On April 19, 2010, the Los Angeles Times reported a story on American politics that “Few trust the government, poll finds,” stating that only 22 percent of Americans “trust” the federal government, based on a telephone poll by Pew Research Center. The LA Times states that such lack of “trust” has only been matched in the 1992 to 1995 period (17 percent in summer of 1994), and in 1980 (25 percent).
But what the report on the Pew Research Center poll fails to communicate is that “trust” and “agreement” are not the same thing, nor should they be the same thing for those who believe in representative democratic government. Moreover, it fails to mention that some of governments that were not well “trusted” while in power and actively involved in decision making, saw their “approval ratings” go up dramatically by nostalgic Americans once such former government leaders were no longer making decisions and leading government. Jimmy Carter’s approval rating went from 34 percent in 1980 to 66 percent in 1999. Nor is that phenomenon unique to him alone.
Americans elect leaders to “do something” in Washington DC. But if the decisions made in an ever changing, dynamic world are not the ones we agree with, then should we no longer “trust” such leaders? Or is it really that we “disagree” with their decisions?
Agreement or disagreement is a choice that we can and must make as active participants in representative democracy.
But choosing to no longer “trust” is only a choice if we want to essentially reject representative democracy.
In over 30 years living in the Washington DC area, I can categorically state that I have not unilaterally agreed with any of the administrations that have been running the United States executive federal government: Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama. Nor did I unilaterally agree with the Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford administrations before I lived in the Washington DC area. So essentially for all of my adult life, I have not agreed on major issues with the U.S. executive federal government.
There have always been things that I have sought and urged America’s government to do differently. I would not be surprised, if most of us are honest with ourselves, that most of us would find that they have felt the same way. I am sure that almost all of us could write a book “Issues We Haven’t Agreed with the U.S. Government Over the Years.”
But I trust America and its government. I can disagree and still trust. That is the foundation of the success of representative democracy. It is not just electing those who represent every view that we agree with in an ever-changing world (good luck finding that candidate), but it is also working with those elected by others who represent views we don’t agree with.
I have consistently trusted the representative democracy of the United States of America. Let’s be clear when we are addressing “trusting the government” that it is really the representative democracy that we are talking about — not merely about trusting any one leader of the government at that time.
“Trusting the government” is really about trusting ourselves.
We don’t have to like each other to trust each other as Americans.
We don’t have to agree with each other to trust each other as Americans.
But if we want to be a United States of America, we ultimately must trust each other.
To those looking to really understand America, such shared trust is the essence of how America works, at least thus far.
If we seek to do anything grand and noble together, such as continuing to support a representative democracy, we have to trust each other. Especially when we don’t agree and especially when we don’t like each other, it is essential that we still trust in our representative democracy that we maintain together.
In 30 years here, I have also seen that the people in Washington DC are mostly just like other Americans, with the same strengths, the same weaknesses, and same dreams as most other people. It is not a city of “power” to the elected representatives of our 300 million Americans, other than to the extent such “power” is given to their representatives in our democratic system. You, your neighbor, and every other American has a choice to select your representatives, and also to become a representative yourself. Everyone of us together control the destiny and the direction of America; this democratic vision is what we put our trust in.
The definition of trust is “assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.” The character, ability, strength, and truth that we are gauging is not of one elected politician, and not of our government’s stand on one issue. It is larger than that. What we are really trusting in are the “truths that we hold self-evident” that are fundamental in America’s definition. What we are really trusting in is the ability, strength, and truth “that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth” — even when all “the people” don’t agree.
It is painfully ironic that these new poll results about Americans not “trusting” their government are reported on April 19, 2010, fifteen years to the date of the Oklahoma City terrorist bombing attack on April 19, 1995.
April 19, 1995: The north wall of the Alfred Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City was blown off by explosives packed into a rented truck. (AP photo)
All Americans should stop and remember April 19 – as a day that shows the consequences of no longer “trusting” in ourselves and in our shared representative democracy in America. We must never forget that there is a difference between “disagreeing” – voting for new representatives or advocating activism for policies and positions that we believe must be represented in government, and no longer “trusting” our democratic process at all.
Inspired by the white supremacist, Nazi leader William Pierce’s hate diatribe “The Turner Diaries,” terrorist Timothy McVeigh attacked the U.S. federal government building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on April 19, 1995 with a truck bomb, destroying half of the nine-story building. The terrorist attack was at 9:02 AM, just moments after parents had left their small children at a day-care center there at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal building. Terrorist Timothy McVeigh murdered 168 Americans, including many innocent, helpless children. Many more were injured and more than 220 buildings in downtown Oklahoma City were damaged.
The terrorist Timothy McVeigh could no longer “trust” in America or what America’s government represented. Timothy McVeigh didn’t merely “disagree” with American government leaders or their policies, he distrusted the American government so much that he actively sought its destruction. While some debate the political partisan gains or losses of polls showing a lack of “trust” in America’s democratically elected government, we need to remember the real results of where such lack of “trust” has led our nation in the past.
Two months ago, on February 18, 2010, we saw another terrorist attack on a U.S. federal government building this time in Austin, Texas by Joseph Stack, who flew his plane into the Austin IRS office and murdered an IRS employee and a U.S. veteran. For his actions, some praised Stack’s terrorist attack as the acts of “a hero,” and others mocked the terrorist attack on our nation as merely “going out with a bang.” This past week, CNN broadcast a television program about the terrorist attack and Joseph Stack’s background. It addressed his tax woes and disagreement with the IRS, as well as his political manifesto calling for violence. What it didn’t address was Joseph Stack’s responsibility for his actions, including his decision not to pay his taxes, his wealth with a luxurious home that he burned down, his wealth that allowed him to buy a private plane which he used to attack the U.S. government. Some of those defending Joseph Stack have also defended Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh’s terrorism on April 19, 1995, as well as the 9/11 terrorists attacks. They believe that no longer trusting one another is a call to justify and urge violence against one another.
February 18, 2010 Terrorist Attack on Austin, Texas IRS Office (Photo: Jana Birchum, Getty Images)
A few weeks ago in Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana individuals were arrested as part of a “Christian militia” Hutaree that allegedly was plotting attacks to murder law enforcement individuals. On April 12, 2010, it was reported that one of the alleged Hutaree plotters had an audio recording of “The Turner Diaries,” the same hate screed created by white supremacist Nazi William Pearce that inspired Timothy McVeigh to kill children and other innocents on April 19, 1995.
What we see once again is the inevitable outcome of when we choose not just to disagree, but to no longer trust in representative democracy, its institutions, and its results. Those who abandon our shared representative democratic system, laws, and liberties, feel that they can make their own laws, make their systems, and even believe that they personally can choose who has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They can even seek to create their own separatist nations, divided from the United States of America.
There are always those ready to teach us to hate one another. There are always those ready to teach us to deny the truths that we hold self-evident on equality and liberty. There are always those ready to urge division within our nation. There are even those ready to urge us to do violence against one another.
But they can only succeed if we choose to stop trusting one another as Americans and stop trusting in our shared representative democracy in America. So much of our society, from our economic system to our representative shared democracy is dependent on trusting one another. We need to acknowledge the importance of trust, and we need to work harder to build such bonds of trust with one another as Americans.
Choose trust – as part of a UNITED States of America.
Resources:
April 19, 2010 – Los Angeles Times: “Few trust the government, poll finds”
Report on April 19, 1995 Oklahoma City Terrorist Attack
— Indianapolis Star report
— another report
ABC: Jimmy Carter Improves with Age
ABC: Reagan Approval Grows Better in Retrospect
November 19, 1863: Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln