Dear Ethics Committee: Let Us Have It
No way in hell that these people are ‘ethical’ — at least not completely
For the ninth consecutive year, the Senate Ethics Committee (SEC) has assured us that, for another calendar year, our elected officials were perfect. Indeed, all allegations levied against members of congress in the last year have been deemed insignificant or unfounded. The citizens of the United States of America can rest easy, knowing that the men and women that lead their nation are ethically sound practitioners.
Of course, that is assuming that the SEC would not have any reason to protect their peers. I presume, however, if you were to ask Bernie Sanders, he might laugh at the committee’s findings. From campaign finance to high paying lobbyist groups, the progressive senator has been highly critical of our government’s legislative branch. Regardless of if one agrees with Sanders’ solutions to the “issue” of government, it is clear that Americans agree on his premise — for the second straight year, the government was named the U.S.’ biggest problem, according to Gallup.
To be fair, the blanket term of “government” is vague; however, this does not necessarily excuse the Senate, nor its counterpart the House, from guilt. Rather, on many counts, congress is directly guilty of unethical practices in their inability to accurately represent the American people.
On December 3, 2015, the U.S. Senate voted to defund Planned Parenthood, even though the health care provider has a favorable rating with 59% of Americans (Gallup). It seems odd that the Senate could morally vote in direct conflict with that of their constituency. Rather than getting to the heart of citizen’s moral standing on the clinic, the Senate decided to play on the tired and exaggerated claim that America is deeply divided on the issue of abortion or Planned Parenthood in general.
Throughout President Obama’s two terms, there have been two haunting and unrelenting themes: The persistency of high-profile, tragic mass shootings, and Congress’ inability to support any measures that would increase the amount of common sense regulations on guns. In fact, Congress’ reaction to gun violence has been the opposite of what the public would prefer. Up 11% since 2015, currently, 62% of citizens are dissatisfied with our nation’s gun laws. So, I wonder, why is it that we have seen no change?
I also wonder if the SEC took a look at the voting records of some of our current senators. Marco Rubio, for one, has missed more than half of his votes since July of 2015 — including 88% missed votes within the first 31 days of 2016. The same criticism can be applied to Sen. Ted Cruz, who has also abandoned his D.C. desk in favor of the Stump. In their defense, they are, apparently, running for president with the intentions of better serving the American people; however, it nonetheless seems disingenuous for the SEC to let excessively missed votes fly under their reign.
These issues, although the more recurrent in public discourse, are only a few of the many examples that display disconnect between congress and its constituency. Although the Senate Ethics Committee may have found no serious infractions on the technical or procedural practices of its members, it is clear that politicians are not in the pocket of the American people — where they belong. If the Senate Ethics Committee is not interested in being thoughtfully reflective on the practices of its members, it seems odd to even host the group. Perhaps if we saw senators receive the same level of attention as the common man or woman in the workplace, “government” would not been seen as America’s biggest problem. I am not requiring the public trial of elected officials; rather, just a sense of accountability.