The Adventures of Kate and Brian: A letter from Kate

To all who are frustrated with politics,

It’s nearing the end of a long and particularly nasty campaign season and I know that many people have had it with politicians and campaigns. There is a lot of frustration and anger out there, and it is coming through loud and clear in the campaign rhetoric and negative advertising. People are mad because candidates they voted for in the past haven’t done what they thought they would (or should) and people are open to ideas from new candidates who promise to “stick to their guns” and never compromise. That’s nice campaign rhetoric and it sure seems to get some people fired up, but as a person who studies politics for a living, it worries me. That message reinforces a misconception the American people have about the political process and it also reinforces the narcissism that is so prevalent in our society.

Campaign messages that tout the candidates’ unwillingness to compromise (such as ones that are common among “tea party” candidates this year) or a frustration with the pace of change (such as Obama supporters who don’t see enough change or Republicans who feel that “Obamacare” was “forced down the throat of the American public) reflect a lack of understanding about the political process. Like it or not, the American political system was designed to move slowly and to require compromise. All of those conservatives out there who are calling for a return to the framers’ intentions for government seem to miss this critical point. If you look at the Constitution that the framers designed, and read their arguments in favor of ratification that they outline in the Federalist Papers, you will see that they did not design an institution that would work quickly. Checks are built into a system of separated institutions sharing power. Legislation is required to move through two chambers in the legislature—one of which requires a 3/5ths vote rather than a simple majority (although this was not specified in the Constitution)—before it goes to the president. Given that legislators represent very different sets of constituents, this process is naturally going to take time. It is also naturally going to take compromise. The Constitution itself took compromise. Delegates to the Constitutional Convention had very different ideas about what kind of government institutions would be best for this new country. Most framers got some of what they wanted; no one got everything. That’s the way politics works and, more importantly, that’s the way politics is supposed to work. When a candidate says that, if elected, they will never compromise, what they are really saying is that they are refusing to participate in the system of give and take that the framers designed. No one person gets everything they want out of politics and, frankly, that’s a very good thing.

I’ve talked with a lot of people who are frustrated because politicians they supported did something that made them mad. I guess they suppose that anyone they vote for is supposed to do exactly what they want the politician to do. Maybe they even suppose that they are in the majority and that everyone else feels the same way. This, to me, is the essence of narcissism. News flash! There is probably not anyone else in the entire country that feels EXACTLY the same way you do about every single political issue. Your beliefs about politics and your opinions about political issues are shaped by your upbringing, your religious beliefs, your personal experiences, your emotions, your socioeconomic status, and so much more that is unique to you. To think that a politician ought to follow your opinion on every issue in every situation is simply unreasonable. Elected officials are there to represent their constituents, yes, but their constituents are a heterogeneous lot. This means that as strongly as you might feel about one issue, there are other people in your representative’s district who feel just as strongly in the other direction. This creates quite a challenge for elected officials who actually care about trying to represent their constituents well. Candidates this election season who boast in their unwillingness to ever compromise scare me. What they are essentially saying is that they already know all the “right” answers and they don’t care what anyone in their district/state thinks. They are reinforcing the narcissistic attitude held by too many of us and making it impossible for them to participate in the type of negotiating and compromise that is necessary in government.

I realize that many of you are frustrated with politics, but this is because candidates promise something that is impossible to deliver: fast results that mirror your desires. Political candidates aren’t likely to stop making these promises any time soon. For one thing, candidates who have never held office might not even realize that what they’re claiming isn’t possible. But here’s the thing. YOU can change your expectations for what politicians are able to do. I don’t mean giving up and getting cynical; I mean having a realistic understanding of how government works and why it doesn’t need to (and shouldn’t!) revolve around you. Vote for a candidate who understands the process (this doesn’t necessarily mean the candidate with political experience), who has integrity, who has a track record of working with other people in situations that require negotiation and compromise, and who agrees with you on at least some of the issues you think are important. There are a lot of good candidates out there. They run because they care about the process of governing and they want to serve their communities. Trust me, they aren’t running for the money or the loss of privacy or the joy of being at work 24 hours a day or the death threats or the long, demeaning hours of fundraising or any of the other joys that come with running a campaign. Push past the negative ads and campaign slogans and look at their track record—either in or out of government. Use websites like politifact.com (for national races) or poligraph from Minnesota Public Radio (http://minnesota.publicradio.org/collections/special/columns/polinaut/archive/poligraph/) to assess the accuracy of the ads you see and hear. Go out and meet the candidates if you can. And then, vote. We need more people voting who understand the complexities of what we are asking elected officials to do, who are willing to admit that their views aren’t the only views out there, and who are willing to make compromises. And who knows, maybe you won’t feel so frustrated!