GUEST POST BY DAVE MILLER

 

Recently our friend Skud responded to a few questions I asked in a comment thread. I felt his comment would be better addressed in its own post.

 

Skud is an admitted cynic when it comes to public service in the federal government. He believes Congress and its members are corrupt, and that people run for office to get rich and become part of an “elected elite.”

 

According to Skud, little in America will change because Congress “is not about running the country for its citizens, it is all about running the country for [themselves] the politicians.”

 

One of the main things Skud thinks Congress is good at “is increasing their wealth.”

 

These are criticisms we hear frequently from Americans across the political spectrum. So recently, I asked Skud a simple question:

 

“What would you like our political leaders to do for America? For our people? For you?”

 

Here are his responses…

 

•   I would like to see out elected elite create a balanced budget and honor it.

•   I would like to see our elected elite protect veterans.

•   I would like to see our elected elite spend money to help with the homeless issue instead of building a bridge to nowhere.

•   I would like to see our elected elite vote for term limits and congress being on medicare and a federal pension not a four years and you are set for life.

•   I would like to see our elected elite work for we the people instead of we the elected elite.

•   Our elected elite are suppose to be smart yet they can't figure out how to provide for basic healthcare for all, how to provide for veterans, how o clean up our streets and control violence and enforce the law.

 

Skud, I see your concerns, and I agree with many of them.

 

You've said before that you'd like to throw everyone in Congress out and start over. But realistically, that's not going to happen. So we're left with the government we have and the challenge of making it work.

 

And that brings me back to my original question. How do we actually solve these problems?

 

Some are easier than others. Congressional self-dealing, for example, seems like something we ought to be able to address through bipartisan legislation. There's widespread agreement that something needs to change.

 

But balancing the budget, providing healthcare, addressing homelessness, and taking care of veterans are much more complicated. People disagree not just about the solutions, but about the proper role of government in addressing these issues.

 

We can’t simply say it’s complicated, or that Congress is corrupt, and throw up our hands. We can’t just complain.

 

Being a citizen requires more than just diagnosing our problems. That’s easy. Citizenship also requires thinking about and helping propose solutions to our problems.

 

And I believe that’s why many people run for Congress in the first place. To be part of the solution.

 

So here's my question to you Skud and the rest of our little band of commenters. Given the political realities we're dealing with, how would you address the problems you've identified?

 

Not by throwing everyone out and starting over, but by working within the system we actually have.