This week’s political events unfolding in the nation’s capital are just one more indication of why local communities must lead the way in placing our shared lives on a more hopeful, inclusive path.
We can do better. We must.
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Around the table in Des Moines, as in other parts of our nation, people tell me they’re deeply fearful and afraid of the polarization and acrimony shaping our lives.
Our local communities will save our nation. For it is there we can turn outward toward one another, and provide a sense of dignity for all people, engender real hope, and include everyone in moving ahead.
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In some ways it can feel like the country is splintering after the recent presidential election. Protests against President-elect Trump are now taking place in cities across the country. Vandalism of churches and physical violence in the name of Trump are emerging. The nation seems to be fracturing along lines of smaller tribes, where people are divided by race and ethnicity, where they live and who they routinely talk with. One question is: What should Mr. Trump do now?
Read MoreWhere, oh where has the presidential campaign gone in recent weeks, other than into the gutter? To get the discourse on a better trajectory, here’s a simple step for the candidates and their campaigns: over the next week, offer the American people a cogent thought about why they are running and a proposal or idea that helps shed light on where they want the nation to go.
Read MorePolitico, the daily newspaper and online service, ran this headline today and with it an article that outlined how Obama operatives are getting ready to destroy Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s character in the hopes of maintaining The White House. But is this the right path for any candidate to take, especially one that ran on “hope?”
Read MoreMuch is being said about what will happen after today’s election. What will President Obama and the Republicans do? Where did all the passion for “change” go? What should be the next policy agenda? Over the coming weeks, I will return to these themes. But, today, I want to focus on the underlying fight I believe we must be prepared to take on after Election Day.
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