Losing Faith in America’s Political System

America’s political system was birthed at the signing of the United States Constitution in September 1787. Then, on April 30, 1789, America’s political system began its over 200 years of success when George Washington became the first President of the United States. Since that infamous date, many Presidents, many members of Congress, and many members of the Supreme Court have served their country faithfully. They developed a government “of the people, by the people, for the people.” They have worked diligently to make America a safe and economically-blessed nation.

However, during the post modern era, America’s political system has drastically changed in its perception of its role in the American society. Unfortunately, the politicians, who spend millions of dollars to get our vote on election day, have failed to follow the foundational principles of their forefathers. Instead, they have taken a new approach to the day- to-day operations of America’s political system. Basically, they have become more concerned about their grandiose, self-centered goals than the goals of the millions of people that they were elected to represent. Therefore, average Americans are losing faith in the greatest political system in the world.

Why are Americans losing faith in their government? In order to find out the reason average Americans are losing faith in their government, I ask this very question to faculty and staff at the private, Christian school where I am a teacher. They gave me some very informative answers. Some of the responses were as follows:

Untrustworthiness of the politician to make the decision for the public good instead of for his/her personal benefit.

The lack of faith in God by many politicians and their lack of morals.

The distrust of many politicians by average Americans.

The government has been declining greatly over the last 50 years due to corrupt politicians and lack of integrity.

Politicians cannot lead people who they are not really concerned about leading.

However, as seen in these different opinions, politicians have been blamed for the failure of America’s political system. But, one respondent to the survey voiced a strong opinion that put the blame on average Americans. Her opinion was:

Our Constitution frames the best form of government on the planet. The balance of powers and the system of checks and balances provided a framework that allowed our young country to grow and develop and remain despot free for the last 220 years. The government itself is not what I have lost faith in. “We the People” is what I have lost faith in.

“We the People” have allowed the government to become a bloated over-fed parody of its original self. The original structure is still there, just hidden under layers upon layers of law. Our government has become too big for its britches. Our congressmen pass legislation on almost a nit picky level. Do we need the seatbelt law? Shouldn’t a grown adult decide whether or not to wear a seatbelt? Do we need a law that says you can’t sell non-diet drinks in a school? I think it might be the parent’s job to educate their children about what to drink and when to drink it.

“Of the people, by the people, for the people” means the people should educate themselves and elect leaders at all levels that work for them. The people should watch what those elected officials do and boot them out of office when they no longer work for the people. The caliber of citizens and politicians has declined in the last 220 years.

Therefore, America’s political system is at a crossroads in 2008. When the American electorate votes for the President of the United States and for any members of Congress in November 2008, they must absolutely know the true facts about each candidate. Citizens of the United States must not permit the race, gender, or political party of the candidate be a determining factor in who wins the election. Citizens of the United States must not let personal economic gain become the deciding factor in which candidate they vote for in any election. Citizens of the United States must vote for candidates who have the true qualities of great leaders, such as those possessed by America’s forefathers. Some of these qualities would be honesty, integrity, morality, faith in the nation they serve, faith in the people they serve, having the character of a statesman instead of the character of many modern-day politicians. Of course, true representative leaders of the United States should always pray to God before voting on any legislation that affects the greatest nation in the world.

However, if America continues to elect people to office that assume the role of a politician instead of a statesman, America may lose more than just the faith of its citizens toward its political system. America may possibly lose its status as the greatest nation in the world. For example, America cannot expect to stay the greatest nation in the world and to have the greatest political system if its politicians attempt to enact legislation that is contrary to the teachings of the Holy Bible. Of course, this is what is happening on a regular basis in the chambers of Congress. In fact, if the Democratically-backed bills supporting the gay rights agenda become law, Americans will be forced to accept morals that are definitely anti-Christian in belief.

Also, based on what I read recently in an OneNewsNow article written by Chad Groening (March 10, 2008), both Democratic presidential candidates are backing the same ungodly agenda. In Mr. Groening’s article Senator Clinton: “I Want to be First U.S. President to March in Gay Pride Parade,” Elaine Donnelly, president of the Center for Military Readiness, was stated as saying that Senator Clinton (D-New York) pledged to be the first United States President to march in a gay pride parade. Does this sound like a statesman or a politician? In the same article, Barack Obama (D-Illinois) was stated as saying that he pledged to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and also to provide for open homosexuality in the military. Does this sound like a statesman or a politician?

Ultimately, Americans are definitely losing faith in their political system. However, what can the leaders of America’s political system do to regain the faith of the American citizens who elect them to their prestigious positions? First, political leaders must once again assume the role of a statesman, not a politician. Politicians have destroyed the great political experiment begun by the writers of the Constitution. Second, political leaders must once again represent the American people in the halls of Congress. Unfortunately, many politicians have chosen to support the wants of large corporations over the wants of the people they were elected to represent. Third, political leaders must once again enact laws that benefit all Americans. Too many politically correct laws benefit select minority groups instead of the majority of the American people. Fourth, political leaders must once again make “blameless character” a major part of their belief system. Too many politicians have been caught doing illegal and immoral activities while holding an elected public office. Finally, political leaders must once again truly support the American political system that was developed by those faithful men who wrote the United States Constitution. However, if all American politicians, who took an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States, do not faithfully fulfill their promise, the American political system could be weakened. In fact, the American political system could possibly crack under the pressure of other ideological groups that have always wanted to destroy us from within, such as Communists, Socialists, Fascists, and others. Therefore, Americans will not only lose faith in their political system, their political system might just lose faith in them.