Molineaux is co-publisher of The Fulcrum and president/CEO of the Bridge Alliance Education Fund.
Half of our political class is delusional. There’s an old adage in the marketing business that goes, “Half of all ad dollars are wasted. The problem is, we don’t know which half.” This quip came to mind recently as I was thinking about the culture and narrative war we are living through and our inability or unwillingness to agree on observable facts without interpretation.
In 2018, 89 percent of Americans said that they want both parties to try to find places to compromise. The American public clearly wants something better from our leaders but the question is: What, if anything, are they willing to do about it?
Like the European crusaders who fought to liberate Jerusalem or the revolutionaries in 18th century France and 1930s Germany who built an ideology on liberating their people from oppression, the political class in the United States has been captured in the delusion of “saving the nation” from the forces of evil. On one hand, there is the evil of authoritarianism; on the other, socialism. The political class on each side claims themselves as the warriors of liberation. Russia’s encroachment and now invasion of Ukraine’s territory is their proxy war – protectionists and freedom fighters, battling for the soul of the world. But are they?
What if they are both wrong?
Considerable research has pointed to the “exhausted majority,” those Americans who don’t vote for a variety of reasons, ( here, here and here). These citizens want to get on with their lives, loving their friends and family without tip-toeing through political landmines. Businesses would like to get back to serving their customers without feeling internal and external pressure to make statements about politics and social issues. If we want a better future for our nation, we need everyone to do their part. If our democracy is to work, and perhaps even survive, every resident, citizen and neighbor must realize they can make a difference.
If the political class cannot lead then it is up to the exhausted majority to engage and offer a course correction. One of the many reasons people do not engage is their mistaken belief that their vote doesn’t matter and their perspective won’t be represented. History shows us that We the People can make a difference. Unions helped course-correct businesses from unsafe and abusive practices in the last century. American citizens can course-correct the political class by voting. Given our gerrymandered districts, voting in the primary is critically important. Given that less than 25 percent of eligible voter votes in primaries, your vote is even more important. We’ll need three things to make a course correction happen.
- Enact automatic voter registration and easy access to voting for all eligible citizens. ( The Heritage Foundation shows 1,165 convictions of voter fraud since 1982 – so let’s stop the pretense that voter fraud is widespread or election changing.)
- Open primaries and allow people to vote for their chosen candidate, regardless of political party. Does this cause discomfort? Please ask yourself why. One person, one vote is the foundation of democracy, why not in primaries, too?
- Be friends with people who are different from yourself. American innovation comes from our diversity. When we stay in homogenous groups, our thinking is more likely to become extreme and deepens our delusions.
I live in the D.C. area. I attend meetings with the political class every day and am frustrated with what I see. These people are my friends and colleagues. But we need your help to co-create a better future for us all. Let’s end the delusion of the political class that believes they are in charge. If they are, it’s because you fail to use the power of your vote.
Please vote in EVERY primary and general election this year. YOU are the course correction we need.
An Independent Voter's Perspective on Current Political Divides
In the column, "Is Donald Trump Right?", Fulcrum Executive Editor, Hugo Balta, wrote:
For millions of Americans, President Trump’s second term isn’t a threat to democracy—it’s the fulfillment of a promise they believe was long overdue.
Is Donald Trump right?
Should the presidency serve as a force for disruption or a safeguard of preservation?
Balta invited readers to share their thoughts at newsroom@fulcrum.us.
David Levine from Portland, Oregon, shared these thoughts...
I am an independent voter who voted for Kamala Harris in the last election.
I pay very close attention to the events going on, and I try and avoid taking other people's opinions as fact, so the following writing should be looked at with that in mind:
Is Trump right? On some things, absolutely.
As to DEI, there is a strong feeling that you cannot fight racism with more racism or sexism with more sexism. Standards have to be the same across the board, and the idea that only white people can be racist is one that I think a lot of us find delusional on its face. The question is not whether we want equality in the workplace, but whether these systems are the mechanism to achieve it, despite their claims to virtue, and many of us feel they are not.
I think if the Democrats want to take back immigration as an issue then every single illegal alien no matter how they are discovered needs to be processed and sanctuary cities need to end, every single illegal alien needs to be found at that point Democrats could argue for an amnesty for those who have shown they have been Good actors for a period of time but the dynamic of simply ignoring those who break the law by coming here illegally is I think a losing issue for the Democrats, they need to bend the knee and make a deal.
I think you have to quit calling the man Hitler or a fascist because an actual fascist would simply shoot the protesters, the journalists, and anyone else who challenges him. And while he definitely has authoritarian tendencies, the Democrats are overplaying their hand using those words, and it makes them look foolish.
Most of us understand that the tariffs are a game of economic chicken, and whether it is successful or not depends on who blinks before the midterms. Still, the Democrats' continuous attacks on the man make them look disloyal to the country, not to Trump.
Referring to any group of people as marginalized is to many of us the same as referring to them as lesser, and it seems racist and insulting.
We invite you to read the opinions of other Fulrum Readers:
Trump's Policies: A Threat to Farmers and American Values
The Trump Era: A Bitter Pill for American Renewal
Federal Hill's Warning: A Baltimorean's Reflection on Leadership
Also, check out "Is Donald Trump Right?" and consider accepting Hugo's invitation to share your thoughts at newsroom@fulcrum.us.
The Fulcrum will select a range of submissions to share with readers as part of our ongoing civic dialogue.
We offer this platform for discussion and debate.