Charlie Daniels is a legendary American singer, song writer, guitarist, and fiddler famous for his contributions to country and southern rock music.

This past week, watching the congressional hearings on television, it came home to me just how really messed up our legislative branch is.

For some, the hearings had little to do with ferreting out wrongdoing in the FBI and everything to do with partisan politics as time after time, party hacks broke into the proceedings, citing parliamentary procedure and arcane house rules to delay, distract and disrupt, trying to take the pressure off Peter Strzok.

It’s maddening that our politicians value their parties above the rights and well-being of the American people, that they would try to hinder the finding of facts and defend a man whose obvious, rabid bias disqualifies him from handling sensitive investigations into the crimes and misdemeanors of both major political parties.

What better way to judge a person than the words that come out of their mouths, and the words that came out of Strzok’s mouth were vitriolic and inflammatory and foreshadowed dark schemes and hidden conspiracies that suggested that he would be involved in devious undertakings and underhanded attempts to override the will of the people if necessary to prevent a duly nominated presidential candidate from being elected.

The only important thing here is “did he” or “didn’t he,” not the syrupy declarations of some of the Democrats. Congressman Cohen of Tennessee even asserted that he would like to give Strzok a Purple Heart, much to the dismay and consternation of those who have served in the military.

The object of these hearings should be the guilt or innocence of the persons being investigated, a concerted effort by both parties to root out the guilty or vindicate the innocent, not the coming together of some entrenched fraternal order that circles the wagons predicated on the interests of political power and not the protection of the nation and its people.

It’s no wonder Congress never gets anything done. The polarization and partisanship has grown to the point that there are literally those in both houses that would actually stand by and see harm done to the people they are sworn to serve rather than give the opposing party credit for a win.

The situation has grown completely unmanageable, and it is no longer possible to just “drain the swamp.” The swamp needs an urban renewal project. It definitely needs to be drained, but it needs to be covered over and filled in by the dissolution of old power cartels, the elimination of entrenched enclaves who control the purse strings and committee appointments and uses them as threats to hold over the heads of incoming members to make them toe the party line.

The “sit down and shut up and vote the way we tell you or there’ll be no reelection funds or meaningful committee appointments” cudgel needs to be removed from the power-hungry, professional politician’s arsenal. In fact, they should be removed themselves, by doing what our founders and forefathers so obviously meant for us to do in the first place.

That is, they should serve a couple of terms and go home, and instead allow someone fresh off the streets or country roads, who knows the current needs and priorities of the public, to come in with a fresh perspective and unhindered by long-entrenched party bosses and the siren call of a thirty-year career in politics actually do what they were elected to do and serve the people who sent them there.

A president can serve for two four-year teams, for a maximum of eight years (a vice president’s potential to serve a possible 10 years as president being an outlier here, of course). Why should a congressman do any different?

Why not two four-year terms for senators and four two-year terms for representatives?

The mission is to serve, not to enrich or empower.

The situation is dire, the power is seductive, and the circus goes its merry downhill way, dragging the nation right along with it.

What do you think?

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

God Bless America

— Charlie Daniels

Charlie Daniels is a legendary American singer, song writer, guitarist, and fiddler famous for his contributions to country and southern rock music. Daniels has been active as a singer since the early 1950s. He was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry on January 24, 2008.

DONATE