Well, another election is behind us.
Half the country is celebrating. The other half is wondering how on earth their fellow Americans could be so foolish. Some are predicting a bright new future, while others are convinced we’re headed for disaster.
Sound familiar?
Give it a few years, and we’ll probably do it all over again. The winners will have become disillusioned, the losers will have found renewed hope, and both sides will be promising that this time, things will be different.
Welcome to American politics.
I’ve seen this cycle repeat itself more times than I care to count. Republicans win, Democrats complain. Democrats win, Republicans complain. Sometimes the politicians even switch positions on the very things they were complaining about four years earlier. And we fall for it. Every single time.
We convince ourselves that if we can just elect the right people, everything will improve. The economy will flourish, taxes will shrink, Washington will suddenly become responsible with our money, and politicians will finally start telling the truth.
Okay, perhaps that last one is a bit optimistic…
Maybe our biggest political problem isn’t whom we elect. Maybe it’s how much faith we place in the people we elect.
We’ve turned politicians into our saviors. We expect them to fix our problems, protect our interests, secure our futures, and somehow make our lives better. When our candidate wins, we’re euphoric. When our candidate loses, we’re devastated.
Perhaps we’d be a little happier if we lowered our expectations and remembered that Washington was never intended to be the source of our happiness.
But What’s the Alternative?
Suppose we decided that elections were just too much trouble.
Think about it. No more nasty political advertisements. No more endless fundraising. No more arguments with your brother-in-law at Thanksgiving dinner. We could eliminate the entire election process and simply establish a permanent government.
One ruling party. One political establishment. No more uncertainty about who will be in charge. Sounds wonderfully efficient, doesn’t it?
Of course, there’s one small problem. What happens when the people in charge decide they don’t want to leave?
History has given us plenty of examples of governments that don’t particularly care what their citizens think. Monarchies, dictatorships, communist regimes, and other authoritarian systems have all demonstrated what happens when political power becomes something the people cannot take away.
The ruling class rules. Everyone else obeys. And if you don’t like the people running things? Too bad. That’s not citizenship. That’s servitude.
Our ancestors spent centuries living under kings, emperors, and rulers who claimed authority by birthright, divine appointment, or military force. Ordinary people had precious little say in who governed them.
America was founded on a rather revolutionary idea: Government derives its authority from the people, not the other way around.
And every election, regardless of who wins, gives us another opportunity to exercise that authority. It’s the Beauty of Being American. Now, I’m not suggesting our system is perfect. Far from it.
We argue constantly. We accuse the other side of destroying the country. We complain about taxes, regulations, government spending, corruption, and politicians who couldn’t balance a checkbook if their lives depended on it.
Sometimes I think complaining about the government ought to be our national pastime. But consider what a remarkable privilege that is.
We can criticize our president. We can challenge our representatives. We can publish opinions that make people angry. We can organize, protest, campaign, and vote for someone else.
And when we’ve had enough, we can throw the bums out.
Not every country enjoys that freedom.
Does voting guarantee good government? Absolutely not. Does it guarantee that the people we elect will keep their promises? We’ve already established how that usually works out.
But it does give us something extraordinarily valuable.
A choice. And perhaps even more importantly, the ability to change our minds.
That’s the part I find most encouraging about America. We’re not required to remain loyal to a politician simply because we voted for him. We’re free to criticize our own party, question our own leaders, and admit when we’ve made a mistake. In fact, I’d argue that’s precisely what responsible citizens ought to do.
Life Goes On.
Here’s another thing worth remembering. The morning after an election, the sun still comes up. Our families still need us. The bills still arrive. The dog still wants to be fed. Our neighbors are still our neighbors, even if they have that ridiculous campaign sign in their front yard. And most of the things that give our lives meaning haven’t changed at all.
Our faith, our families, our friendships, our communities, and the work we do every day matter far more than the latest political victory or defeat.
That’s not to say elections don’t matter. They absolutely do. Government policies have real consequences, and we should take our responsibility as voters seriously.
But we shouldn’t confuse political victory with personal happiness.
Nor should we allow political disappointment to rob us of our hope.
America has survived wars, depressions, political scandals, terrible leaders, and more than a few questionable decisions by the electorate. And somehow, we’re still here. Still arguing. Still voting. Still convinced we could run the country better than the people currently doing it.
Maybe that’s part of what makes us Americans.
We’re stubborn. We’re opinionated. We’re fiercely independent. We don’t particularly like being told what to do, and we reserve the right to change our minds whenever we please.
We’re also remarkably good at complaining.
But beneath all that noise is something worth celebrating.
We are free!
Free to choose our leaders. Free to question them. Free to disagree with our neighbors. And free to replace the people in power when we decide they’ve had their chance.
So congratulations to the winners. My condolences to the losers.
And to those celebrating today, enjoy the moment. Your turn for disappointment will probably come soon enough.
As for me, I’ll keep voting, keep questioning, and occasionally complain about whichever bunch of politicians happens to be running Washington.
After all, I’m an American.
We’re proud, we’re fickle, and we’re independent.
And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
God bless America.
Now, pass the ballot box.
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