Voters' Guide to Choosing Elected Leaders with Good Character
Votes are precious and limited in supply. True patriots vote for leaders with good character.
………………………. BLOG CONTENTS ……………………………..
Constitutional Limitations to Voting in Federal Elections
Decline of Democracy and Character
Qualities of Poor Character and Leadership
How to Avoid Falling for Politicians' Lies
Constitutional Conditions for Voting in Federal Elections
The US Constitution includes four basic conditions for the right to vote in federal elections:
The 14th Amendment extends citizenship to all natural born or naturalized Americans regardless of race. It also guarantees that rights of citizenship, like voting, cannot be restricted by the states.
The 15th Amendment prohibits restricting the right to vote due to race.
The 19th Amendment extends voting rights to all women.
The 26th Amendment extends the right to vote to everyone 18 years of age and older.
The Constitution says nothing about the criteria voters must use when they choose whom they vote for. In other words, the Constitution leaves infinite freedom for voters to make their choices — even if they vote out or ignorance and self-interest.
The only additional conditions for voting are implied in the Oath of Allegiance for naturalized citizens:
Renounce allegiance to any foreign state or sovereignty
Pledge to support and defend the U.S. Constitution and laws
Promising to bear true faith and allegiance to the United States
Taking this obligation freely without mental reservation or purpose of evasion
Native born American citizens are not required to make a similar Oath of Allegiance, but they attest to the spirit of the Oath whenever they recite the Pledge of Allegiance:
I pledge Allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
and to the Republic for which it stands,
one nation under God, indivisible,
with Liberty and Justice for all.
Other than conscience with respect to the symbolism of the Pledge of Allegiance, there is nothing that obligates native born citizens to obey the Constitution. While the Pledge of Allegiance does not specifically mention the Constitution, it contains the following symbolism:
The flag represents the union of the states into one nation.
The phrase "one Nation indivisible" reinforces the ideal of national unity of individual persons.
The flag symbolizes the ideals and values that the United States stands for —including liberty and justice for all persons — which are mentioned in the Preamble to the Constitution.
The colors of the flag have symbolic meanings - red for valor, white for purity, and blue for justice for all persons.
The American flag serves as a powerful, multifaceted symbol that encapsulates the nation's sovereignty, unity, values, and identity. The Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag, therefore, duplicates the principles contained in the Oath of Allegiance recited by all naturalized Americans.
It is not mere coincidence that these same principles are specified in the Preamble to the Constitution. Together, the Oath of Allegiance and Pledge of Allegiance summarize the "spirit" of the Constitution introduced in the Preamble to the Constitution:
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
The Preamble is technically a part of the Constitution. It is included in the full text of the Constitution and serves as an introduction to the Constitution, setting the stage for the articles and amendments that follow. Therefore, the Preamble to the Constitution should always be clearly in mind for congresspersons, presidents and anyone who recites the Oath of Allegiance and/or Pledge of Allegiance.
The Preamble outlines six broad principles for America’s democratic government:
Form a more perfect Union that is not divided along racial, social, economic, political, religious or educational lines
Establish Justice for all Americans
Insure domestic Tranquility for all Americans
Provide for the common defense
Promote the general Welfare for all Americans
Secure the Blessings of Liberty for current and future generations
These six objectives are the filters through which all legitimate (i.e. Constitutional) legislation must pass. It can be said, therefore, legislation that does not consider and accommodate these filters is unconstitutional. It can also be said that congresspersons who do not pursue these objectives serve illegitimately because they violate their oath of office which reads as follows:
"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God."
Similarly, presidents who not pursue the objectives outlined in the Preamble also serve illegitimately because they violate their oaths of office.
"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
Oaths of office, like the Pledge of Allegiance and Oath of Allegiance, are recited solemnly and sincerely at swearing in ceremonies and other public events but are soon forgotten. Everyone forgets that violation of a federal oath of office is a federal crime, but there are only two real penalties for violating the Pledge of Allegiance, Oath of Allegiance and the terms of the Preamble to the Constitution: Guilty conscience and maybe failure to get reelected in the case of congresspersons and presidents. Voters with good consciences act as judges, juries and executioners for legislators and presidents who are not faithful to their oaths.
Politically informed voters with good character purposefully and intentionally monitor the behaviors and performance of all elected officials. They use that information to inform their votes for candidates with good character the next election. This diligence to monitor and vote requires intellectual work that constitutes true patriotism that is different from fake, patriotism (e.g. attend political rallies and demonstrations.)
Voters with poor character, however, do not monitor the behavior and performance of elected officials between elections. They are seasonal patriots who only exercise their patriotic duty every two years, and then by attending political rallies, watching select media and donating money to their preferred candidates. Seasonal patriots think that the mere act of voting establishes their patriotism. They don’t understand that voting for politicians with poor character who do not pursue the terms of the Preamble to the Constitution is an unpatriotic act. They don’t realize that patriotism is best expressed through constant, diligent monitoring of old and new candidates for office for the purpose of evaluating character is an expression of true patriotism.
Seasonal patriots are much more vulnerable to election season hype than voters with good character. Besieged by endless campaign ads, they conveniently reduce the voting process down to a menu of factors like the economy, social movements, religion, current news events, party Identification, candidate’s image, campaign rhetoric, and policy issues. When this process is confused by contradictory and confusing information that does not give clear guidance to voting, they are susceptible to belief in misinformation and conspiracy theories that lead them to vote according to their gut instinct instead of using logic, reason and character to inform their votes. They don’t understand that it is their patriotic duty to research and vote for candidates with good character who pursue the terms of the Preamble to the Constitution.
Seasonal patriots process readily available, lies, conspiracy theories and campaign advertising without doing the hard work of judging candidate character. The Constitution requires nothing more of voters. The Constitution gives them freedom to vote out of ignorance, misinformation and gut feelings. But common sense and a little knowledge of history leads true patriots to serious investigation of character before voting.
Conscience and Character
Elected officials and citizens with active consciences and good character distinguish themselves by their faithfulness to oaths and pledges they voluntarily made to support the terms of the Preamble to the Constitution. Everything they say and do reveals respect and compassion for others called for in the Preamble. Their humble willingness to demonstrate good character stands out in an environment where poor character, uncivil behavior, and disrespect for the Constitution has become normalized. In this political environment, good character reveals true, courageous patriotism.
Lack of conscience is a noticeable feature of poor character, but no elected official has ever been impeached for lack of conscience or poor character. With respect to federal elected officials, conscience can be understood as an internal, moral compass that guides them be faithful to their Oath of Office to pursue the principles of the Preamble.
An active conscience prompts people to reflect on their actions and their impact on others. For politicians, an active conscience leads to a deeper understanding of moral, social and Constitutional implications of rhetoric and legislation. For politicians, an active conscience also leads to public confession of awareness of harms done through legislation that does not pursue the principles found in the Preamble. Politicians who do this display good character and good leadership.
Good character is often defined by traits such as honesty, integrity, empathy, and responsibility. These qualities not only shape how individuals interact with others but also influence their decision-making processes — including voting and crafting legislation. People with good character tend to prioritize ethical considerations and strive to do what is right, even when faced with vocal and physical opposition. Politicians with good character will always apply these ethical considerations with respect to their oaths of office and the principles found in the Preamble to the Constitution.
Because the Constitution does not specify that congresspersons or presidents must possess good character, people with bad character can be, and too often are, elected to office. That means that voters who understand and value good character are the gatekeepers to Constitutional government. It also means that voters who do not understand and value good character are totally free to elect politicians with bad character who will run the government without respect to the Preamble or their Oaths of Office. Freedom to elect politicians with poor character is not a deficiency in the Constitution. The deficiency in America’s government is found in the character of voters and politicians and in the voters who elect them to office.
The weakness of voting for candidates with bad character provides insight into the reasons why American democracy is declining. Voters are more inclined to cast their votes on the basis of self interest, party affiliation and incumbency instead of character. Voters are free to vote with any criteria, or no criteria at all, because there is nothing explicit in the Constitution, the Oath of Allegiance or the Pledge of Allegiance that obligates voters to vote only for politicians with good character. Nor are they obligated to use common sense, reason, logic, facts or any other criteria to guide their choices for presidents or congresspersons.
The Constitution leaves voters free to believe anything that suits their moral and ethical predispositions and vote accordingly. These beliefs and behaviors are all perfectly legal but they are contrary to the spirit of true patriotism. The spirit of true patriotism is summarized succinctly in the Preamble to the Constitution which outlines six broad principles for America’s democratic government:
Form a more perfect Union that is not divided along racial, social, economic, political, religious or educational lines
Establish Justice for all Americans
Insure domestic Tranquility for all Americans
Provide for the common defense
Promote the general Welfare of all Americans
Secure the Blessings of Liberty for current and future generations of all Americans
Clearly the Preamble is inclusive of all Americans and does not discriminate against anyone. True patriotism, therefore, is defined by pursuit of the general, inclusive welfare of all Americans. This nuance of true patriotism is important to understand when evaluating the character of political candidates and voters.
Voters with good character will always vote for candidates with good character — if there are any — who think inclusively and pursue inclusive legislation that benefits all Americans. Voters with poor character, however, are more likely to vote on the basis of campaign rhetoric, candidate charisma and party loyalty than on character. While there may be exceptions, the 2024 election results clearly show that the majority of Americans cast their votes on the basis of self interest (e.g. economy, inflation, social/religious/political identity, candidate’s charismatic appeal, etc.) and not on the basis of character that works for the well-being of all Americans as provided in the Preamble.
Because the Preamble to the Constitution is part of the Constitution, it must be said that congresspersons and presidents who do not support, preserve, protect and defend the terms of the Preamble violate the terms of their oaths of office. It must also be said that voters who vote for candidates who do not support, preserve, protect and defend the terms of the Preamble violate their Oaths of Allegiance and the Pledge of Allegiance. People with good character have integrity that does not allow them to violate their oaths.
The Constitution specifies no criteria for how Americans vote. Historically, they can, and have, vote for scoundrels, liars, cheats and bigots to represent them, pass legislation and direct America’s domestic and foreign affairs. The only thing that constrains voters from voting for scoundrels, liars, cheats and bigots is conscience and integrity that keep the principles of their oaths (i.e. Pledge of Allegiance, Oath of Allegiance) and the Preamble fully in view when voting. When voters have these principles fully in view, they will always vote for candidates who campaign steadfastly to advance these principles while in office — if they can find such candidates.
This may sound like a very idealistic strategy for running a democracy — and it is. But the very concept of democracy is based on idealism backed up with a pragmatic strategy that follows the principles America’s founders considered when framing the Constitution:
The Constitution was based on a pragmatic and realistic view of human nature and government. Here are some key points:
The framers had a primarily Christian and classical view of the human nature of both voters and politicians. They saw humans as morally flawed and not to be trusted with unrestricted power. Their insights were profoundly accurate.
The Constitution established a system of divided powers and checks and balances specifically to limit and contain the human drive for power. The best check against the human drive for power is the good character of elected officials. Because the American electorate does not understand this principle, good character is not in view when voting.
The framers believed that responsible exercise of power required moral preconditions and self-discipline in individuals. Too often American voters and the people they elect to office are willing to overlook morality and self-discipline when it suits their self-interests. This is evidence of poor character in voters and politicians.
The Constitution was designed to work with a constitutional personality: individuals predisposed to virtues like moderation, respect for law, and willingness to compromise. These virtues have deteriorated in voters and legislative bodies.
The Preamble outlines practical goals like establishing justice, ensuring domestic tranquility, providing for defense, and promoting general welfare for all Americans. These summarize the aims of the framers of the Constitution.
The chief aim of the Constitution is to create a government with enough power to act nationally, but not so much power that fundamental human rights of any American would be at risk. This aim can be realized successfully only if the nation is governed by people with good character. History repeatedly shows that people with poor character cannot be trusted to preserve fundamental human rights of all Americans. Policies, crises and political power ebb and flow through history, but good character needed to negotiate these events will never fail to pursue the principles of the Preamble to the Constitution.
Democracies work well only when citizens fully trust elected officials to be faithful to their Oath of Office which obligates them to preserve the principles outlined in the Preamble:
Form a more perfect Union that is not divided along racial, social, economic, political, religious or educational lines
Establish Justice for all Americans
Insure domestic Tranquility for all Americans
Provide for the common defense
Promote the general Welfare for all Americans
Secure the Blessings of Liberty for current and future generations
The entire democratic system and social order declines when elected officials break trust with voters by failing to preserve these principles. (See Fake Patriots Cause Distrust, Division and Social Problems and Decline of Democracy and Character for more about what happens when elected officials break trust with voters.)
Because trust in elected officials is critical to responsible democratic government, It is foolish to expect that known scoundrels, liars, cheats and bigots can be trusted to voluntarily restrain their lusts for power after they are voted into office. They do not suddenly develop good character when they are elected. Their old habits and motivations will always be evident in their behaviors, policies and relationships.
Well informed voters consistently observe these behaviors while poorly informed voters pay more attention during election cycles — if they pay attention at all. Poorly informed, voters absorb information about politicians’ behaviors, policies and relationships in short “sound bites” that focus on policies. Rarely, if ever, do major media outlets provide analysis that helps voters judge politicians’ character. This does not mean, however, that voters are not judging character. The following research about the American electorates’ opinions about elected officials clearly shows that they are watching and making judgments:
While respondents to this poll do not consciously make their judgments of “care” in the context of the Preamble, their opinions are, in fact, reflections of America’s failure to achieve the principles of “general Welfare for all Americans” and “Blessings of Liberty for current and future generations” outlined in the Preamble.
Voters’ cynical opinion of politicians love for money and power is also reflected in this Pew research:
This research reveals voters’ widespread distrust of their elected leaders. Voters learn to distrust politicians because they have many years of experience watching politicians with bad character reveal their true character in office and out of office. But the damage is done by then and politicians with bad character are nearly impossible to remove from office once they taste political power and build their reelection campaign chests.
Other research shows that American voters don’t know how to process their negative, untrusting opinions about politicians when election season rolls around. We see this confusion in the fact that incumbent politicians enjoy record reelection in an aging Congress. (Note: This data does not include results of the 2024 federal election.)
The following data gathered by The Eagleton Center on the American Governor shows that governors are only slightly less successful than members of Congress when they run for reelection.
This historical review explains the continuous decline of American democracy. The only way to reverse this decline and establish the Constitutional principles of good government found in the Preamble is to identify and elect politicians with good character to Congress and the Presidency.
If the American, two-party system that elevates self serving policy and party loyalty above character was able to reliably place politicians with good character into government so that the the decline of American democracy would not decline, congress would not be as dysfunctional as it is and America would not be as divided as it is. This condition exists because generations of voters abdicated their responsibility to elect politicians with good character. Todays’ voters are challenged to reverse this trend by voting for politicians with good character. There is no other remedy. If voters don’t change how they decide whom to vote for, the decline of American democracy will continue.
Because the Constitution empowers native born and naturalized citizens with the right to vote, everyone who votes should have the principles found in the Preamble to the Constitution clearly in mind when they vote. If they do not have these principles in mind, they violate the terms of their Oath of Allegiance and/or Pledge of Allegiance. Moreover, if these principles are not clearly in mind, other principles or motivations will determine how they vote.
Here are the factors that motivate voters
Candidate charisma
Party affiliation and ideology
Issues and policy positions
Economic conditions that affect personal pocketbooks
Concerns about the future of democracy
Social identities such as race, religion, education and class
Some voters are motivated by a sense of responsibility to fulfill their duties as citizens
The desire to benefit others or society as a whole is a motivating factor for some voters
Influence of social circles
It is impossible to know if any native born or naturalized citizens who ever voted reflected on their Oath of Allegiance, Pledge of Allegiance or the Preamble when choosing whom they would vote for. Considering the history of politicians with bad character elected to office, however, it is easy to assume that most voters in the past two hundred and thirty-seven years voted on the basis of the nine factors listed above and did not reflect on any of these guiding principles of their Oaths of Allegiance, Pledges of Allegiance and Preamble when voting.
There is only one way to interpret this history: The American electorate has always had conflicted feeling about the politicians it elects. On the one hand, PEW Research reports generally negative feelings about the people they voted into office. On the other hand, despite their critical judgments, Americans reelect incumbent congresspersons with poor character 90% (more or less) of the time.
The best way to explain this double-minded behavior is that Americans do no know how to distinguish good character from poor character They have been taught and conditioned to vote on the basis of appealing campaign rhetoric, self interest and party loyalty. No one — not even media — reports, evaluates and diagnoses politicians behaviors and policies in terms of character.
In some of the most egregious cases media may evaluate behavior in terms of morality or even law-breaking, but never in terms of character. Some media may give casual lip service to the importance of character, but they never go so far as to define what is good character and what is poor character. The reason for this neglect is a curious question.
There is a kind of unwritten code in politics, religion and media that stops people from going into detail about poor character. Oddly, It is permissible to attack and disparage politicians with words and lies, but the particulars of good and bad character are never spoken. This unwritten code effectively keeps politicians with poor character in office because voters have never been taught how to evaluate character — theirs or others. The unwritten code and lack of words and tools to evaluate character handicaps them from using character as a criteria for voting. Qualities of Good Character and Qualities of Poor Character and Leadership introduce useful tools for evaluating character.
Because voters are handicapped for lack of understanding of good and bad character, the issue of character never surfaces as one of the the criteria to be employed when choosing whom to vote for. And so, voters do what they do what they know how to do: Vote on the basis of appealing campaign rhetoric, charisma, self interest and party loyalty while secretly harboring distrust and negative feelings about the performance of the politicians they elect. If the American electorate does not get serious about character, this double-minded routine will continue to destroy American democracy. Individuals and organizations that recognize the importance of character need to take on the challenge to teach Americans about character.
If the American electorate would vote for politicians with good character, politicians with good character will shape legislation and policies that serve the public interest represented in the principles of the Preamble to the Constitution:
Form a more perfect Union that is not divided along racial, social, economic, political, religious or educational lines
Establish Justice for all Americans
Insure domestic Tranquility for all Americans
Provide for the common defense
Promote the general Welfare for all Americans
Secure the Blessings of Liberty for current and future generations
But nothing will change until both the American electorate and politicians understand and internalize the principles of the Preamble. Moreover, until voters get wise about character, they will continue to vote for politicians who violate their oaths of office and the principles of the Preamble to the Constitution. In the meantime, voters waste their votes and contribute to the decline of democracy when they do not do the hard intellectual work of monitoring the performance and behavior of political candidates.
It is hard, but not impossible to evaluate first-time candidates. Most first-time candidates have public history that reveals their character. It is also useful to look at the character and party loyalties of people who support first-time candidates. The “birds of a feather flock together” principle is especially applicable to politics.
Elected officials with poor character are able to gain reelection only because voters do not do the intellectual work of evaluating character and vote from that informed perspective. Furthermore, voters demonstrate unfaithfulness to their personal Pledge of Allegiance to support the terms of the Preamble to the Constitution. Such unfaithfulness constitutes laziness and rebellion — not patriotism.
The Constitution does not oblige voters to monitor performance of legislators or presidents. However, conscience, patriotism and faithfulness to their personal Pledge of Allegiance demand that voters closely monitor performance of elected leaders with respect to character and faithfulness to Oaths of Office and the Preamble.
Having monitored such performance, voters will only vote for legislators and presidents on the basis of character — not promises, charisma, policies, rhetoric and party loyalty. This kind of sacrificial, patriotism is always at work — even between elections. It is not lazy, emotional, superficial and uncritical national pride (i.e. fake patriotism) that lacks depth, thoughtfulness and study of candidates’ character. It is a form of patriotism that is much more profound than the visceral emotions Americans feel when singing the Star Spangled Banner at a public event or when they attend a political rally or protest. True patriotism is not just a feeling. True patriotism is sacrificial action.
The sacrifice of true patriotism is doing the intellectual work of evaluating character of political candidates. The action of true patriotism is voting for candidates with good character who will uphold the principles of the Preamble to the Constitution:
Form a more perfect Union that is not divided along racial, social, economic, political, religious or educational lines
Establish Justice for all Americans
Insure domestic Tranquility for all Americans
Provide for the common defense
Promote the general Welfare for all Americans
Secure the Blessings of Liberty for current and future generations
Decline of Democracy and Character
Although no one claims that the democratic form of government is perfect, most people who live in democratic countries agree that democracies provide the best available tools for protecting rights, promoting stability, and allowing for peaceful societal progress. Intelligent people of good will, therefore, argue that democracy is the ideal form of government for several key reasons as reported in Perplexity ai:
Democracy is based on two core principles that many find morally compelling:
Individual autonomy: The idea that people should have control over their own lives and not be subject to rules imposed by others without their consent.
Equality: The notion that all citizens should have an equal opportunity to influence decisions that affect society
Democracies are designed to protect fundamental rights and freedoms:
They typically have constitutions that guarantee individual liberties like freedom of speech, religion, and assembly.
An independent judiciary helps ensure these rights are upheld
The ability to vote unpopular leaders out of office provides a check on government power and the drive of individual politicians to enrich themselves with money and political power.
Democracy provides mechanisms for the peaceful transfer of power through elections. This helps avoid the instability and potential violence associated with leadership changes in autocratic systems.
Democratic systems tend to be more flexible and adaptable to changing circumstances:
Elected representatives have incentives to respond to public opinion to maintain popularity. This incentive diminishes, however, if voters do not monitor character and vote only for candidates who demonstrate good character.
Regular elections allow for course corrections if watchful voters monitor character and vote politicians with poor character out of office.
Democracies are less likely to engage in both international and civil wars compared to other forms of government
Democracy encourages citizens to be informed and engaged in the political process:
Voting creates a sense of civic responsibility.
Open debate of issues fosters political awareness and education
Watchful monitoring of character is the most important task of informed citizens.
Well-run, democracies allow all groups in society to have a voice:
Minority groups can advocate for their interests through the political process.
Coalition-building encourages compromise between different factions
If these are the democratic ideals that shaped the Constitution, why do some Americans advocate for dismantling Constitutional government and institutions? Why is America divided politically and socially? What went wrong? There are several key explanations for the decline in American democracy:
Failure of the American electorate to monitor the character of elected officials and vote only for those who demonstrate good character by pursuing the principles of the Preamble to the Constitution.
Intentional manipulation of elections
Laws intended to reduce voter access to ballots
Politicization of election administration
Extreme gerrymandering to foreclose electoral competition
Executive overreach:
Expansions of executive power
Erosion of the civil service
Weakening of checks and balances on executive authority
Partisan polarization:
Hyper partisanship in Congress
Failure of Congress to practice oversight and accountability for its members and presidents.
Erosion of democratic norms and institutions
Declining commitment to democracy among extremist groups
Distrust of elected officials. (See Fake Patriots Cause Distrust, Division and Social Problems)
Influence of money in politics
Spread of misinformation and declining trust in media
Spread of conspiracy theories designed to erode trust in political leaders and parties.
Creeping economic inequality and social division that develops because elected officials do not pursue legislation consistent with the principles of the Preamble to the Constitution
Long-standing backlash to civil rights legislation consistent with the principles of the Preamble to the Constitution.
Concerns about the impartiality of the judiciary
Attempts to subvert election results
State-level efforts to restrict voting rights and politicize election processes
Global trends of democratic decline and rising authoritarianism
The erosion of American democracy cannot be blamed on culture, the economy or world events. Every event, whether large or small, visible or invisible, that contributes to the decline was conceived by and executed by a political figure, political party or political activist with poor character. Some were visible agents of organized politics, others donated money to causes, some were obscure faces in the crowd at political rallies, and many others simply voted for politicians who campaigned with promises that they would support legislation that would contribute to the decline. They all are responsible for the decline of American democracy and they all had poor character because they were not faithful to their Oath of Allegiance or Pledge of Allegiance.
Lacking any other obvious explanation, it is very easy to speculate that voting for political candidates with poor character is THE cause of the decline of American democracy. Here are a few reasons why this speculation is true:
Political candidates with good character do not run for office for personal enrichment through money or any other reasons associated with pride or personal advancement.
Political candidates with good character are not eager to run for office.
Uninformed voters with poor character are easily misled by politicians who make promises that serve the voters’ self interests.
American Voters are more likely to vote on the basis of policy issues, party loyalty and campaign rhetoric than candidates’ good character
The principles of the Preamble are not generally in view for American voters or candidates for office.
The Oath of Allegiance and Pledge of Allegiance are not generally in view for American voters or politicians who run for, and are elected to, Constitutional offices.
It is grossly simplistic to say that the decline of American democracy hinges entirely on these factors. It would be entirely accurate to say, however, that America will not become a better place unless more Americans vote for more politicians with good character who always keep the principles of the Preamble in view.
Qualities of Good Character
Good character may be defined as a set of positive traits that contribute to an individual's integrity, healthy relationships, and beneficial impact on society. Here is a comprehensive list of these traits:
Emotional Qualities
Empathetic: Understanding and sharing the feelings of others.
Loving: Showing deep affection and care for others.
Warmhearted: Kind and compassionate towards others.
Intellectual Qualities
Curious: Eager to learn and explore new ideas.
Logical: Reasoning clearly and sensibly.
Imaginative: Creative in thinking and problem-solving.
Interpersonal Qualities
Supportive: Offering help and encouragement to others.
Sociable: Enjoying the company of others and engaging easily.
Humorous: Able to bring joy and laughter to situations.
Ethical Qualities
Honest: Truthful and transparent in actions and words.
Respectful: Showing consideration for others' feelings and rights.
Fair: Treating everyone equally without bias.
Dynamic & Energetic Qualities
Enthusiastic: Showing intense enjoyment or interest.
Vibrant: Full of energy and life.
Positive: Maintaining an optimistic outlook.
Resilient & Steadfast Qualities
Persistent: Continuing firmly in a course of action despite difficulties.
Tenacious: Holding fast to goals or principles with determination.
Strong: Exhibiting mental or emotional strength.
Leadership & Influential Qualities
Motivated: Driven to achieve goals and inspire others.
Proactive: Taking initiative rather than waiting for opportunities.
Strategic: Planning effectively to achieve desired outcomes.
Reliability & Trustworthiness
Dependable: Reliable in fulfilling commitments.
Loyal: Faithful to commitments or obligations.
Trustworthy: Deserving of trust; honest in dealings.
Skill & Efficiency
Competent: Having the necessary ability or knowledge to do something well.
Organized: Structured in approach, able to manage tasks effectively.
Productive: Capable of producing significant results efficiently.
Openness & Adaptability
Open-minded: Willing to consider new ideas or opinions.
Flexible: Able to adapt to new conditions or changes easily.
Tolerant: Accepting differing views or behaviors.
See Voters' Guide to Choosing Elected Leaders with Good Character for a printable version of these qualities of good character.
Qualities of Poor Character and Leadership
Because elected officials are leaders, it is logical to evaluate elected officials with respect to their leadership qualities. SIMPPLR, a consulting firm whose goal is to make a positive impact on society by elevating life at work, has created a blog post titled Bad leadership: 10 traits to avoid — and lessons bad leaders can teach us that is as relevant to government as it is to the business world.
The content below in italics is excerpted and reformatted from the SIMPPLR blog post to make it more relevant to voting for politicians. Readers of Make the World Better: Vote for Character are encouraged to study the full SIMPPLR blog post for an in depth analysis of bad/poor character/leadership.
Good leadership builds comradery, improves focus, increases engagement, and supports collaboration. Bad leadership centers around activities that counter those points. Leadership comes in a variety of shapes and sizes, and bad leadership falls into a few buckets:
Self-interest
Control
Apathy
Inability to adapt
Lack of emotional intelligence
Here are 10 traits of bad leadership:
#1: Bad leaders lack empathy
Lacking empathy is a sign of bad leadership because it shows a clear disconnect between the leader and their team members. Empathy involves understanding and respecting others’ feelings, and it creates a sense of trust and mutual respect.
Without empathy, leaders will often neglect the feelings and perspectives of others. This has significant consequences, including:
Miscommunication: If leaders cannot empathize and understand context in relationships with team members, they are unlikely to be on the same page — resulting in miscommunication and misunderstandings.
Mistrust: If empathy builds trust and rapport, a lack of it causes distrust and risks damaging relationships.
Lower commitment: Employees are more committed when they feel heard and respected. Lacking empathy can leave employees feeling undervalued and misunderstood, which can decrease their commitment level.
Disengaged employees: Empathy shows employees that you care about them and their feelings, so a lack of it can lower morale and focus.
#2: Bad leaders micromanage
Micromanagement is another characteristic of bad leadership because it stunts creativity, adds stress, and shows your team members that you don’t trust their abilities. A leader who micromanages struggles to delegate tasks and wastes resources by focusing too much on the minutiae.
An unwillingness to forfeit control to your team members can have serious effects on you, your employees, and the company, including:
Stagnant operations: Micromanagement kills innovation and restricts the employee’s desire to explore, which can leave you with inefficient and outdated business processes.
Higher turnover: Many employees want autonomy, especially as they gain more experience within a field. If you’re micromanaging, you’re more likely to push good employees away.
Resentment: Team members who do not feel valued or trusted are likely to resent management, which can decrease productivity, commitment and job satisfaction.
#3: Bad leaders communicate poorly
Poor communication plagues most ineffective leaders. Lacking strong communication skills creates major friction between leaders and team members. This common trait of bad leadership manifests in myriad ways, including passive-aggressive communication, failure to listen to feedback, and even radio silence when transparent leadership communication is needed the most. A leader who cannot communicate effectively risks bottlenecks, mistakes and serious harm to the company culture.
A few common consequences of poor communication include:
Misunderstandings: Leadership is about guiding team members towards a shared goal, but if you cannot communicate that goal effectively, they cannot work toward it.
Added stress: Confusion stresses your team members, impacting their engagement and productivity.
Lack of commitment: Employees with clear goals are 3.6 times more committed. If you cannot communicate objectives to your employees, they are going to be less committed.
Conflicts: Like any relationship, poor communication can lead to conflict and dissatisfaction.
#4: Bad leaders are egotistical
Ego — not confidence — is a bright red flag for bad leadership. Prioritizing your own interests and viewpoints over your team members can alienate employees and lead to poor decisions without context or perspective.
There are many ways ego and self-interest can stunt an organization’s progress, including:
Shut down inclusivity: Diversity and unique perspectives are important team values, and egotistical leaders shut out any competing ideas that differ from their own.
Curtail collaboration: Collaborative workplaces are breeding grounds for success and innovation, but leaders who are unwilling to hear other perspectives discourage others from contributing.
Break trust: Self-interested motives and decision-making can lead other team members to feel like you don’t trust or value their perspectives.
#5: Bad leaders resist change
Resisting change can be another indication of bad leadership. Whether it’s a reluctance to adopt new and improved technology or ignoring an outdated business process, resisting change can impede progress and leave you behind the curve within your market and industry.
The effects of this poor leadership characteristic include:
Inefficiencies: Change is a hallmark of progress, so if your leadership habits are hindering change, it’s likely leading to bottlenecks and inefficiencies within your organization.
Frustrated employees: Organizations should want their employees to bring new, progressive ideas to the table, but if leadership is unwilling to change, those employees may become frustrated and disengaged.
Lost competitive advantage: Innovation and adaptability are what help businesses evolve and grow. Resisting change can lead to missed opportunities and declining market share.
#6: Bad leaders lack vision or direction
A lack of vision or direction is another example of bad leadership. Leaders, by definition, are meant to guide teams — setting their overarching vision and direction. When leaders lack clear vision, it leads to conflicts and stunts progress.
Some of the main consequences of leaders without vision/direction include:
Confusion and uncertainty: Without vision or direction, teams may feel disconnected and unsure if they are meeting expectations.
Lack of purpose: People are often motivated by the larger vision and purpose of their role. If that purpose is not clear, it can demotivate your team.
Wasted resources: Without a defined goal or vision, team members may waste time, money and other resources on projects that don’t align with the company’s direction.
#7: Bad leaders have a negative mindset
Bad leaders will often fixate on problems, failures and mistakes instead of acknowledging and rewarding successes. This negative mindset can feed a toxic work environment that hurts performance and employee satisfaction.
Negative leaders can impact the organization in many ways, including:
Low employee morale: If you are always focused on the negative, your team members are less likely to feel valued and seen.
Employees afraid to speak up: When employees feel like their actions are under constant scrutiny, they have less incentive to speak up or innovate.
Increased turnover: People work for people, so if they are not feeling valued and are afraid to share their ideas, they are more likely to look for other employment.
#8: Bad leaders are inconsistent
Inconsistency is another common sign of bad leadership. An inconsistent leader is unpredictable and makes erratic decisions, sets unrealistic expectations, and struggles to communicate clearly.
Inconsistent leadership can result in:
Lower productivity: Constantly shifting goals and expectations make it hard for team members to prioritize their activities efficiently, which hurts productivity.
Elevated stress: Imagine working for someone who is constantly moving the goalposts and making impulsive or sudden changes. This type of bad leadership makes teams walk on eggshells.
Lack of unity: Great leaders can unite teams and encourage collaboration, but inconsistent leaders do not allow for the same level of cohesiveness in a group.
#9: Bad leaders lack transparency
This is one of the most alarming signs of bad leadership. Why? Because a leader who lacks transparency can appear dishonest, which risks undermining the trust of the entire team.
A lack of transparency in your leadership style could result in:
Distrust: Great relationships are rooted in trust, so without it, collaboration, communication and commitment can break down.
Uncertainty: If leaders are not upfront and honest, it can lead to uncertainty and instability in your team members. This feeling can distract and demotivate employees.
Lower engagement: A lack of transparency can hide the “why” or purpose behind activities — and without it, employees are less likely to engage with their roles.
#10: Bad leaders are indecisive
Decisiveness is often considered a characteristic of a strong leader, so indecisiveness can have adverse effects. Leaders who are indecisive, or even slow to act, paralyze organizational progress. Decisiveness is more than just making a decision — it requires collecting and comprehending relevant information — and then making the best choice for the organization. An indecisive leader will overcomplicate and stall that process.
The quality of bad leadership can lead to:
Bottlenecks: When a leader fails to make a decision, a project can stall, causing a ripple effect of delays throughout the organization.
Wasted resources: Time is one of your organization’s most valuable resources, and wasting it with indecisiveness has direct effects on your bottom line. The costs of delays and the opportunity costs add up quickly.
Waning confidence: If you’re a leader with a reputation for indecisiveness, you may see your team’s confidence begin to waiver. Employees look to leaders for guidance and direction, and indecisiveness can cause employees to lose faith in your ability to lead.
See Qualities of Poor Character and Leadership for a printable version of the above content.
There is much to be learned from this SIMPPLR post that can be fruitfully applied to voting for elected leaders. True patriots — even those who are not in business — would do well to study the excerpts above of the full SIMPPLR blog post frequently and use these principles to evaluate their personal character/leadership qualities and the character/leadership qualities of elected officials between election cycles. Readers who are inclined to political activism would also do well to share these principles with other activists and use them as guide for recruiting candidates for office.
How to Avoid Falling for Politicians’ Lies
It is always good to pay close attention to the things politicians say but it is especially important during election seasons when politicians have greater incentives to lie: When people vote for politicians who lie, they waste their vote.
Paying close attention requires doing the following intellectual work:
Evaluate the things they say and do to determine their character.
Don’t assume that everything a politician says is true.
Assume that politicians will tell lies to get elected.
Investigate to verify or disprove what politicians say.
Cross-reference multiple sources:
Compare information from different reputable news outlets and fact-checkers.
Look for consensus among multiple independent sources.
Check for context:
Consider the full context of politicians’ statements.
Look at the complete speech or interview to understand the broader message.
Be aware of your own biases to believe or reject what politicians say:
Research evidence and data that confirms or denies politicians’ statements:
Seek out statistical information, research studies, or expert opinions that support or refute claims.
Be cautious of politicians who cherry-pick data or quote statistics out of context.
Look at the politician's history of truthfulness and consistency in their statements.
Closely evaluate conspiracy theories and oversimplified solutions to complex problems.
Identify common, illogical, abusive, strategies politicians use to attack opponents and media who challenge their lies.
Disqualify anything they say that appeals to emotions and existential fears.
Discount politicians’ they make if they don’t back up claims with facts.
Seek opinions from experts and academics.
Reject politicians who reference their religious faith or religious concepts because they are appealing to your emotions — not intellect.
Of course it takes time to do this intellectual work. Furthermore, being a patriotic American does not require that voters do such work. But, sincere patriots will do this work for their own peace of mind and the well being of their fellow Americans.
Failure to do the work of discovering truth is a concession to liars who are energized by personal motives and to those lazy Americans who are not willing to exercise their minds so they can vote for the best possible elected officials.
Conclusions
America will achieve the principles found in the Preamble to the Constitution only when voters make a conscious effort to observe and judge politicians’ character.
The American electorates’ negative feelings about politicians are not much in play when the time comes to vote. But, this is how politics works in America and this is the way it will always be until voters recognize that politicians with poor character are destroying American democracy and that voters are the only people with power to remove those politicians from office and replace them with politicians with good character.
Politicians do not self-regulate themselves or their colleagues because they all want to stay in office as long as they can. The only way to check unlimited drive for money and influence is to vote for candidates with good character.
True patriots do the hard, intellectual work of judging the character of politicians who run for office and the people who support them.
The only way to stem the decline of American democracy is to educate American voters about what it means to be a true patriot.
Education of American voters is not just a responsibility for institutions. Media and individual voters must acknowledge that education about character of citizens and politicians is a matter of true patriotism.
Resources for Further Study
Part of this voters' guide also appear in the Substack post "A lie told often enough becomes the truth".
See How to Avoid Falling for Politicians’ Lies for a printable version of the document.
See Voters' Guide to Choosing Elected Leaders with Good Character for a printable version of the guide.
See Qualities of Poor Character and Leadership for a printable version of the document.
See Open Secrets: Your Home for Money in Politics for statistics about politicians, lobbyists and elections.
Other Websites Authored by Paul Borene
Confronting Christian Nationalism .. Kinder, gentler strategies for achieving diversity, equity, inclusion and social unity
Make the World Better: Love Your Neighbor .. God's timeless, universal strategy for diversity, equity, inclusion, gun control, political division, religious division, immigration, war, poverty, crime, climate change, and all other human conflicts.