Where are Statesmen like William Wilberforce?Is every Politician an unprincipled liar? Unfortunately, the common perception of most people, I think, is that most lawyers, Politicians and car salesmen are corrupt. Doesn’t just come with the territory? This caused me to ask myself a couple of question. “Are there any true Statesmen on the political scene today in America?” “What is the difference between a true Statesman and a Politician, if any? In this brief series of articles, we will explore the three categories into which our elective officials fall. Today we will talk about Statesmen.
THE STATESMAN
The dictionary defines a Statesman as one who is wise and experienced in the business of government. I think that a Statesman is also a respected leader in government and in the political arena; he or she is respected by those likeminded as well as those many in the ranks of the opposition. William Wilberforce pictured above was an outstanding Statesman in England. See the article, which I wrote about him earlier this year.
These men and women, I am afraid, are very rare breed, indeed. They are greatly needed, but hardly ever appreciated. They consistently put principles above convenience or political expediency or political correctness. These people honor truth. These people believe in moral absolutes. These people are visionaries. These people understand America’s republican democratic roots, its principles and its values. A Statesman wants to build up and upon and not to destroy the foundation.
Whereas Politicians and Poluticians (I will define this term in a subsequent article in this series. Here is a clue, “PU”. ) pimp patriotism merely to win points and to win votes. Conversely, Statesmen are the true patriots and their lives, positions, policies and their votes reflect consistently despite the obstacles. They persevere despite the opposition, despite the barriers, despite the odds.
Anymore, America seems not to want Statesmen, people who will honestly tell America or lead her in the ways of traditional, God-honoring values and truth. Statesman may lack the Hollywood-looks and charisma of the Politicians or Poluticians but they have the real character qualities such as honesty, courage and force of will to stand for principles, for what is good, for what is right.
Examples of statesmen today are really hard to come, but here are a few:
· Representative Duncan Hunter, R-CA
· Representative Tom Tancredo, R-CO
These two men, from all I know about them so far, whether they are serving while their party is in the majority or while their party is in the minority in Congress, have stuck to their guns and beliefs and have not wavered. They are not swayed and driven by polls, politics but by core principles. These men have persistently supported and lead on the most important issues of our time: pro-life, preservation of traditional marriage, and opposition to law-breaking illegal aliens and law-breaking greedy businesses.
Representative Ron Paul (R-TX) may also be included in this category, even though I do not agree with him on the issue of war on terrorism in Iraq and some of his other libertarian views. Furthermore, Governor Mike Huckabee and Senator Sam Brownback, (R-KS) both of whom are running for President may be close to being Statesmen. I am still researching and learning about these two men.
I pray that one of the four persons mentioned above, Hunter, Tancredo, Brownback or Huckabee, or maybe even someone like Senator Fred Thompson would be that true conservative of character and principle, who would emerge out of the GOP primaries and challenge what will be a sure radical leftist Democrat candidate. None of the current crop of 7 Democrats and the so-called top three tier GOP candidates have the potential to be true Statesmen. They are Politicians or political hacks at best.
“The Politician” is the topic of the next article in this series.
THE STATESMAN
The dictionary defines a Statesman as one who is wise and experienced in the business of government. I think that a Statesman is also a respected leader in government and in the political arena; he or she is respected by those likeminded as well as those many in the ranks of the opposition. William Wilberforce pictured above was an outstanding Statesman in England. See the article, which I wrote about him earlier this year.
These men and women, I am afraid, are very rare breed, indeed. They are greatly needed, but hardly ever appreciated. They consistently put principles above convenience or political expediency or political correctness. These people honor truth. These people believe in moral absolutes. These people are visionaries. These people understand America’s republican democratic roots, its principles and its values. A Statesman wants to build up and upon and not to destroy the foundation.
Whereas Politicians and Poluticians (I will define this term in a subsequent article in this series. Here is a clue, “PU”. ) pimp patriotism merely to win points and to win votes. Conversely, Statesmen are the true patriots and their lives, positions, policies and their votes reflect consistently despite the obstacles. They persevere despite the opposition, despite the barriers, despite the odds.
Anymore, America seems not to want Statesmen, people who will honestly tell America or lead her in the ways of traditional, God-honoring values and truth. Statesman may lack the Hollywood-looks and charisma of the Politicians or Poluticians but they have the real character qualities such as honesty, courage and force of will to stand for principles, for what is good, for what is right.
Examples of statesmen today are really hard to come, but here are a few:
· Representative Duncan Hunter, R-CA
· Representative Tom Tancredo, R-CO
These two men, from all I know about them so far, whether they are serving while their party is in the majority or while their party is in the minority in Congress, have stuck to their guns and beliefs and have not wavered. They are not swayed and driven by polls, politics but by core principles. These men have persistently supported and lead on the most important issues of our time: pro-life, preservation of traditional marriage, and opposition to law-breaking illegal aliens and law-breaking greedy businesses.
Representative Ron Paul (R-TX) may also be included in this category, even though I do not agree with him on the issue of war on terrorism in Iraq and some of his other libertarian views. Furthermore, Governor Mike Huckabee and Senator Sam Brownback, (R-KS) both of whom are running for President may be close to being Statesmen. I am still researching and learning about these two men.
I pray that one of the four persons mentioned above, Hunter, Tancredo, Brownback or Huckabee, or maybe even someone like Senator Fred Thompson would be that true conservative of character and principle, who would emerge out of the GOP primaries and challenge what will be a sure radical leftist Democrat candidate. None of the current crop of 7 Democrats and the so-called top three tier GOP candidates have the potential to be true Statesmen. They are Politicians or political hacks at best.
“The Politician” is the topic of the next article in this series.
.
To be continued
No comments:
Post a Comment