I recently heard an extended report on conditions in Venezuela, where the electricity has been off for some time now and nobody apparently has the power to turn it back on. Thirty million people are suffering unbelievable depravation because political gridlock has rendered the government powerless.
The gridlock has come to this because, after years of economic chaos, two men both believe they should be president, and neither will yield to the other. My guess is that they both are so convinced that only they can save the country from disaster that neither is willing to admit defeat in order to save the country from disaster.
Probably they both believe that “only I can be the president Venezuela needs. Only I can do what Venezuela needs done.”
Are we setting up the same kind of political stalemate that has resulted in disaster for Venezuela? I hope not, because I still believe our dedication to democratic institutions is strong enough to withstand the ego of a U.S. President who believes “only I can be the president the United States needs.”
For democracy to work those who hold power at the moment must have some confidence that those who are now out of power will not destroy the nation should they come to power. But as the Republican Party has moved further and further to the right, the Democratic Party has moved further and further to the left. The farther they move apart the more surely each will come to trust only themselves and their kind with the reigns of power, and the more surely they will believe it is in the best interests of the country for them do everything possible to keep the other out of power. That kind of thinking spells disaster for democracy.
What I am looking for in our next president (hopefully to be elected in 2020) is someone whose strong political convictions are expressed within the context of a profound respect for what it means to be a democratic republic, and for those who do not agree with that person. I am looking for someone who can get a broad cross-section of Americans back on the same political playing field.
Who are you looking for, post Donald Trump?
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