses in the wilderness the Ten Commandments. Those simple, straight forward notions of social order, if followed, would hold our society together. Of course, if the game was as simple as the rules, our lives would be a great deal easier.
I have moments when I suffer through discouragement, especially after surveying the current political landscape. The divide between the people and our government, at every level, is growing greater every day. The “leaders” of both parties as so hungry in their pursuit of power that they have lost their way in the DC wilderness. There does not seem to be a Moses, a Samuel or an Isaiah to bring real servant leadership back to the government and the people. I often think that we have failed ourselves in preserving popular sovereignty and self-governance. Perhaps we don’t deserve to keep our Constitution sacred. Perhaps it’s time to think about dividing the union into regions where like minded people can live the lives they want without the consequential interference of government.
Though the tasks seem impossible, I still think it is worth fighting to preserve our nation, its sovereignty, and our right to self government. We must hold the line where we are losing and advance where we are winning. We have been given a great victory for the culture of life, so we should continue to deliberately advance to bring other issues back to the states. As we are losing in education, we should make it our duty to retake control of our public education system. The very survival of our nation, the American experience and American exceptionalism depend on everyone doing what they can to defend our nation from the inside. That is, after all, where the real threat is.
Sam Clovis was raised in Kansas and attended the United States Air Force Academy, serving for 25 years on active duty as a fighter pilot. He retired as a Colonel and the Inspector General of NORAD and the United States Space Command.
Sam served as a Fellow at the Homeland Security Institute, contributing in national preparedness and immigration policy. He recently served as a tenured full professor of economics at Morningside College.
Sam has a BS from the Academy, an MBA from Golden Gate University and a doctorate from the University of Alabama. He served as national co-chair and chief policy advisor for the Trump for President Campaign, was a policy director during the transition period and served as the Senior White House Advisor to the US Department of Agriculture. He currently lives in rural Iowa.
