Whenever I see a report of a scandal involving a senator or representative, one of the first thoughts to come to mind is often “I hope he or she wasn’t a Republican.” This tendency towards party loyalty — which can develop into ignoring or rationalizing away what we know to be right in favor of what is convenient — is found in all of us and must be suppressed. We know this on a surface level: Anyone reading this sentence would probably agree that we should not let bias, partisanship or political expediency shape our view of justice. But often, we still fall victim to this kind of moral compromise.
Before the Flint water crisis came to national attention, I had a hazy but generally positive impression of Rick Snyder, the Republican governor of Michigan. But because of his failing the people of Flint, I would no longer say that he is a good governor. His appointing of managers that could override the elected voice of the people in debt-ridden cities led to a dangerous lack of accountability and then the exposure of Flint residents to harmful chemicals. And after the problem became known, his slow response ensured that the citizens of Flint continued to be put in harm’s way.
In response, Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders have attacked Gov. Snyder on the issue during their campaigning in Michigan. But the Republican candidates, past and present, have largely avoided discussing the scandal, with those who did assigning blame to local government or federal agencies rather than to Snyder’s administration. It is truly disappointing to see leading members of my party overlooking detrimental negligence and mismanagement because Snyder is considered a successful Republican governor.
Similarly, the growing numbers of Republicans falling in line behind Donald Trump despite his many indefensible remarks is quite disturbing. It is particularly painful for me to watch Ben Carson, a man whose character, if not his political acumen, I highly respect, give his endorsement to Trump. This is a man who has said, among many other insensitive, un-American and downright immoral comments, that under his administration captured terrorists would face “a hell of a lot worse than waterboarding” and that to defeat terrorists “you have to take out their families.”
Republicans like myself and indeed, everyone who wants to preserve a basic respect for human rights, must do all we can to defeat Trump. We must not, like Carson, let our perception of what is politically expedient override justice and morality.
But on the Democratic side, voters face a similar problem with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. She accepted donations to the Clinton Foundation from foreign governments during her time as secretary of state and compromised national security for her own convenience by using a private email to send highly classified information. She has received high levels of support from the party establishment and is expected to handily clinch the nomination — which is staggering, considering how ethically challenged she has shown herself to be. While most people would at least claim to be concerned that the person they vote for has good character and can be trusted, given the large number of Democratic voters choosing Clinton it is clear that in this election cycle, political viability has become a higher good than trustworthiness.
Though election years are the times when partisanship and emphasis on electability are at their highest levels, the American public needs to step back and re-evaluate how our political bias has seeped into our sense of morality and justice. If we cannot do this, then our lapse into toxic partisanship will only worsen.