Friday, April 22, 2011

Politicians Voting According to their Beliefs Regardless of Agreement by Constituents

Politicians should vote according to their beliefs, without worrying about whether their constituents agree with those beliefs.
Describe a specific situation in which a politician should take into account the beliefs of constituents when voting. Discuss what you think determines whether politicians should vote according to their beliefs or those of their constituents.
___

Taking responsibility as a politician involves a fine balancing game. On one hand, he she attempts to please as many people as possible because the support of his constituents put him in office. He also seeks approval as a way to get re-elected for the next term. On the other hand, he would like to do what he feels what is right in side and will move the country forward in the best way possible. These goals are not necessarily contradictory but oftentimes, politicians may find themselves in the position of having to compromise their personal beliefs in order to satisfy his constituency.

In our representative government, the people vote for a representative to serve as their voice in the legislation of laws. Some people vote based on name recognition or popularity but others tend to vote for the politician who best reflects his own personal and political beliefs. When in office, the politician needs to take into accounts the interests of constituents who voted for him. Among these interests include improving the economic security of the people by protecting the major industries of his hometown and advocating for funding for needed infrastructure. Politicians should generally take the constituent's position on certain controversial issues that divide party lines. These heated issues include the death penalty, abortion and gay marriage; since those debates tend to be in the forefront of constituents minds, politicians should give heed to popular support or rejection of the issues.

Granted, people's personal beliefs are sometimes driven by nativist sentiments that hurt minorities and a politician with integrity will not support such legislation driven by hate---regardless of constituent support. A good politician will also take into account Constitutional principles in basing support of legislation. If he feels that his people support legislation antithetical to his interpretation of the Constitution, the good politician will not compromise his beliefs. Instead, using his ability to analyze the situation, he will successfully persuade his constituents to understand his point of view and the direction he is headed with the legislation.

Indeed, politicians face many difficult decisions and are pulled left and right due to the many interests they need to consider. The interests of his constituents certainly serve as his highest priority since they put him in the office in the first place and could also re-elect him for another term. When constituents' interests collide with his own beliefs, politicians often need to compromise his personal positions in order to represent the people fairly. However, the good politician also maintains his integrity and stands up for his own personal belief in a situation where people's support or rejection of legislation is mainly driven by fear and hateful sentiments.

No comments:

Post a Comment