Integrity demands courage. And sometimes sacrifice.
That thought comes to mind while considering the actions of The Honorable John A. Boehner, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Here’s why:
It has been reported that Mr. Boehner stated privately that he opposed the most extreme positions and demands of the rascally House Tea Party gang. Yet he has fronted for the group for fear he would lose the speakership if he didn’t. Worse, he is reported to have told friends he opposed the recent and damaging government shutdown. Nonetheless he went along with the scheme—probably for the same reason.
It’s vitally important to note we can’t know if those supposedly reliable reports of the Speaker’s private utterings and state of mind are correct. We can’t know peoples’ motives unless they confess them.
And if the reports about the Speaker are wrong, the man has been maligned.
If the reports are accurate, Mr. Boehner appears week, as many contend. You can also argue he is unethical.
Why unethical?
Because ethical persons are true to themselves. They choose to do what they believe is right because it is right. They are steadfast and willing to suffer the consequences of their decisions.
The ethical person might well discover there’s truth in the saying, “No good deed goes unpunished.”
Had the Honorable John A. Boehner publically declared he would not go along with the Tea Partiers’ troublesome demands, he would have shaken the GOP. He might have been forced to resign the speakership. He might have risked being voted out of office in the coming election.
Or—he might have restored the public’s faith in his party and in government. He might have found himself lionized as a political hero and model of integrity.
We can only guess at the consequences. But at the least, Mr. Boehner would have been true to himself. And that knowledge is priceless.
If national leaders like Speaker Boehner and members of the U.S. House and Senate are to serve the public honorably, they should honestly determine their primary allegiance. Is it to the nation, or to their constituents, or their party?
Philip Patterson and Lee Wilkins, authors of the text, Media Ethics: Issues and Cases point out:
“Contemporary professional ethics revolves around these questions:
“What duties do I have, and to whom do I owe them? And what values are reflected by the duties I’ve assumed?”
To many the answer to the first question is crystal clear. National leaders must act for the good of the nation first. All else is secondary.
To many it appears Mr. Boehner acted for his party and constituents first and, despite his public oratory, he disregarded the welfare of the nation.
In the Declaration of Independence, the founders of our nation called on “…the Supreme Judge of the world…” to witness “the rectitude of our intentions.”
It would be blasphemous if many in today’s Congress did that.
----Gus Gribbin
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