The sickness of our political process is the result of one single delusion, a bad idea shared equally by both the left and right.
Let's start here: Imagine going to a hospital and noticing that none of the medical staff seemed old enough to grow a mustache. Imagine being told that the hospital had been listening to the public and brought in fresh new faces, a fresh new look to meet the medical needs of the fresh new community. The first thing you'd think is, "Yes, but where's the skill? Where's the voice of experience?"
Bad analogy, you say, because, really, there is not that much skill involved in running a government.
There isn't? Where'd you get that idea? No one's sure where that idea came from, but it's very popular. Both the right and left believe that governing is best left to people new to politics. The idea is that those leaders are "not jaded by the Washington culture," and less easily corrupted. Fresh, new congressmen are supposedly more in touch with the voters, and not pawns of the powerful. We like the idea that these new faces will remember that "the folks back home" don't like big government programs. Freshmen, we are told, will be less apt to be drunk with the power and seduction of Washington, less likely to get sucked into the culture of "tax and spend."
And that, right there, is where both the right and left get into trouble. When we're unhappy with the turn of events, we vote everyone out of office. We assume that there's no value to years on the job, and that skill and experience are not relevant. Many Americans honestly think that all “years on the job” in Washington means is years learning to steal from people. But in reality, it takes time for the well-meaning men and women in government to figure out the system and get something good accomplished. Yes, in fact, there is a skill to effective politics, and there's value in learning the ropes of Washington. It takes years for a freshman to gather the necessary respect of other congress members, to have earned enough favors to have the clout to push for what is needed back home, to rise through the ranks and do something really good for their district, or even the nation. This rancorous notion that an experienced politician is, by nature, dishonest, has no basis in reality.
In fact, it is the novice, inexperienced congressmen who do us no favors in Washington. Novice congress members are pawns of party leadership. They are easily whipped into shape by the Mitch McConnells and John Boehners and the big party bosses. Freshmen congress members who, as yet, have little support back home, figure that the only way to protect their jobs is to support the Big Bosses, in hopes that the president or party leader will campaign for them. Congress party leaders do not want independent, strong and seasoned congress members, but would prefer timid, fresh faces who are beholden to them.
Countless movies take their cue from the idea that a young, idealistic novice can do much better than the old senator sitting in his office hiding from the light of day. People love that stuff. We believe that because we pay taxes, we are endowed with special insight into the value of our dollars, insight that is lost on those buzzards in Congress who spend money faster than they can get their hands on it.
In reality, politicians in Washington walk in terror of the fickle ways of public opinion, and the fact that any demagogue with a radio show can sway the masses and end careers. At home, we think this is good, and keeps them on their toes. In fact, this endless tightrope-walk creates cowardly, unprincipled leadership.
If we really want good leaders, we need to take the time to read up on them before we vote, spend the necessary hours learning about what they are like as leaders, and not focus merely on ideology, but skill. As it is, we treat election season like an extended episode of "American Idol," and as a result, the people who are best at mimicking our beliefs get our votes. And not surprisingly, we don't like the result, because these people are not particularly skilled leaders, but skilled actors. Thus, we vote them out ASAP. And so the cycle continues.
Ken Shilling
