Foolish Musings

Seven Stages of Political Redemption

From Rasmussen (March 12, 2010): 71% of Americans think the legislative branch is doing a poor job; 63% want most incumbents to be defeated in next election; 75% are “angry” with the policies of the federal government.

There is a vicious fight going on in America today… we are a nation at odds. If you were to read the paper or turn on the television or radio you’d think that the war was political or ideological. Democrats vs. Republicans - Red vs. Blue. But the above poll suggests that the media is way off base. In fact, the data shows that the people of the United States are remarkably unified. We are at odds though, but not with each other. We’re at odds with the government officials who purport to represent us. It’s the ruling class vs. the ruled.

Many politicians are beginning to recognize this rift and have begun trying to redeem themselves by declaring their affiliation with certain grass roots efforts or by claiming they’ve seen the light. But honestly, I don’t trust them.

Can they be redeemed? In my opinion not until I see seven things happen. This is not a seven step “hi my name is John McCain and I’m a politician” program. They’re stages that are similar to waypoints in a GPS navigation system that need to be driven to and through one waypoint at a time. Why seven? Because most politicians are able to fake two or three stages… but they can’t fake seven. I for one will not trust any politician until I see these seven things apparent in their life:


Stage one: Realizing your need for redemption
Throughout the political landscape we see politicians cheating on their taxes, orchestrating huge back room payoffs, building monuments to themselves with earmarks, exempting themselves from the laws they pass and spending our money like drunken sailors (at least drunken sailors have the decency to spend their own money). Then when confronted with evidence of their lies and corruption, we get denials, rationalizations, finger pointing and party protectionism. Government officials are out of control, and if they are incapable of admitting they are corrupt and in need of redemption, then they should be publicly humiliated, stripped of their ridiculously generous pension, and thrown to the curb.

Stage two: Mourning
The House Republicans have signed a pledge to not take earmarks for one year. This proves to me that they have not yet realized their need for redemption (stage one). If earmarks are bad, commit to NEVER taking them. Giving them up for a year to “prove” your conversion to fiscal conservatism is like an alcoholic committing to giving up drinking for a weekend to prove he’s cured of his alcoholism. When Monday comes around and you’re at the trough binging again, you’ve proved nothing. This type of stupidity will not cut it anymore; your admission of wrongs must have correlating actions. When someone truthfully admits their need for redemption a natural thing happens… they begin to mourn over the things they’ve done… their sorrow is evident, and their desire to right their wrongs will visibly overwhelm them. Unless I see this type of mourning… to the curb with the whole lot.

Stage three: Humility
There has been a stench of superiority wafting from Pennsylvania Avenue and Capitol Hill lately. After over 35 presidential healthcare reform speeches in just over a year (an average of 2.59 per month) the president and the congressional leadership have deemed the public to be so incredibly ignorant of their god-like goals to transform the American healthcare system, that they have decided to jam their corruption laden reform bill down our throat so the we “can find out what’s in it.” In other words… “you’re too stupid to understand our genius so we’ll enslave you in our convoluted vision of America until you admit how smart we are.” Until I start seeing a little humility… no soup for you! Humility comes naturally to those who have 1) realized their need for redemption and 2) begun to mourn over their sins.

Stage four: Striving to do what is right
A funny thing happens to most politicians when they get caught in their corruption. They call a press conference to deny any wrongdoing then continue their corrupt acts until their next press conference, where they deny any wrongdoing. My thought is that they must have this convoluted belief that if they just keep acting as if what they are doing is perfectly acceptable, one of two things will happen, they’ll either convince us that what they are doing is fine or they’ll be able to hold out until we forget. We’ve fallen for this tripe too long… it’s time for you to change your behavior. Pay your taxes, expose corruption, refuse back room deals and tell the truth. Do what is right or go home.

Stage five: Showing mercy
The best definition for showing mercy is putting the well being of others above your own… when was the last time you witnessed a politician putting the well being of others above their own? Kickbacks, exemptions, earmarks, sweetheart deals, job offers, pay-offs, campaign contributions… etc… etc… etc… Need I say more?

Stage six: Purified motives
I saw a spreadsheet the other day that charted the personal wealth of all the congressmen who are retiring in 2010. Two names stand out: Chris Dodd and Lincoln Diaz-Balart. Senator Dodd’s net worth increased by 7,497% during his 16 years in the Senate (believe it or not, I did not forget a decimal point in that number); in contrast, during his 18 years in the House, Representative Diaz-Balart’s net worth decreased by 52%. Before I saw this stat I knew enough about Dodd not to trust him as far as I could throw him, but that 7,497% number proves to me that his primary motive during his time in office was to enrich himself. As for Diaz-Balart, I don’t know a lot about him or his record, but because he did not leave office personally wealthier than he was when elected... I’ll at least give him the benefit of the doubt in regards to his motivation for serving.

Stage seven: Making peace
Many fixtures in government boast of their record of providing leadership by “reaching across the aisle.” Though it’s true that a true leader should be in the business of making peace, reaching across the aisle is not the peacemaking I’m talking about. Just because a Republican and a Democrat agree to something that will eventually ruin our nation doesn’t mean ruining our nation is a good thing. I don’t care what letter you have after your name, if you’ve met the above six requirements, I’ll listen to you and weigh your arguments carefully. You may not sway my opinion, but the dialog will be peaceful and in the end, though we may not agree with each other or vote for each other’s bills, we will humbly yield to the majority. Winning “by any means necessary” may have been acceptable in the past, but we’re awake now and we’re watching… grow up, play nice, or go home.

There is one final stage to redemption… persecution. When someone realizes their need for redemption, begins to mourn over their sin, finds humility, begins to hunger and thirst for rightness, shows mercy, changes their heart and reveals a pure motive and begins to lead others to peace, something happens; those who feed off the corrupt status quo will fight back relentlessly. You will be attacked and ridiculed for your purity of heart and humility by the powerful and influential. But I promise you, should you exhibit these seven principles, you will find redemption from the people you were elected to serve and you will become a light to the dark world…

A former tax collector name Matthew taught me these principles, and they are the foundation on which I personally have found redemption.