An open letter to Senators Obama and McCain

I am a 42 year old male who is completely fed up with today’s partisan politics and I am concerned that neither one of you is going to be able to bring change to this process. Perhaps I have been jaded after years of watching the same promises come and go like the wind, but I have serious reservations believing either one of you can make any changes to our political climate. If I may, I would like to point out the challenges contributing to this problem; these are things that need to be seriously addressed if we are ever going to make real changes in America.

The media, specifically biased talk show hosts, contributes to the Us vs. Them mentality that has permeated the country with it’s partisan stench. As much as I would like to point fingers at some of these people and blame them for all of our problems, the fact remains that party leadership is the genesis of these media cretins. If you listen to these so called leaders, you will hear the Republicans vehemently defending their decisions or ideas while the Democrats are on the other side doing the same thing. Both parties cannot be right yet each would have you believe they are right and the other is wrong. This is true about every single topic and you never hear them admit to making a mistake or being wrong. I ask you; how can this be possible? How can either one of these parties feel they are exclusively right about everything? The answer is, they cannot.

There are probably several reasons why these ideas and attitudes have occurred. These would include outside influences like money, special interests, and the desire for power, but perhaps it is time we look at our two party system. Wouldn’t it be beneficial to have as many ideas and positions available for us to examine? I ask you; why is there always an agenda? And shouldn’t that agenda be to do what is best for the country and not what is best for the party? Who really cares if the Republicans come up with an idea to deal with the economy or if the Democrats come up with an answer for our energy crisis? Does it really matter who comes up with the ideas as long as it is the best thing for the country? Shouldn’t that question be on the minds of all of our lawmakers when they raise their hands to vote? Alas, no. Most are thinking of their party (or other) obligations rather than what is best for the country. If you think I am wrong about this, then I ask you why are we in such a mess if all decisions are being made in the best interest of the country?

I would also like to suggest that it is time to consider term limits and get rid of our career politicians. It seems to me that two terms is long enough to make some changes and do some good for the country rather than staying in office their entire lives. Granted there are lawmakers who have been in office for many years who have contributed to important decisions, but do you think these people can still relate to the every day family? Additionally, if people knew they were only going to be in office for a limited time, I would argue most would try and be as productive as possible in the time they have and not worry about other obligations.

I would challenge each of you to seriously embrace change and while my last comment may seem extremely risky, it takes a brave people to change and this suggestion is going to require brave leadership to affect this change. I would ask that you be willing admit you are wrong when you make a mistake. The stance that the President of the United States must never be wrong is a thing of the past. In today’s world of global communications and media scrutiny, there are going to be times when your mistakes are caught and rather than avoid them, let’s deal with them head on. I understand national security concerns, but I am talking about day to day topics like the economy, taxes, health care. Let’s admit our mistakes and find a way to fix them. Let’s pause before we use these mistakes to punish our leaders to say that we were right and they were wrong. Let’s be the adults we all say we are and deal with the problem. People make mistakes and the last time I checked, the President is a person too.

It should not be Us vs. Them it should just be US.