Shut up and color!
The New Speaker of the House has finally been sworn in.
Over the last few weeks, there has been turmoil in America. I call it fake turmoil. You know, the kind that you didn’t know was turmoil until the media told you it was to be turmoil. That kind, the fake kind.
We had 15 elections to decide who the Speaker of the House of Representatives would be. On the 15th election, Kevin McCarthy was elected to become the Speaker of the 118th Congress.
Now some would have told us that our world was in peril or vulnerable because the Speaker was not decided for four days. You know, the Speaker who is third in line to run the country after, of course, the POTUS and VP. Yet, in our nation’s 246 years of existence, we have never resorted to the Speaker sitting in the Oval Office to run the country.
So, I guess the last week was just that special week where we were all to be worried about it since it has never happened before it just might happen during those four days. Hmmm. It sounds like “the sky is falling” to me. Just stating it with clarity since everyone has delusional ideas over those little four days. What is that word I am looking for, hyperbole, maybe?
Peel back the onion just a bit. In our nation’s history, we have only had eight VPs ascend to the position of POTUS after the President dies while in office. Only eight in 246 years, those were John Tyler, Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, Chester A. Arthur, Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, Harry S. Truman, and Lyndon B. Johnson. That is it. We also had one ascend to the office of POTUS due to a President’s resignation, which is Gerald Ford. So we have had nine total in 246 years.
Still, we have yet to move the Speaker up to that office. So why all the outrage? Maybe it is because when there is nothing to be disgruntled about, then making a mountain out of a mole hill is just the right remedy for our drama addiction. Yep, that is hitting the nail on the head.
Then I heard that the Republican party couldn’t get along. That they actually disagreed with each other. Well, I hope that is true. I mean, did we elect each representative to go to Washington and forget about their districts and just color within the lines? You know, follow the party line. If we did, then we don’t need people there. Just plug in the party parameters to a machine and let the machine decide. Ooops, I am sorry, the machine says it doesn’t follow the party, and your district will suffer because of party parameters.
No, we elected people to think on their own. They are supposed to listen to the debate and take in all sides of the argument. They even may change their stance on the argument once listening to everyone. That is who and what we elected, at least in theory. We didn’t elect blind loyalty to a party over the country or the people. But for many, we would prefer for our elected officials to shut up and color and toe the party line. Do as they are told. Well, one must ask. Who is telling them? The voters or a party, think about that. I would hope it is the voters, but still, they listen to all sides of the argument. Aren’t we to elect people of good character with sound reasoning skills and the ability to think on their own?
Then I heard some didn’t like the discord on public display. Yep, I got that. I would prefer that to be behind closed doors, but sometimes sausage has to be made in public for all to see. Normally sausage making is ugly, tedious, and not pleasant looking. Some would say it is downright repulsive. That is why most of the time, it is done behind closed doors. Usually, the Generals, CEOs, Corporate Executives, Shareholders, Stakeholders, VPs, POTUS, and the American people don’t witness it. But just every now and then, it is good to witness it in its primitive state. It is part of the process, just not a part of it being seen often. So, we witnessed Congress making sausage, woo hoo.
At the end of the day, the process worked. As an old leader once asked me when I was frustrated with something going on. “Did anyone get hurt, lose an eye, a limb, or die?” I replied, “No, Sir.” He replied, “Then it was a good day for learning, is all. We got bigger things to worry about.”
Yes, America, we have bigger things to worry about. So, let’s stop chasing fake drama. America deserves far better than this. Also, if you get the chance to listen to the Speaker’s first remarks, all 26 minutes of them, it was the most inclusive speech in the last four years that I have heard from the Speaker’s chair. It is even more inclusive than anything I have heard from the WH in the last 14 years. It is worth a listen.
The Vet
