By Gary Bennett
Of course it had to happen
this way. The impeachment hearings kicked off on the same week as World
Kindness Day. I’m ashamed to say that I had never heard of World Kindness Day. It
goes back to 1998 and is devoted to small and large acts of kindness. How quaint in
this day and age, right?
It’s difficult to think of
anything less kind than these impeachment hearings. Depending on your point of
view, the hearings are either a desperate witch hunt to overturn the results of
the 2016 presidential election or a sober, constitutional investigation of
reported abuses of power by the president. Democrats and Republicans are pitted
against each other in a death struggle of epic proportions—not so much in a
search for truth but rather to see who can come out on top. It’s always about
the politics now. For this impeachment go-round—they happen about every 20
years now—Democrats control the hearings and have positioned themselves as the
agents of truth. Republicans are left to mostly attack the process and rail
against the public servants who are providing the testimony.
The country went through the
same experience in 1998 but roles were completely reversed. Republicans held the House and controlled the
hearings. They went on to impeach President Clinton for obstruction of justice—lying
to Congress about his sexual escapades in the White House. The Democrats were
left to complain about a witch hunt and unfairness to the president. My how
things come around! Clinton was later acquitted in the Senate just as President
Trump will be acquitted.
In 1973 when the Nixon
impeachment hearings were dominating TV, things were much different. Politicians
and the American people seemed to be more open minded. There were such things
as moderate and liberal Republicans and conservative Democrats. Those species
have gone the way of the dodo bird, of course. There was no witch’s brew of
smirking talking heads on TV and, of course, no Internet. President Nixon was pushed
by his FELLOW REPUBLICANS to resign rather than face certain impeachment and
conviction. That has as much chance of happening today as a cold front settling
over Hades.
I can’t help wondering
where it all went so wrong. When did party start coming before country? Why
can’t politicians, and more importantly Americans, with different life outlooks
trust each other more and show at least a modicum of kindness towards each other?
There are many first-hand accounts of U.S. senators being very accommodating
and kind to each other behind closed doors. It’s a small, exclusive club after
all. But when the cameras start rolling you can forget all that. A politician can’t
appear to be a compromiser and not a fighter. I wonder how they sleep at night
sometimes. Does this all mean that we are the problem? Are politicians simply
playing a part that we demand? I don’t know, but I do know this ugly phenomenon
took a turn for the worse about 30 years ago.
I believe the election of Bill
Clinton in 1992 jump started the unkindness era. James Monroe ushered in the
Era of Good Feelings after the War of 1812. Clinton gets to own the start of
this new era. Back then a lot of people saw him for what he was and said so—a purely
political animal, sometimes unscrupulous, a little too slick, and a well-known womanizer.
He wasn’t highly respected, and like Mr. Trump, was elected by a minority of
Americans. It also didn’t help that this baby boomer, small-state Southern
governor defeated a highly respected war hero from the Greatest Generation. George
H.W. Bush adroitly guided America through the first Gulf War but was undone by
courageously bucking his own party by raising taxes when most economists agreed
they needed to be raised. He would have even survived that had he not welched on
his “read my lips—no new taxes” pledge. Just like Nixon, Republicans turned on
him. It also didn’t help that the country went into a recession in 1992. Mr. Clinton represented the possibility of an
improving economy so we took a flyer on him. Thankfully, he and the economy improved
enough to drive his reelection in 1996.
So if you think the never-ending
criticism of President Trump is unprecedented, you’d be sadly mistaken.
Presidents Clinton, the second Bush, and Obama all faced withering pockets of what
can only be called hatred. The only new thing now is that the current president
hates many of us right back. He gleefully insults and demonizes his detractors
and is unconcerned with being presidential and rising above it all. His fans
eat it up. I vividly remember the presidencies of Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon,
Ford, Carter, Reagan and all the rest. To my eyes and ears, none faced the
vitriol that has been hurled at the last four.
Another stake in the heart
of kindness is the rise of the so-called news channels with a point of view. Many
forget that Fox News and MSNBC did not exist until relatively recently. We had
CNN back in the day, and believe it or not, it was seen as a trusted, middle of
the road provider of straight news. In fact, I’m not sure the first George Bush
could have led American and the world through the first Gulf War without CNN.
Today, Americans, for better or worse, can get their news delivered through a
prism of like-minded talking heads who make no pretense at bi- or nonpartisanship.
I think it’s far worse.
Another factor is the
culture war. Up until the 90’s and
Clinton, divisive cultural issues did not play an unnaturally large role in
national politics. Sure, there was vigorous debate about Johnson’s “Great
Society” initiatives such as civil rights, Social Security and Medicare. The
Supreme Court upheld abortion rights in 1973 and even Republican stalwart
Richard Nixon pushed through sweeping environmental laws including the
establishment of the EPA that same year. But the country eventually came
together. Sure, many pockets of Americans did not like these measures but they
did not demonize the proponents. Now, many Americans, particularly conservative
Americans, feel like their way of life—the American way of life they remember from
their childhood— is threatened and slowly being taken away. To them, gun
control, abortion, equal rights, immigrants at the border, taking God out of
school, gay marriage, the me-too movement, and many other cultural touchpoints are
worth fighting against to their last breath. To them, collateral damage along
the way is just that.
Finally, I think the
biggest driver of discord and hatred is the rise of the Internet and social
media after the turn of the century. Even worse than the cable news channels,
social media makes no pretense at fact checking or ensuring the truth is told.
Anybody with a conspiracy theory or outright lie they want broadly circulated will
find their audience and it will be amplified to a degree unknown in the last
century.
And when the lies and
conspiracy theories come via social media from the highest levels of
government, what are everyday Americans to do?
It seems quaint now to suggest we turn off our phones or at least ignore
the worst of the worst. But I hope you will join me in at least doing this one
simple thing: do not forward or share
anything that demonizes or insults the other side. What good does that do
anyway? It only causes the other side to dig in more. Studies have shown that
it is nearly impossible to change the minds of the other side once opinions
have been formed and acted upon. It might make you feel good to share that
snarky post but to me it is the height of laziness. If you want to get a point
across, research it and write it yourself.
Oh, and you can also join
me in turning off or at least limiting cable news viewership. There is no doubt
they have a point of view, an agenda to support, and an axe to grind. And it’s also
undeniably entertaining. But, please consider getting your entertainment elsewhere.
You may not completely trust the network news and newspapers but they are
undoubtedly a better choice than cable news. I know first-hand that both entities
support highly stringent quality control measures, are bound by professional
standards and ethics, hire highly educated professionals, and try to present
both sides of every argument (as long as you avoid the editorials, which are
clearly labeled, by the way.) And no
doubt they sometime fail. But it’s not for lack of trying. These are simple
steps we can all take to help make us better, kinder, more thoughtful citizens.
