WellSpring Blog

In case you somehow haven’t noticed, election season now in full swing. Politicians are constantly in our faces – commercials on tv, radio, and the printed media, yard signs lined up like guardrails along every street, pop-up ads slowing internet surfing to a crawl, news stories and polls ad nauseum . For some strange reason, this makes me think of a couple of movie titles – “Liar, Liar” and “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.” Of course the disconnect comes in that those movies are both comedies, and I don’t see anything funny about politicians. I have no doubt that they are all liars and scoundrels. That’s right, all of them. Wow, how did I get so cynical? Trust me, I wasn’t born this way. It took many years of emotional abuse at the hands of candidates and elected officials to shape me in the anti-political grouch that I am today. (Fortunately I’m only a grouch during election season – but then, when are we NOT in an election season?)

If you think I am going to reveal any personal political leanings here, sorry to disappoint you. Not going there. When you despise all politicians like I do, it really it doesn’t matter which side of the aisle they claim to occupy, or which side I might stumble toward. Trust me; I consider them all equally despicable.

Here’s my beef. At age 51, I reckon I have lived through at least 25 election cycles, not counting runoffs and special elections of one kind or another. Of course I don’t remember them all, and I pray that God will allow time to erase the ones that are stuck like thorns in my memory bank. But as far back as I can recall, every time, without fail, the politicians make promises, promises, and more promises. Doesn’t matter what office they are running for – president, governor, senator, mayor, dog catcher. They all make promises. Isn’t that what elections are all about? “Here’s what I’m going to do for you.” Reading between the lines, they are really saying “Here’s what the polling data says you want to hear.” And peaking behind that statement, what they are saying is “I’m going to say whatever I think I need to say to get elected.”

They are so full of…of ….of….. (don’t want to say a bad word here)…. promises! Besides making promises, it seems the only other thing they have time for is slamming their opponent – calling them liars, cheats, scoundrels (you know – politicians!).
Then, after we endure endless commercials and countless hideous yard signs, election day rolls around, and like it or not, a few of these idiots actually get elected. Some are from one party, and some from the other. Regardless of party affiliation, what becomes of their prolific promises? Nothing! None of them really do what they say they will do. Or if they are up or RE-election, then they haven’t done what they say they have done. If they claim they will lower taxes, taxes go up anyway. If they promise to bring jobs, without fail unemployment rises and more jobs move overseas. If they swear they will fix the roads, fix Wall Street corruption, fix runaway spending, fix Social Security, fix the insurance industry, nothing really gets fixed. And I just grow more cynical.
Why do their promises go so pathetically unfulfilled? Let me offer two possible explanations, one more fatalistic than the other.
My first theory, giving them all the benefit of the doubt, is that “the system” is broken. What that means, so they would say, is that they are unable to keep any of their promises because, despite their best efforts, the system itself stopped them. The corruption of everyone around them, and the various structures that been erected by all their corrupt colleagues and predecessors, kept them from doing what they sincerely intended to do. They meant well, they did their best, they worked hard. In fact, they are so committed to keeping their promises, they are willing to try again if you will just give them another chance. They just need your vote in the upcoming election!

Sadly, I believe this excuse actually holds some credence. I think the system is corrupt. Their colleagues and predecessors have set up structures that have stopped them. Gridlock is a political reality. Any efforts at reform really DO get squashed before they can get off the ground. But, if the system is that messed up, how will electing more politicians, regardless of what they are promising, do anything to improve the situation? Do we just need to elect the ones who promise to “fix the system?”
My second theory, much more cynical than the first, can be explained by taking a glimpse into campaign finances. Consider this: Meg Whitman, former CEO of EBay, set a new spending record this year by coughing up $119 million (so far – it’s not over yet) to win the governor’s seat in California. The job pays $212,179 per year, or $848,716 for a four year term. That means she risked 140 TIMES what she would earn in 4 years, if of course she was elected. Granted this represents the extreme, so not all candidates are investing this kind of money. But the fact is, many, many candidates spend an inordinate amount relative to the pay scale of the elected position they seek. So it is easy to conclude that one (or both) of two things is going on, neither of which is pretty. It’s possible that politicians (and aspiring politicians) are just incredible egomaniacs with an insatiable thirst for power or attention. This is likely true for many. The other explanation is that they are getting monetarily compensated in some way other than their salary. This might occur while they are in office, in the form of kickbacks, sweetheart deals, and under-the-table money in exchange for voting a certain way. Or maybe they are counting on a payoff after they leave office, either from book deals, joining the speaking circuit, or from a prestigious position in a think tank or as a highly paid lobbyist focused on swaying the sentiments of their former colleagues in government.
I suppose a third theory might exist that could explain why someone would spend millions of dollars to land a political office that pays thousands of dollars. It could be that they feel a calling, from their higher power or just from their higher self, to serve their constituents, and are convinced that no one else is as uniquely gifted and able to accomplish what needs to be done. How much stock do I place in this theory? Did I mention that I am a bit on the cynical side?
Unlike politicians, I really care about what you have to say, so don’t let this be the final word. Just don’t get your hopes up that you can extract me from the depths of cynicism to which I have sunk.
“I’m Greg Sargent, and I approve this message.”

Okay, I feel better. Thank you for indulging me while I vented! Now I feel that I need to reassure you of some things that you might have already assumed:

1. Yes, I am guilty of using hyperbole to make my point. I call it my gift of hyperbolic cynicism.
2. I do follow political matters. Although I find it frustrating, I still stay engaged. And I think there are some good people serving in public office.
3. I still vote, and think you should to. Figure out who the good people are, and what the good ideas are, and vote accordingly.

Still looking forward to your thoughts! Please post your comments in the forum and let us know what’s on your mind.