Volume 7, Issue 18
What then is the definition of the soul of America? It depends upon each individual’s inclinations as granted within the guidelines of the Constitution. Americans instinctively know that the United States is a very special country. A nation upon which the world depends for the buttress of freedom.
Current events yield clear indication on Americans’ views of national morality and obligation.
Recently, Senator Bernie Sanders replied to a question about voting rights for felons. He stated that he believed that the Boston Marathon bomber should have the right to vote while in prison. The public was aghast. Most of the other candidates in the field were either silent on the issue or stated their disagreement. The simple answer is that, when a person commits a felony, they owe a debt of obligation to society. One can argue that felons should get their rights back once their debt is paid, but not while they are serving out their sentence. The national press has given the Senator a pass. Their complicity won’t work. Last week, Joe Biden was narrowly leading Bernie Sanders in the polls. This week in early primaries, he has now widened the gap by over 20 points. I predict that Senator Sanders will not get the Democratic nomination and post-election analysis will determine that he began to slip the day he made the mistake of taking this outrageous position. Americans sense that he does not represent the soul of America.
This week, President Trump dispatched the Abraham Lincoln Strike Task Force to the Middle East. Military intelligence has determined that Iran poses a threat to American targets and allies. The task force is a deterrent to rogue nations who would impose their will by force on their neighbors. The American public is in support of our military and its role in the world to protect innocent people. As of this report, no one running for President or in the national press has criticized the President’s actions. There is a sense of moral purpose among Americans to defend liberty wherever it is threatened. This is reflective of the soul of America.
Progressives continue to complain about the unfairness of the electoral college. They propose legislation to eliminate the presidential election protocol. The electoral college was established by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution to buffer the smaller states culturally from the larger populated states. In other words, the purpose of the electoral college is to protect diversity in culture as an element of wholesome society. Progressives desire a direct vote of the people wherein the concept of a republic is diminished. Five populous states in the United States today, voting by a simple plurality of approximately 54%, could dominate the election results of the other 45 states. This is standardization of morality and not diversity in culture. The American public today favors keeping the electoral college in place. This election system, in part, protects the identity of the American soul.
Progressives speak of diversity, but oppress differences of opinion on morality and culture.
Both major political parties in America today are declining in respect with the American electorate. The Democratic party won control of the House of Representatives in the 2018 election. In the last four months, they have done very little to endear themselves to the public beyond their base. They have paid great attention to and spent enormous energy on the prospects for impeachment of the President instead of accepting the exhaustive Mueller Report. They continue to pursue subpoenas of records to second guess his investigation and legal analysis. House leadership has been unresponsive to the public’s need for a plan to address immigration reform, the cost of health care, failing primary education, or budget reform. The American people want accountability including checks on the power of the individual branches of government. However, impeachment is not their desire as a first step to resolve political ideological conflict. Americans accept the compromise of the ballot box to resolve political division. Democracy and its repercussions are the substance of the soul of American.
America is divided politically. Approximately 34% of the public likes Donald Trump and supports his policies. Approximately 37% despise Donald Trump and are violently opposed to his policies. Approximately 15% dislike Donald Trump, but approve of his policies enough to vote for him. This brings his reelection number to 49% against all current contenders. Approximately 14% like President Trump’s policies, but dislike him personally enough to vote against him. This lays the groundwork for a very close election in 2020. The 14% who dislike the President more than they like his policies are the battleground for the election. They will have a major role in the determination of the soul of America. A large number of these swing voters will not vote for Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren. They have proven themselves to be too far left of the underpinnings of the soul of America.
Joe Biden’s surge to the top of the field is not just name recognition. The public is looking for authenticity, someone who reflects and projects a moral purpose for the soul of America to which they can relate. There is great debate on whether President Trump has changed the rules of political engagement. He has not. He has only addressed them from his own perspective of authenticity. The ancient quote carved on the wall of the Saint Sophia Cathedral in Istanbul again rises as the rule, “Appear to be what you are, or be what you appear to be.” The public seeks true leadership from those who will stand unequivocally on principles which they clearly profess to be truth.
Defining the soul of America is as individual to every American as embracing one’s own destiny. Our national purpose is the collective wisdom of all American citizens seeking, without prejudice, a course for pursuit of happiness and purpose. In search of America’s soul, we only have to look within ourselves for the instinctive feelings of unalienable rights as our guide.
My name is Marc Nuttle and this is what I believe.
What do you believe?