Toxic Party Politics
Of course we all know that the president does much more than simply fulfill his Constitutional obligations. The president also serves as the head of his political party and patronage is the fuel that keeps these machines running. Candidates present themselves as the choice of their side and that’s good enough for many voters. A personally delivered endorsement from the party’s presidential nominee helps to bring out the base on Election Day. The newly seated legislator is then expected to support the president, especially on critically important matters like military deployments. So invasion plans get drawn up in the oval office and Congress hears about it later. Party politics promotes dictatorial leadership.
The president’s voice in military matters will always be heard because the chief executive serves as our top diplomat. But with multiple deployments in a dangerous and complex world, we need a focused commander in chief. And we need to keep partisanship out of the national security equation. Blending hardball politics with military strategy poisons our democracy.
Commander In Chief, Partisanship
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