October 8, 2018

A ‘Dear Fellow Conservative’ email from U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley’s campaign committee found its way to my inbox this morning. The choice of ‘conservative’ over ‘Iowan’ or ‘American’ in the salutation provides a clue to what is wrong in today’s America.

Senator Grassley and his Republican colleagues who hold an age-spotted, white-knuckled grip on the reins of power share at least one thing with hand-wringing Democrat officeholders, both see most things in black or white, Republican or Democrat, conservative or liberal, us or them. In 2018, too many who need votes to keep their job do not see the people as their fellow Americans; we either support their team or the one they must defeat to stay on top. Staying on top is their most important objective. Politicians use the American ideal more as a notion to stir-up donors and voters than to guide decision-making meant to further the republic. ‘Dear Fellow Conservative’ is intended to make email recipients feel they are part of something, glossy-eyed fans hoping their team is destined for glory at some political Super Bowl.

The email employs a high-minded tone to pat Grassley’s back for shepherding Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court through the confirmation process. Since things Ronald Reagan are in vogue for Republicans this season, the email references Reagan’s adaptation of John Winthrop’s quote of Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount, something John F. Kennedy and others had also used to express the virtue of striving to build something fair and just. In his 1980 election eve address, Reagan spoke of his desire to ensure America did not turn inward but continue to lift people around the world, that freedom and dignity for all meant ending discrimination and promoting democracy at home and abroad. But, how Grassley translated Reagan’s words is telling. Grassley said Reagan “beautifully extolled our nation's capital as the ‘shining city on the hill’” Reagan’s ‘shining city on a hill’ was a catch-phrase for his vision for what America could be, not just the city where the government is installed.

Senator Grassley’s email cites another phrase with biblical roots that now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh borrowed from former President George W. Bush who borrowed it from a Texas artist. All of these men used the line ‘sunrise side of the mountain’ to paint a picture of themselves as people who choose to live in a high place that allows them to face the challenges yet to come. It is hard not to be swept up in the noble emotion of this poetic phrase. That is until you consider how many Americans and other people throughout the world are denied an opportunity to sit on the mountain basking in the light of the sun. They are forced to dwell in the dark valleys of oppression, kept down because of their gender, race, religion, social status, or an inability to access health care, education, and jobs that pay enough to lift them out of poverty. For them, the soaring phrase falls flat or, worse, is drowned out entirely by the din of despair.

I do not doubt that Chuck Grassley and many of those with whom he serves in the halls of power entered the fray for the right reasons. However, I fear too many of them have become so distracted by a desire to sit in what they see as the glittering seat of power; they fail to do their part setting the course toward the shimmering promise of what America can be. A leader doesn’t bring his team alone into the morning light; he selflessly helps as many people as he can escape the shadows, regardless of the party labels they may wear.

The promise of America will remain unfulfilled as long as elected officials focus their energy on the next election, putting their shoulders only to wheels aimed toward a destination where they and those in their caucus hold power. Republican officials, we are more than your fellow conservatives. Democrats, we are more than liberals. Do not put us in constrained boxes. We are your neighbors, friends, family members, co-workers, and community members. Start seeing us as your fellow Americans who share a commitment to the ideals of our nation. We all need to worry less about partisanship and do more to facilitate cooperation, so we can face the light of the new day together.

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