All leadership must be prepared to answer three questions: Who are we? Where are we? And, where are we going?
Three weeks out from Election Day, we as Americans are asking these questions of ourselves. Moreover, we want a leader who can offer definitive answers. Our country continues to experience profound economic, cultural and political malaise. At best, we are disenchanted with the candidates, and many see the choice between Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton as a vote against the other. The policy rhetoric is hard to dissect because neither candidate articulates their policy positions very well. One candidate aims to continue current policies, while the other advocates for directional policy change, the details of which remain nebulous.
Trust in our government sits at an all-time low. Regaining a small measure of that trust will require the restoration of the rule of law and actions that prove the Supreme Court does not exist simply to advance ideological agendas. Perhaps the seminal questions that should have been posed in last night’s debate are: How do you define liberty? And, do you feel you’ve retained liberty or lost it under the current administration?
One candidate embraces a progressive agenda that favors a top-down decision process. The contradictions of such an approach to governance were on full display last evening when Mrs. Clinton promised not to intrude on a woman’s most personal healthcare decisions, chiefly abortion, but promoted continued federal encroachment into the healthcare decisions of each and every American family via Obamacare.
Mr. Trump challenged the elitist view of governing, though the details of his proposed policies remain vague. Nevertheless, Americans can conclude that entitlements will likely be reduced, the free-market will guide economic policies, especially for small businesses, and the constitution will be interpreted as the founders intended it.
We are Americans. We live in America, though we’re at a critical juncture in determining what that America should look like. Between now and Election Day, voters will decide where we are going as a nation. As Americans, we have the privilege and the power to determine if we shall advance liberty for all, not just a politically, ideologically determined few.
Sincerely,
James H. Amos, Jr.
NCPA President & CEO