Money also a political problem

To the Editor.

In response to last week’s editorial “Damn Democracy” and the sentiments expressed regarding our president, one can regard his election and subsequent administration in one of two ways, depending on one’s political view. On the one hand he is regarded as a political salve for the previous administration, alternatively he and his administration are considered a destructive force in our society. A common word that aptly fits both viewpoints would be a symptom.

Either salve or symptom can be appropriately applied to the sickness that represents our present political situation where true congress has been displaced by confrontational and polarized discourse. There are many reasons for this, the need for the news channels to fill twenty-four hours of content, the money involved in election and re-election, and the fact that members of Congress are often only in Washington Monday through Thursday before flying to their constituencies for fund raisers. Their subsequent appearances on weekend political talk shows do nothing to resolve differences that arise in the capitol debates.

Prior to the advent of big money and the sponsored private jets that shuttle them to their constituencies, the members of Congress would move their families to Washington with intermittent visits to their constituencies. Whatever disagreements couldn’t be worked out during the week could be discussed weekends at church, social or sporting gatherings and continued the following week in Congress. This is surely how it was envisioned by our Founding Fathers.

President Trump may be the first of his kind, however the present sickness in our politics has opened the door to presidential candidates that will not represent the conventional model. For those of us appalled by the sentiments expressed by either ends of the political spectrum, perhaps it is time to seriously consider a third centrist party and candidate.

Unless we address the flaws that have developed, we can only expect more of the same.

Donald Barford