Decades ago, when this blogger was a boy, it used to be
popular to say “I don’t agree with that, but I will
defend to the death your right to say it.” The...
Category: Civic Education
The Last Line in the Declaration of Independence
Much is made of the beginning of the Declaration of
Independence. They are stirring words: “We hold these truths to be
self-evident, that all men are created equal, that...
Competence, Loyalty, and Patronage
Every government needs a civil
service to get things done. Yet, hiring
people into the civil service tempts politicians with some bad behaviors: could the new...
Memorial Day
In respect for their devotion to America, the Congress by a
joint resolution approved on May 11, 1950 (64 Stat. 158), has requested the
President to issue a proclamation...
Cheat or Compete?
US politics is becoming characterized more and more by cheating to win instead of working harder to be competitive enough to earn bipartisan votes. It is weakening our Republic.
Building a Trustworthy Gov’t
The US Senate is considering another rule change aimed at
reducing the backlog of presidential appointees awaiting Senate confirmation. The reality of political...
HOW TO ENJOY POLITICS
Democracy is all about using free and fair political competition to motivate a contest of the best ideas for solving problems. Politics played as a contest of ideas requires voters and politicians alike to speak for themselves and to listen to others for their ideas.
Friends When You Need Them
If you ever anticipate
you might need some friends in Congress,
if you...
Connecting the Dots
Pundits haven’t yet fully connected the dots in front of them. Yes, presidential use of national emergency powers to spend money on things that Congress chose not to authorize is against the Article 1 of Constitution. Here is the other dot: the choice of president became more consequential as the Office of the President became more powerful. This trend explains why election campaigns have been fought ever more viciously – by politicians and citizens alike.
Time to Restore Big Tent Politics
In times that strain our system of checks and balances, trying for more party purity – meaning moving the two major parties even further apart – is the wrong way to go. Instead, it is time to restore big tent politics.
Martin Luther King Jr.
In a democracy, people need to trust...
Emergency Powers
In any republic, much depends upon the trust of political leaders and the people that election winners will not use their power to entrench themselves at the expense of the losers. In fact, entrenchment has been a feature of many governments around the world. Leaders find an excuse to act outside of normal law – by declaring a state of emergency.
Introduction to the Budget Process
Trust in our system of democracy depends in no small part upon how well it delivers for us. The services we get from the government are part of that. Few of us are happy about shut-downs, inadequate services, waste, and unsustainable debt. That prompts a question: how is the U.S. budget process supposed to work?
WORKING TOGETHER FOR CHANGE
Change is easier when our elected representatives are working together to get something done. The good news in this context is that there is far more common ground for them to build on than you will hear from the media. You can remind them of that.
Impossible to Be Civil?
Hillary Clinton said this week “You cannot be civil with a political party that wants to destroy what you stand for.” A day later, Eric Holder said that when Republicans “go low, we kick...
Lost in the Outrage
Much of the press coverage about the Supreme Court confirmation process, mainstream and otherwise, has been about the alleged low quality of tactics undertaken by...
Constitution Day
Monday, September 17, is Constitution Day. It’s a good excuse to think about a few things. First of all, what’s the big deal about having a constitution? For the...
Supreme Court and Democracy
With the composition of the Supreme Court being so consequential, the Senate has an eternal obligation to confirm justices who will defend the constitution on a non-partisan basis for all people within our borders. We hope citizens will ask their senators to go beyond that and make support for free, fair, and accountable democracy one of their major confirmation criteria.
Free Speech: Abuse It and Lose It
The right to free speech is an integral part of modern democracy. Abuse that right and you abuse democracy. Take that abuse too far and you won’t have free speech any more.
Cruelty Hurts Democracy Here, Persecuted Minorities Overseas
Cruelty towards immigrants practice puts our democracy at risk, along with our ability to advocate for persecuted minorities overseas.
Setting Fires and Pouring Gasoline
Our constitution gives the media a central and protected role in our democracy. Our founding fathers expected the media would help hold leaders accountable and also help educate voters (and legislators) about the pros and cons of various policy options. The media have never been especially polite in doing the job the founder fathers gave them: personal attacks on political leaders started early on. In the last many years, however, many media owners have directed their staff to set fires and then pour gasoline on them.
Elon Musk: You Can Help Make the Press Better
The first amendment to the US Constitution guarantees the right to a free press (TV, radio, newspapers, blogs, social media). This is a right worth fighting for. The press that you don’t like today might be a very important friend at other times in your life.
Unintended Consequences
Policy driven by loyalty, passion, and frustration can lead to unintended consequences.
These People are Winning
Democracy is not dying everywhere, or even in most places. Here is an example from Slovakia. The action started just a few months ago and the people are winning!
Is it Time to Restore Big Tent Politics?
Another illustration of the definition of insanity: recently the Washington Post published a story on how many voters and party officials in both parties seem to think more...
The 2nd Amendment & Changing Times
Things have changed between the time of the founding fathers and now. On the one hand, the USA now has an extremely well-armed military force, while most state and local governments have well-armed police forces, and all of those forces are under the control of elected civilian leaders. On the other hand, the USA has a far higher rate of gun deaths and mass shootings than most citizens are willing to accept. Whether and how things should be re-balanced are open questions suitable for respectful debate.
Regular Elections, Regular Census
The US Constitution requires a census every 10 years. The census is mandatory because it affects the numbers of seats each state occupies in the U.S. House of Representatives. It also affects...
Loving the Game, Defending the Rules
We should all understand that very few of us would have a vote or a political voice if we collectively fail to defend constitutional and legal limits on political behavior.
DEFENDING DEMOCRACY IS HARD WORK
Defending democracy is inherently difficult. Reminding ourselves why the job is so problematic helps point the way towards a more effective defense.
Spite
Would you shoot your chief of police because he arrested your best friend? Or would you malign his reputation in a very public way? If you did, could you count on him to help you later? Don’t cut off your nose to spite your face.