The Parlay

How is it that men with the charisma of bird droppings on a hot tin roof get multi-million-dollar contributor contracts on major news outlets simply because they were a one or two term senator or member of Congress? How is it that even before they’ve finished out their term, the contracts are penned and signed, bonuses deposited in bank accounts, and suits picked out at the local tailor?

One question that few seem to ask is, does their new job influence or shape their worldview in any way? Does the fact that they are about to be employed by a corporation at odds with the current administration compel them to frame their narrative? These are questions I’ve been wrestling with of late, seeing the glut of former senators and congressmen who have become television personalities, and some who have gone on to sit on boards of multinational corporations, having no other talent than having been in government, briefly.

 It used to be that able, driven men got into politics because they wanted to serve the nation largely responsible for their good fortune. To them, being born into this land of plenty was blessing enough, and if by tenacity, foresight, work ethic, or one moment of brilliance they turned into a means of generating income they managed to succeed, they felt they owed the country, and desired to give back.

For the most part, that sort of mindset is dead and buried. I’m not saying there aren’t exceptions, I’m not saying there aren’t individuals who stand head and shoulders above the panderers, the lickspittles, and those whose only desire is to use their time in elected office to parlay it into a career once they’re done. It’s because they are so rare that such people stand out. It is because such a mindset is commendable that such individuals so readily garner the esteem and admiration of their fellow man that you can pick them out from a distance.

Generally speaking, if things were still how they used to be perhaps those in government would be about the people's business rather than trying to position themselves for a job once their term was done. There is something insidious about using one's time in government, getting paid by taxpayer money, all the while working against the selfsame taxpayer who is financing your current lifestyle to garner yourself a future employer.

Do you honestly believe that any rational, sane human being would champion being invaded by citizens of other nations if there was nothing in it for them? Do you really think that the whole push for open borders and cheap labor is just empathy on display from people who would otherwise harvest organs from their own grandmothers if there was a dime in it for them?

The bleeding heart and a handful of useful idiots are what these vultures use as a distraction while filling their wallets and garnering the goodwill of influential individuals they hope will employ them once their term in office is concluded.

If a majority of those in government are there for self-serving purposes, then their own wants will consistently be prioritized over what is best for those who elected them into office. That is a recipe for disaster and a sure path toward ruination. 

With love in Christ,

Michael Boldea Jr.