Honesty in Politics

This informative book that the author, Joanne Freeman, focuses on a constructive journey of providing a comprehensive re-examination of the political culture that was exhibited in the historical orientation of American. The text has revealed an overwhelming unstable and a strange political world that is founded on the values of a code of honor and this has been achieved by exploring different materials that had focused on both the private and public figures. Relevant information explored are from key figures found in the history of America, including Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, and Aaron Burr, which Freeman has utilized in building a strong argument on the subject of the book (Freeman, 2002).

A politician leads every country in the world. Whether their people chose them or self instated, they are the engines that keep governments going. In an ideal world, every politician would be an exemplary human being, with so much power its important to be able to trust those who wield it. Regrettably, they are not always perfect people. There have been hundreds of scandals involving politicians all over the world, some more well known than others. In todays day and age living in such a technologically connected era, political scandals are coming to light more now than ever. With social media everywhere and with hundreds of people literally walking

Medvic also defends politicians on the public’s charges about how they are liars and cheats. Medvic contends that we do not know how many liars and cheaters there are in politics. However, politicians are under more scrutiny and would more than likely be caught. In addition, politicians are consistent in what they say and attempt to keep their promises, as supported by Tracy Sulkin study, (Medvic p. 112).

There are many of us who are disillusioned by the American Political system, over the years we have become increasingly cynical, viewing politicians as extensions of Corporate America, the good OLE boys from the South and the Eastern Elite. For such politicians, politics itself was a life long destiny, full of ambition, finesse, and struggle for power, yet a severe lack

"A Bullet Never Lies," a line from the popular movie, Man on Fire, seems to be more than just a line from a fictional character, it rings some truth, just ask one of America 's Early leading political figures who helped not only physically shape the united states with the addition of Texas, but also greatly influenced the political system through his business and politics. He is more than just a military training post or a large university, Sam Houston was a great war leader, political leader, and family man who lived by his own words, "A leader is someone who helps improve the lives of other people or improve the system they live under," and formed a legacy second to none.

Society turns to powerful leaders for guidance in times of uncertainty. Especially after the American Revolution, the people needed a leader to mollify the concerns entailing their newfound independence. They needed a president who could guide them like a king without creating a power vacuum, who could lead with respect without becoming corrupt, and who could put the future of the country beyond his own desires; America’s future was reliant on a leader who had these qualities. Luckily, the first president, George Washington, acted as the “good king” America heavily needed.

When asked whether he learned anything as an actor that's been useful to his presidency, Ronald Reagan replied, “ There have been times in this office when I’ve wondered how you can do the job if you hadn’t been an actor.” Politicians must employ methods of artifice and present themselves as an idealistic image of themselves in order to win elections.

Every four years, for decades and decades, U.S. citizens have been faced with the challenge of deciding which presidential candidate they’ll vote for. Sometimes presidents with severe deficiencies in character have been elected, sometimes others lacking leadership skills and the ability to tackle the problems and difficulties posed by the presidency. However, there have also been some presidents who, though not without their flaws, have remained as a model of an ideal president to many people. Washington and Lincoln are two of these presidents, who exemplified many admirable qualities as leaders.

The American Presidency is undoubtedly one of the most widely recognized popular icons throughout the world. Although to most foreigners or those who have never resided in the United States or know little of its history, the executive branch of government may seem to be as dull and unyielding as the rest of the American politics, for those few rare individuals who have taken the time to examine and closely scrutinize this office of the American political system and its recent history, quite the opposite will be said. Unlike Congressional or local elections where typically a number of individuals of the same ideological background must be elected in order for a particular issue to be

Our political leaders must be held accountable for their decisions and the effects they have upon us, their constituents. Society can place emphasis on a certain model depending on

High-level political and governmental figures are often involved in influencing public policy as well as taking part in decision making. We look up to them and trust them to make our country a better place and protect us. Presidents, for instance, are very powerful leaders who enforce our nation’s laws and work very hard to keep our country safe. Presidents are often described as being courageous, dedicated, honest, influential, loyal, passionate, responsible, trustworthy, and strategic. Well, at least most of our presidents were.

This quote reminds me of the patronage system, where jobs and promotions are awarded for political reasons rather than for merit or competence. In this system, working in a congressional campaign, making large donations, and having the right connections helped citizens secure jobs with the government. Members of large corporations and wealthy donors donate thousands of dollars to be granted some fancy title on the ALEC hierarchy. By using their high socioeconomic status, these workers of major and wealthy corporations are attempting to exert their influence on the processes ALEC takes part in. These corporate members and wealthy sponsors are literally buying their influence. And for what? A title? I am unsure as to what these “chairman level” sponsors even contribute to ALEC’s legislative process. Do these corporate representatives buy these titles to have an influence, or just to say that their corporation is involved in ALEC and stands firmly on the economic principles ALEC represents?

Many people, myself included look up to individuals in an authoritative role such as; senators, governors, and presidents. We view them as being honest and sincere. They have to be right? They do want to run the country after all. Often our thoughts are “they would never lie to us or hide things from us”, but unfortunately that’s not always the case. One of the biggest political scandals to hit the United States of America was the Watergate scandal involving our very own President Richard Nixon. This scandal caused a lot of American’s to lose trust and hope in the presidency. The scandal received its name from the Watergate apartment and office complex that was located in Washington D.C., where a burglary took place on June 17, 1972 and five men were arrested. It then came to surface that the men’s intentions were to sabotage the opposite political party, when president Nixon was notified of this he order the Central Intelligence Agency to call the FBI to stop with any further investigation, that national security was at stake. President Nixon knew that it would come back to the White House and didn’t want to risk anything, even though he was never involved with the

Everyday citizens often live unaware of their government’s inner workings. The knowing of political espionage is often too heavy of a subject to be inducted in conversation. True, prima facie, modest twists and turns of information may not be considered substantial, but this inconsideration leaves much to be uncontrolled. It is easy for political leaders to become power crazed, to not realize the massive implications that come of their actions. Only after all is said and done do the people actually realize their government is an opaque mask of deception. The Watergate Scandal substantially impacted Americans’ trust in their government.

Political corruption has existed throughout the ages. It believed to be most prominent in positions of power, because of the role money plays in getting people power. However, over the centuries, corruption has changed so much so as to not match a particular definition of corruption, perpetually growing deceptively harder to find (Ebbe).