The Great Anti-Incumbent Movement has begun. Rand Paul and Joe Sestak are the face of the Movement so far, but you can bet that there will be more to come in November’s mid-term elections. Paul and Sestak’s qualifications aside, the masses have spoken and they have decided in favor of the outsiders.
Depending on who you ask, either the Establishment has been put on notice or this is about nothing larger than the particular candidates in the particular elections that were held this week. I think it is something less than the former but far more than the latter.
So if this really is the beginning of a sustained anti-incumbent movement, the question remains: is that a good thing?
On the one hand, our representatives in Washington have been corrupt, inept, backbiting, elitists who put their party’s political gains above their constituents, their consciences, and their ideals for decades. On the other hand, who’s to say that this wave of supposed ‘outsiders’ – wealthy lawyers, political legacies, and shrewd businessmen – are going to be any better? Who could even say that we know for sure that they won’t be worse?
For all the faults of our current representatives, maybe they know how to navigate the system for the good of their constituents better than an idealistic new comer with no political connections or experience in the Federal bureaucracy. Then again, maybe the only way that we can fix what is almost universally recognized as a broken system (consider the congressional approval rating) is to get rid of the career politicians currently running things and replace them with outsiders who are not willing to continue with business as usual.
I’m not given to a mob mentality, but something about this ‘throw the bums out’ attitude resonates with me. While I’m unconvinced that the next bunch of rich white guys is truly better than our current bunch of rich white guys, I’m not sure they could be much worse. Maybe this is a movement whose time has come.
If so, then I’m going on record as fully supporting The Great Anti-Incumbent Movement of 2010. If not, well, at least I’m in good company.
