Do Politicians care about the country as much as the citizens

[rammstein]

Non-partisan discussion only.

[Drdogface]

They are entirely self serving for the most part. I guess there are a few who really do their job, but most are power and money hungry and corrupt to the max. I'm old enough to remember when it wasn't that way....at least not to the degree it is now. On the national level it all seemed to change just after JFK was shot. Just my gut feeling...

[Rick Lee]

I think most of them start out with the noblest of intentions, truly thinking they're gonna make a difference and help folks out. And just about all of those same folks succumb to the perks and the power and are totally corrupted by it. After that it becomes a neverending quest to secure their own seat or rise to the next highest office. Rule # 1 is to never ever surrender power.

[sammyg2]

Bush hates polls

[Hugh R]

Politicians sole reason to exist is to get reelected. Many, like our former governor Gray Davis, I believe will sell the soul of the state for their own short term self interests.

[Rick Lee]

BTW, what is Gray Davis doing these days? I always wonder what unpopular career politicians do when they're forced to get real jobs.

[legion]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

BTW, what is Gray Davis doing these days? I always wonder what unpopular career politicians do when they're forced to get real jobs.

In Illinois, they go to prison.

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by legion

In Illinois, they go to prison.

So you're saying they make license plates?

[grudk]

HL Mencken... 'Democracy is also a form of worship. It is the worship of Jackals by Jackasses'

That about sums it up.

[dewolf]

Don't all politicians live in the same country (in their respective countries) but in a very different world?

[Evans, Marv]

I think Rick hit it on the nail head. The only other thing is that they probably get overwhelmed by the compromising and "I'll scratch your back if you'll scratch mine" way things work in Washington, they throw up their hands (that is if they started out with those noble intentions) and go with the flow.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

I think most of them start out with the noblest of intentions, truly thinking they're gonna make a difference and help folks out. And just about all of those same folks succumb to the perks and the power and are totally corrupted by it. After that it becomes a neverending quest to secure their own seat or rise to the next highest office. Rule # 1 is to never ever surrender power.

I think some of that "never surrender power" thing comes from the fact that most are from backgrounds as lawyers. Lawyers are taught to never accept defeat and to always keep trying different angles to attack a problem/issue/setback until the desired outcome is achieved. On the one hand, this is a good thing for a lawyer I'm retaining/hiring to represent me and my interests - I WANT someone who will not accept defeat and will try every tactic possible to get the result I want/need, whether it involves endless continuances, re-filings, appeals, whatever. Those "dirty tactics" are just that - tactics. And in the role of a lawyer representing one's client, they're perfectly appropriate and frankly, one of the things I'm paying them to do. I WANT them to do whatever it takes. I'm paying for a result (hopefully) and for them to do whatever it takes to get it - "dirty" or not.

OTOH, when one gets into the public arena, this mentality becomes crippling and leads to the kind of legislative paralysis we see today. No room for compromise, no "get it done" attitude, just a lot of the same lawyerly attitude/strategy, only HUGELY misplaced in that arena. It's not appropriate for the position(s) they hold. A perfect recent example of this is the Hiller case. Regardless of the SCOTUS decision, the politicians (ex lawyers) will simply try a different approach in an attempt to (1) preserve the status quo and (2) hopefully obtain a ruling in their favor next time. There are endless examples of this kind of approach - abortion/Roe v. Wade comes to mind as another prominent one too...

- - - - -

Another problem I see (and this again is a common thread between lawyers and politicians, who largely are former lawyers) is that these folks tend to have huge senses of self-worth and importance, that they are somehow "elite" and as such know what's best for everyone else. Honestly I think a lot of it comes from their training again - if I had to deal with people constantly coming to me for help all the time and constantly being made to feel like I had all the answers and everyone else just didn't "get it", it might do a number on my ego too (in fact, it probably does, since I find myself in that position in my own profession with respect to design/construction... I admit it, architects do tend to eventually develop big egos for much the same reason...) Anyway, again this can be beneficial to some degree in the capacity of a private professional practitioner, but it is a huge detriment to acting in the capacity of a public servant.

Those words - "public servant" - need to be used more. These guys need to realize and be constantly reminded that they are there to SERVE the public interest, not define it or somehow invent it because they "know what's best for everyone else".

Lastly (and I'll shut up after this point, I promise) I think the public is partially to blame. An old adage goes, "the people get the politicians they deserve". This is 100% true. By our own collective stupidty and predelictions towards extremely selfish, short-sighted and stupid behavior - and our own collective sense of entitlement and belief that we should be able to do whatever we want with impunity, we perhaps (consciously or otherwise) are drawn to people that embody our own values and keep electing them...

So long story short I think a lot of the problems have to do with misplaced professional/lawyerly attitudes/training and a bit to do with our own lousy value system as a society. We don't value integrity or commitment or hard choices or difficult work to attain a result. We value convenience, whatever is easiest for us and the path of least resistance. As a general rule, our political choices reflect that. To deal with the first half of the problem, we need to stop electing lawyers. To address the second half, we need to look in the mirror and start valuing accountability, short-term setback for long-term gain and to realize that we have to earn our keep in this world...