*Photo by Mari Helin on Unsplash

By Meredith Gardner

Inscribed over the main entrance of the Nebraska State Capitol building are these words: “The salvation of the state is watchfulness in the citizen.” This quote, coined by Nebraska Philosophy Professor Hartley Burr Alexander, is a solemn reminder that the responsibility for safeguarding our representative democracy does not lie solely in the hands of those who work within our government edifices. Instead, it is up to those who elected our public servants -- all of us -- to ensure that our democratic institutions and principles are protected.

The redacted version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s “Report on the Investigation into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election” has been out for a week now, and while the report is more than 400 pages long, there has already been plenty of spin -- and also plenty of silence -- from our political leaders on what the report actually contains. Faced with the task of reading a legal tome, it can be easier for us to fall back on the analysis and opinions readily available on social media and cable news. However, it is imperative that we take whatever time we can to study what is likely to be the most consequential government report in decades.

The full report is available for free on the U.S. Department of Justice website, and most major news organizations -- including NPR and NBC News -- have offered free “highlights” of the report along with legal commentary. Major newspapers like The New York Times and The Washington Post have also offered full versions of the redacted Mueller report along with special features, such as annotations and search capabilities, behind their paywall structures. If you would like a hard copy of the report itself, you can purchase one from book sellers for as little as $7-$10 by the end of April.

Whatever format you choose to read, challenge yourself to do so with a nonpartisan lens. Last month the PBS NewsHour published an article titled, “You may not believe the Mueller Report no matter what it says.” In the article, psychologists and and neuroscientists explain how “partisanship creates blind spots in your mind — regardless of your political party,” and “that most people prefer (and potentially have always preferred throughout history) their partisan leanings over weighing things objectively.” At times such as this, it is imperative that we become earnest seekers of truth and that we unite behind our shared identity as Americans. Our duty to safeguard our institutions and demand ethical behavior should not be limited by own own party affiliation or political views. We should avoid the temptation to simply affirm our preconceived notions about what the report contains. Instead, we should strive to objectively look at what the special counsel investigation found. Then we can begin a conversation about whether those behaviors should be acceptable and what we can do as a nation to prevent any unacceptable behavior from happening again.

As citizens, it is not in our interest to remain uninformed. Political discourse and action are driven by the priorities of constituents. As constituents armed with the facts of the Mueller report, we can hold our leaders accountable and require them to uphold their oaths of office, to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” We should be asking our senators and representatives if they have read the report or if they, too, have fallen into the trap of relying on political commentary and partisan talking points. We should also be asking what they have done or will do to ensure that our country is protected from future election interference and unethical behavior. The “salvation” of our great nation is truly under our purview. It’s time for us to shed any partisan labels in favor of facts and truth.