I cannot vote in your election though close relatives can. But it seems to me that this election is one of the most important ever. So what advice would you give my relatives as to the most important issues in this election?
From my European perspective, the following seems most pertinent. But I would be interested to learn what Americans think are the key issues:
1) POLITICAL PARTISANSHIP threatens to split the country and even provoke a civil war - much to the delight of America's rivals. So what candidate can best unite America and reconcile those on both sides? How can personality politics, abortion obsessions, lies about election fraud, and 'plan-demics' be put into proper perspective?
2) AMERICAN PROSPERITY AND POWER ARE UNEQUALLY SHARED - Your super-rich grows richer while those at the bottom struggle with high prices, debt, a lack of proper health care, and educational disparities. Social mobility continues to decline and various voices among the superrich are too loud while those of the people can hardly be heard. Seething resentment is dismissed as socialism but this just feeds the underlying discontent.
3) PUBLIC DEBT levels are at a record high and this is becoming unsustainable. The political culture seems to disallow the possibility of a balanced budget.
As a non-citizen, you have some interesting observations about the American political system and some of the myriad of problems in our current situation. Since you don't mention if your relatives for whom you inquire are Christian, I'll assume since you are asking in this Christian forum that they are. With that said, I'll give you the readers version of my thoughts on Christians and politics in general and try to address your specific issues separately. First, as to how Christians should view politics and political matters in today's highly charged partisan and confrontational environment, we should always look first at what Christ said on the matter. When it comes to politics, it's relative simple. I can find only one reference where Christ even addressed the subject. It was when He was asked about whether Jewish people should pay tribute (or taxes) to Caesar. We read that Christ knew it was a trap but He answered in Mark 12:17 with the oft quoted “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” So, Christ Himself refused to get into political debate and instead pointed out that we should leave political matters (such as taxes) to the politicians and that His mission (and presumably ours) is those things which are Gods. Christ never got Himself embroiled in political controversy. I think as Christians, we should follow Christ's lead and not let ourselves get involved in partisan political matters unless they directly affect our ability to worship God and do His will. Think of it this way. As a Christian, our main objective should be to do God's will and to share God's word with others. In today's hyper-partisan political arena, where the country is pretty evenly split between opposing views on just about everything, if we as Christians openly espouse views on either side, we risk damaging our Christian testimony with those of opposite beliefs. So, what is more important, stating some controversial political opinion or keeping our reputation clear of such things in order that no one can refuse to hear our Christian testimony because of them? That said, I will nonetheless attempt to give my personal opinion to your specific concerns. First, when you ask about partisanship and which candidate can best unite the country and reconcile the parties. I wish I had the answer to that one! I don't think that's feasible in the current environment, so might I suggest an alternate way of looking at the question. Since no matter who wins, the other side is still going to be overly dramatically adversarial, i would suggest listening to the candidates and choose the ones who are least likely to fan the flames any further. As for putting into proper perspective things such as lies, obsessions with certain issues and personality politics, I believe their proper prospective for a Christian is that they are all distractions from the real issues facing our daily lives and I would suggest voting for those candidates who are least involved in propagating them. As for wealth inequality, that's just a natural evolution of the greed that has plagued mankind from the very start and no politician will ever be able to address it. Our capitalistic economic system encourages personal wealth accumulation and those who have the wealth have the influence, so as Christians, I believe we should simply use what resources we are given with thanks to God and if someday things do change so that we have more, we should remember that Christ said, "To whom much is given, much will be required." As to the budget and the debt, under the last administration the national debt increased around $7 to $8 Trillion (depending on whose numbers you read) for an increase of around 33% and the current administration has added around $2.5 Trillion to date or around 8.8%. So, while the increase has slowed considerably, it's still a major issue that we must address. I would personally suggest, on this issue alone, if the Presidential candidates are the past two Presidents, then I would rely on past performance. I hope this has been some help or at least provided another perspective for you.
