From Mark McKinnon at Public Strategies Inc.:
Ten Commandments for politicians:
1. Don’t lie
2. Don’t cheat
3. Don’t have affairs with aides
4. Don’t hire relatives of aides’ with whom you are having an affair
5. Don’t claim immunity because your activity is not technically prosecutable
6. Don’t use government aircraft for dangerous liaisons
7. Don’t hike the Appalachian Trail
8. Don’t go looking for that “sparking thing”
9. Don't make foreign bed chambers a rationale for chamber of commerce trips
10. Do resign when found guilty of any of the above
Not bad. What about a second 10 commandments? Any ideas? Go for the top 20 Commandments.
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It's unfortunate that these commandments are applicable to past sins committed by those in office--I had greater faith in those who want to serve the public; that they have higher standards than most, but the reality is that they are only human. We all need to hold them in check to keep them on the right path and truly serve the greater good.
ReplyDeleteI have always found it strange that we hold Public Officals in such high regard when they are simply ordinary people. They do lie and cheat on occasion (most of them at least) I am sure. Some of them even have affairs with aides or worse but at least it shows they are human. Plus that is why we have term lengths and elections so that when we do discover terrible things we can evaluate those who are currently in office.
ReplyDeleteI'm in agreement with both previous comments. Considering that these commandments were written after mistakes were made, so of course they are applicable to past issues. Also we do seem to hold our Public Officials to an incredibly high standards even though they are human beings just like you and me. Nevertheless, having a ten commandments for politicians seems intriguing, but way to short. We still haven't covered how you shouldn't smoke pot with your students, or how a DUI can damage your political career when it becomes common knowledge. Overall I believe there should be a few more commandments.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything stated above. However, why is it that we hold these people to such high standards? Why don't we treat them like normal citizens. While these commandments were written after issues arose among previous politicians, why is it that some of these things should be such huge issues. Granted, some of these issues do pose a threat to the job being performed but some are none of our business. Politicians are human, they are normal people like everyone else. They have their strengths and they have their weaknesses. Sometimes I think we put too much pressure on them. Can't we just let them live their lives? In all honesty does an affair or smoking pot put the lives of "the people" in jeopardy. I'm not condoning these behaviors, just stating that sometimes they aren't as big of a deal as society likes to think.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that politicians are not special people by nature, but I do believe they should be held to a higher standard. People who chose to put themselves in the public eye must be responsible for their actions. They need to do their best to set a positive example for the public, and if they find this task too difficult it is possible that they are in the wrong position. It is a shame that we are often too blinded by a politicians personal faults to appreciate their political position.
ReplyDeleteI don't think anyone would disagree with the statements above. Politicians knew what kind of job they were getting into and they have no excuse for their mistakes. We hold these individuals to high standards because they chose a job which demands high standards! Someone who is to be a leader of men cannot have sexual affairs and be involved in drugs, if it is acceptable for these people to do it, what do we tell the individuals being prosecuted for the same offenses.
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