L&T Publisher Earl Watt
There is something very critical about the American system of government and why a president is so important.
Beyond the obvious leader of the executive branch of government, there is something else very American about selecting that leader.
We vote for a person, and at the largest extension, a person and a partner — the president and vice president.
One very different aspect of our system compared to some of the European models and elsewhere is the coalition models they use. They may have one person, but that person represents multiple parties.
The next election in America will determine if we are still voting for a person or for a philosophy.
After what the entire world saw in last Thursday’s debate, there is no way Biden as an individual could ever be trusted to carry out the duties of the presidency, and much like the five stages of grief, the Democratic Party will eventually come to terms with it.
Over the weekend, Democrats went from denial to anger. Next comes the bargaining, which in some pockets has already started since the Biden campaign sent out its talking points to the media on how they should handle their post debate coverage of the campaign. Most outlets will be the dutiful state media they are and follow the instructions, but those embarrassed by the results and demanding a new candidate will continue to be the targets of the ire of the Democratic Party machine.
Eventually depression will set in and then acceptance. The only question is whether or not those will occur before or after the Democratic National Convention in late August, one of the latest conventions in history.
The original thought behind that was probably to try to maintain a convention bounce closer to the election, but now it may be to give the Democrats time to weigh whether or not Biden will continue as the candidate.
This is why the American system differs greatly from other nations.
A person brings a lot to a party, or at least they have throughout history.
Ronald Reagan’s brand of conservatism changed what was considered to be a moderate Democratic Party. Barack Obama, likewise, directed the Democratic Party in a socialist direction particularly with his health care plan.
Many now see the influence on Donald Trump on the Republican Party by rejecting the concept of free trade to fair trade, demanding American companies use American workers and not farm out production to Mexico, China or other nations in an effort to use cheap foreign labor. This has negated what has long been a dominating union position by the Democratic Party.
The key here is individuals influence the party platform.
But if Biden wins after the overwhelming evidence that he cannot perform the duties, it would eradicate the view that we are a nation of individuals with individual rights.
The only way Biden wins is if the voters completely abandon the trust in a person and only trust in the bureaucracy.
America will be voting on trust in government instead of trust in a person to lead the government.
Many have questioned who is really controlling the government.
I’ve raised this question since the Democratic primary of 2020. No candidate was winning enough delegates to get to the convention with enough to earn the nomination.
And in a snap of a finger, most candidates dropped out, leaving only Biden and Bernie Sanders. A few days later, Biden was the last man standing.
Why would all these candidates drop out when it was clear no one would have the numbers needed to win at the convention?
A deal had to be made that allowed Biden to become president but others to call the shots.
We’ve seen the disaster of a presidency that happens when the president is simply a figurehead. The bureaucracy doesn’t care about inflation, foreign embarrassments, or invasions at the southern border as long as they get to call the shots.
Americans are frustrated with the rising costs of living, from groceries to gas, and they know their lives were better under Trump.
But Trump is a bully. He can be mean. He talks tough. He speaks in absolutes, like, “Everybody wanted abortion back to the states.” Makes it easy for the fact checkers to say his statements are false.
But there is no question Trump is not a puppet. He may listen to his advisers, but he will make the final call.
There is no doubt Joe Biden is not making the final call. Just listen to Biden at press conferences when he is holding a document with the photos of the reporters he is supposed to call on for questions. Biden has also said, “They told me not to take too many questions.”
Compare that to Trump who will step up to the podium and take however many questions the press wants to ask. Do they make him look bad sometimes? Of course. But avoiding the questions altogether should look worse.
But that’s only if we still believe we are a nation of individuals, of people with guaranteed rights that the government can never take away from us. Out system is not focused on a collective view but on a commitment to each and every person.
We’ve always used that standard when choosing our leaders. We don’t vote for groups like some countries do. We vote for the person.
We are about to find out if we remain a nation committed to individual liberty or if we trust more in the unelected bureaucrats with a puppet in the White House.
No matter who the Democrats choose, the new dividing line is individuals or overseers.
