Skip to content
Advertisement

The Politics of lying, blustering and head-faking the electorate

Advertisement

While we are all quite used to politicians and would-be pols stretching the truth, negatively asking leading questions about opponents, fibbing about an opponent’s real record in or out of office, these are the days of the outright liars, planters of real misinformation, and perfidy.

These are the calumny days of Trump’s insistence that we all have the right to our own truth. When the truth is not on your side, simply change the narrative and lie repeatedly and consistently.

It is a fact that the U.S. is based on the process of democratically electing most of its civic leadership, and those elected are then paid to provide governmental solutions and programs for America’s citizens and residents. We are educated to expect that the government should work in the common interest consistently, if not efficiently.

Lately, however, that social contract seems to be unwinding at different speeds. The current theme seems to lie, obfuscate and sucker punch the voting public, as if the voting community does not deserve, nor can it handle the truth.

So many of our current political elections seem to be between those who can lie and grift the most, not who can really get the public’s job done the best.

Take this November’s elections: too many candidates (unfortunately almost all of whom claim to be Republicans) not only lie on their opponents’ records, they lie about what they will do if elected into office. Herschel Walker, in Georgia, is a prime example. He claims that his opponent, who has already been and continues to be a successful U.S. Senator, cannot do the job in Washington for Georgia. He, on the other hand, claims to be the best qualified and the most knowledgeable for the job, when he has never previously run for nor held public office at any level.

From his debate performances and answers to public queries, Mr. Walker would not even pass a basic high school civics quiz about the U.S. government. Yet he has presented himself as a viable candidate for the U.S. Senate by lying and strutting grandly, repeatedly aided by FOX News and other outlets.

Current POTUS Biden promised a lot to a lot of people while campaigning for that office. One thing was to actually do something real for climate change. He has since shepherded and signed a formidable piece of legislation that can really positively impact climate change policy for right now and the future for the United States, instead of just talking about doing something. It’s called The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and it provides, according to the scientific and technological experts, the biggest U.S. investment in green energy and breakthrough technologies in US history.

Instead of providing direct government intervention in the country’s businesses as other legislation had done, this new law establishes financial incentives for free-market dynamics to reduce the burning of carbon and to spur the development of alternative fuels.

Biden’s new law, signed in August, will lead to increased U.S. production of nickel, cobalt, lithium and other primary minerals which  electric vehicles will be dependent on, and the law assures that most of that production will be in the United States, thus reducing American dependence on foreign sourcing.

The law also funds new innovations in green energy, energy storage and transmission. This law creates the platform for American world leadership in this sector for years in the future.

Biden has also signed legislation that creates a global authoritative position for the U.S. in the semiconductor industry. This law will bring hundreds of billions of dollars of chip manufacturing back to the United States and help to keep  the United States from having to rely on adversarial nations for the industrial chips it needs to stay independent and avoid being blackmailed in the future.

These are but two accomplishments as promised, yet the opposition simply lies about them.

Wherefore is the politics of electing those who promise to actually do the job required and get it done?  The easy money is for suckers, right?

Professor David L. Horne is founder and executive director of PAPPEI, the Pan African Public Policy and Ethical Institute, which is a new 501(c)(3) pending community-based organization or non-governmental organization (NGO). It is the stepparent organization for the California Black Think Tank which still operates and which meets every fourth Friday.

DISCLAIMER: The beliefs and viewpoints expressed in opinion pieces, letters to the editor, by columnists and/or contributing writers are not necessarily those of OurWeekly.

Advertisement
Could not load content Could not load content