We’ve all had the thought recently: “why isn’t there a clear, morally superior presidential candidate to support?” Of course some will argue vehemently that one of them out there is the best hope for America. But on a whole, we have no great, Washington-esque leader to sweep the polls of public opinion.
The vital truth, I will argue, is that today we don’t need a dynamic champion of the Good, True, and Beautiful. We don’t need a great man. We just need a good one.
In the days of Washington, the general sentiment of the colonies may not have been Christian, but it was unquestionably moral. Unlike our day, there was a belief in the ability of men to govern well and an understanding that politics were engaged in by men who wanted the good of the governed. “Politician” was not such a dirty word back then.
In that day, the average man believed in the concepts of truth, justice, and natural rights. The Declaration of Independence was not written out of a vacuum, but from the common sentiment of the day. This isn’t to say that all men were good — as Madison pointed out, even then men weren’t angels — but as Washington so clearly pronounced in his farewell address, it would be folly for a man to “claim the tribute of Patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars [religion and morality] of human happiness.” In that time, for a man to stand out from a crowd of men who supported the great pillars of human happiness, he had to be someone great.
In modern times, talking about religion and morality are causes for hate speech legislation. The word “politician” does not call to mind the image of a patriot working towards the cause of moral government. The United States can no longer be called a Christian nation — if it ever truly could — but it is almost true to say that it is no longer a moral nation. Granted, people still practice morality, but when the definition of morality can change based on circumstance, gender, color, and social affiliation, morality itself loses its meaning and becomes powerless.
To this end, it is not difficult to stand out in a crowd anymore. One does not need to be a great leader or a perfect moral example. One simply needs to honestly do one’s best. In these circumstances, I will not say that we need someone to sweep in to a presidential election trailing clouds of glory. We need a candidate who is simply good: imperfect and flawed, but honestly good. What the nation requires is a simple man who still seeks to support the pillar of morality in America. But perhaps a good man will be hard to find.
