[This essay was written the morning of July 31, 2016; I am choosing it not to my I am 141st blog but I hope that someone will take notice of my ernest inquiry nonetheless. Sometimes it feels like people would rather attack one another than step back and take a look at the bigger picture.]
I was hoping my friends would entertain a lengthy conspiracy theory, not about the current race for the Office of the Presidency per se, but about the Executive branch of this nation in general. I am neither a democrat nor a republican so I hope this will come off as unbiased.
I am what you would call a greenhorn in American politics and almost intentionally so. So my thoughts may come across as naive or unresearched, if you feel that way my apologies in advance. However, I obtained a copy of the U.S. Constitution from a young boy back at the 2013 Evergreen State Fair in Washington state (I won’t specify which political party I donated a dollar to, LOL) and am using source material as well as my personal observations and somewhat differing thought patterns to make the following analysis:
I am wondering why the emphasis on the news and on social media is so much about the campaigns of the candidates running for the office of the President of the United States, when it is in fact the Legislative branch or ‘the power of the people’ that should determine policy in this country through a specific democratic process. There’s a reason in the Constitution that the Legislature is listed first and the Executive mentioned second.
I imagine the first response to that question would be that the current Legislature in this country is basically deadlocked and crippled from any substantial legislation going out. I would agree with that. We have people from two major parties, with a multitude of opposing views, going at each other’s throats right now. So entrenched are these people in their methods, swearing allegiance to the statutes of their political party line rather than their own consciences, that the result of these actions is a unilateral stalemate in Congress.
This has left a gaping hole in our democratic process, leaving decision making to the Judicial branch and, apparently, to the Executive branch. Therein lies that reason that I believe that there is so much media and social media emphasis on the Presidential office.
Our current and prior presidential office-holders have made successful, albeit arduous, advances in their agendas without the blessing of the Legislative branch. How? Through abuse of power of their Executive role. Despite these abuses, roughly half of the American people, a good majority who share the same political party, condone these actions, because they share the President’s opinion or agree with whatever agenda action he is taking. I.E. The ends justify the means. The other half feel violated and lash out, latching on to whatever party offers them change, even if it means swearing allegiance to a political party and their statues, in lieu of their own consciences.
Many of the abuses initiated by the executive branch are impeachable. However, no president has ever been removed from office for Impeachment. That process would have to be successfully executed by both houses of the Legislative branch of the US Government, which I believe would be a dozen times more difficult in this day and age than in centuries past. Members of congress corresponding to whatever political party the President swears his allegiance to, have also pledged their allegiance to him, defending him to the end, despite his unconstitutional actions, against the opposing party’s accusations. Please remember again, this applies to both current and past presidents on both sides of the two major parties (On a more personal rationale, I think the successful impeachment of a US president in this day and age would signal weakness to our worldwide enemies and would completely expose our still partially veiled deep divisions). To be successful, the impeachment process would also have to be affirmed by a 2/3 Legislative majority which would be nearly impossible to secure in the here and now. The impeachment proceedings are then tossed out and the Executive abuses of power continue.
Either one of the two primary candidates running for the 2016 Executive position have a high probability of continuing the abuse of presidential authority. If the deadlocks of the Legislative branch continue into the future, there will be no action in place to break this Executive abusive cycle. However since the actions of the reigning president will be viewed by roughly half of the American people as favorable, and roughly half of congress will be enamored with their political contemporary, that presidents’ actions will be executed with little to no resistance.
Which is why in conclusion that I believe that the media and social media emphasis of the presidential election cycle focuses more and more on the President’s office itself: simply because the executive branch has been the most effective in initiating changes made in this country, changes which should be, by our US constitution, left in the hands of the people of the Legislative branch.
My original question however still stands. I welcome your feedback and input whatever your opinion or political affiliation. Christopher.
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