Awtry

Last week I read, “Anyone who is not outraged about what is happening in Washington right now is not paying attention.” I agree, but it should have said, “… What is NOT happening in Washington.”

This year we will celebrate our 250th year of Independence, 250 years of the American Experiment “Of The People”, which is a government of ordinary citizens, “By The People” which is our votes to elect our representatives, and “For The People”, which is a government that acts in the best interest all the people.

All this means is that we have had 250 years to get it right, 250 years to learn what works and what doesn’t, and after 250 years to be honest with ourselves and admit we haven’t learned much, which begs the question, “How much longer will it take to realize we called ourselves The United States of America for a reason?” Not the States of America, but the “United” States of America.

Politically we are divided in nearly a 50-50 split. It’s not unlike the Civil War picket line made of logs, rails and brush, where the two sides would wake up, fight each other all day, wake up the next morning and do it over again. Only this time it’s not on a battle field, it’s in the Halls of Congress, and it’s not the North against the South, it’s the Democrats versus the Republicans, a political Civil War in full bloom, and whether you agree or disagree with either side, the blame lies with us.

We have the Congress we voted for. There are a lot of issues facing us that need solved. If we are looking at this current Congress to get it done, we are kidding ourselves. This Congress is unable to even keep the government open. They can’t agree on how to spend our money and now must borrow $5 billion dollars every single day from our grandchildren, and they do nothing to stop it. They know Social Security is going insolvent in seven years and do nothing about it. They know we need immigration reform, election reform, and tax reform, and do nothing about it.

So what exactly do they do? They fight for their party, not the people. They raise millions of campaign donations from corporation, unions and special interests. They campaign by blaming the other side forcing us to vote for the lesser of two evils, and they do this because, unfortunately, it works, for them, not so much for us.

But the Democrats and Republicans do have one thing in common. They want to get reelected, yet eighty-five percent of us do not approve of Congress’s work. We just want and expect them to do what we hired them to do, to stop fighting and quit treating our country like their own political playground.

How do we get them to do that? The only thing I know is with our votes. Since Congress can’t fix themselves, it’s up to us to fix Congress, and the only tool in our toolbox is our vote, our very powerful vote, powerful enough they beg us for it, deceive us for it, and some even lie for it. If they need it that bad, then first they need to prove to us they earned it.

Sadly, I don’t believe we have the strength to change Congress because their division tactics are working too well for them, again, not so well for us. The outcome of this next election is predictable. We will reelect 90 percent of the incumbents sending them a false message they are doing a good job. We will continue to vote for the party instead of the individual, and in doing so we will perpetuate the problem, and in two years we be just as frustrated as we are now, unless we change how we vote.

What better time than now, our 250th birthday of Independence, to show Congress who really is in charge. It’s time, instead of candidates telling us what they are going to do, that we tell the candidates what they are going to do. Remember, they work for us. This is OUR government. It doesn’t belong to them or their party.

There is a reason our Founders never mentioned political parties in the Constitution. They knew, and many warned us that parties would not only divide us, but would take the power out of the people’s hands and place it the hands of party leaders. I wish we had listened to them and candidates would run just as Americans

The good news is that people, 10,000 a day, are now registering as Independents, more than ever before. Today, 45 percent of Americans identify as independent voters. What a perfect time, after 250 years, to declare our Independence. This year make your valuable vote count for those who are accountable to you, not their party.

Are you willing to take our power back from the two parties? Or are you satisfied with Congress the way it is? Let me know at gregawtry@awtry.com.