The exercising of “political will” always becomes an issue whenever we enter a new administration, so I thought we would discuss what may be involved this time around. It has never been clearer the need for all branches of government and all departments within it to have equal power. Any time one branch becomes more powerful than another, we encounter problems such as we see today. When one party controls all three major branches of government, and we still do not see results, there is something wrong. It is obvious that a major overhaul of the basic structure of the U.S. government is long overdue. An honest assessment of the current conditions reveals a lack of true representation of the American people by our elected officials. The concept of Democracy is relatively new, for sure, but we have an opportunity now to fix what needs to be fixed in order for the democratic approach to work better for all of us. Let’s take a quick look at what is currently going on in the various branches of our government and what is ultimately at stake.
The Presidency
Unfortunately, many of us believe that we are electing a new president in order to have things be the way we want them to be and create changes that improve the condition of our lives. What is not understood is that the president only has so much power and ability to create the changes required. This is how it should be because if the presidency had all power to make decisions, we would find ourselves in a dictatorship rather than a democracy. We hopefully can see now the dangerous consequences of such power within the previous Trump Administration. Essentially, the president is the initiator of ideas and possibilities only. Ultimately, it is Congress that implements these ideas and changes. Here lies the problem, as we will see. As a respected “authority” figure, the president is a great motivator for his or her people. It is up to us however to see that changes in policy become a reality through the election of our congressional representatives.
Congress
What a mess! No matter who we elect to power, so little is accomplished. The overall goal of having two political parties in our system is to provide ourselves with the reality of choices. We have an opportunity to see the two sides that always exist with any issue, and this is a good thing. It’s important for all of us to realize that the majority of us exist somewhere in the middle. This is as it should be, for we need to see the reality that we have more in common than not. When it comes right down to it, we essentially want the same things. The two political parties show us the two sides of the same coin. Unfortunately, the two perspectives have become extreme in their presentation, especially that of the Republican Party, which has created a virtual stalemate in Congress. Indecision, ineffectiveness, and chaos now rule. Our goal as human beings is to always seek compromise. This allows for the honoring and inclusion of both sides in all matters. The problem is about the desire to maintain power at all costs, the cost, of course, is us. It must be made absolutely clear that no side is completely correct. The need to be right allows for the misuse of power you see. We all fear change to a certain degree. The current antics of the Republican Party represent this fear, as they would have us move back into the past, or at least maintain things as they are. The majority of Americans desire change and the opportunity for a better future. This has been made absolutely clear.
The Senate
If there is any institution existing in the United States that has too much power, it is the Senate. This deliberative body, which has been respected in many areas of the world in the past, has become a travesty. Every U.S. state obviously deserves to have equal representation at this level. What has happened, however, is it has allowed smaller, less populous states to have more say than they really should. The majority of Americans are therefore not truly represented. The House of Representatives or the “People’s House” should have the final say on the creation and adoption of legislation. This body is closer to true representation because of its emphasis on actual population or numbers. However, the Republican Party has gotten around this workable approach as well through the unfair practices of redistricting. The above conditions have allowed the possibility of “minority rule” which we see today. Some very difficult decisions need to be made in the rules of the Senate in order for us to see any real change. No matter how fearful some of us are with these necessary changes, we must allow for them, or we’ll essentially be “frozen in the past” forever.
The Department of Justice
In order for us to be successful as human beings, we require structure and the establishment of certain rules and boundaries in order to function properly. This is what the Department of Justice provides and is the basic purpose and intent as set forth by us and them. True justice at its core is about equality. As we have discussed before, this needs to be distributed fairly, honestly, and unconditionally. Ideally, justice intends to do its job in an unbiased manner. The reality is that there is no human being I have encountered personally who is truly unbiased. This is, unfortunately, the case in our justice system as well. We all need to realize that in most cases they are doing the best they can with what they have available to them. As we all know, there are many rich and powerful people who intend to proceed in creating everything they want to serve their own selfish interests, without regard to anyone else or the law itself. Our current Justice Department under the Biden Administration is unfortunately also subject to such influences. Their efforts to appear to be unbiased basically come from proper intent, but this is inhibiting them from doing the right thing in certain cases. We all need to decide if the law does in fact apply to all individuals through consistent action. The idea that a former president, a wealthy and powerful corporate executive, or any public or political leader, is above the law cannot stand any longer if we are to exhibit the qualities of Democracy. We do now have a chance to further these ends with our current Justice Department. Accountability must become a reality for all Americans. This includes the prosecution of anyone who is responsible for wrongdoing. Let’s get busy and make sure that our Justice Department officials show us that they are able to apply their own principles in a fair and equal manner.
The Supreme Court
An honest observation of the Supreme Court as it exists today gives us no reason to believe that justice will be distributed equally and fairly. The fact that at least three of them were appointed through lying, cheating, and stealing should give us all reason for pause and reassessment. The reality is that our highest court has become no more than a puppet for the political right. If we are to implement any significant changes in our government, we need to look not only to Congress, but here as well. Decisions made at the Supreme Court affect every individual in this country, and I am not sure if this is given adequate attention by all of us. The expectation that these individuals can be truly unbiased is a little immature on our part and does not allow us to recognize the need for change. We can first realize that our highest court is not a place for any individual to have their own personal ideas and ideals implemented. Objectivity is therefore critical. Compromise must always be sought so that decisions represent the majority. The current administration and the current Congress can go about this in a couple of ways. They can either change the laws and have Supreme Court justices be elected positions, or they could require these appointments have term limits. These conditions would certainly give these individuals the motivation to at least attempt to be unbiased in their decision-making. If big structural changes in the makeup of our courts are not possible right now, the Biden Administration and the Democrats in Congress owe it to the American people to at least appoint additional justices to insure compromise, fairness, and objectivity in the application of law. This is a critical matter that cannot wait. Our Democracy and our individual rights are at stake.
“We the People”
This is our country and our world. With this realization comes great responsibility on our part. Our elected officials have a great responsibility to do what we ask. This is what we pay them for. We can make sure this happens by becoming actively involved in every way that we can. The condition of our lives and our world is our reality. As much as we would like to believe that we’re all victims, this is not the case. It’s always up to us. We are the creators. We are the builders.
All my love and support, stay safe and be well