Do They Rule?...or Represent?

Secretary of State (and erstwhile Senator) John Kerry, speaking at a forum in Turkey, tried to reassure the Syrian insurgents of increased US support because NOW the President had a mandate.

HOW I HATE THAT WORD - MANDATE!

Just because you get elected doesn't mean we citizens are offering pre-approval for any and all actions.

No President, nor any elected American official, can suppose that they have pre-approval for anything. They have been entrusted with a leadership role that is subject to the checks and balances inherent in the Constitution. No election result can trump that, not even a win as overwhelming as Nixon's in 1972.

And President Obama hardly received an overwhelming majority last November. So, what did he receive? A 51.1% portion of the 126 million votes cast, or about 63 million votes. But wait, another 93 million registered voters voted not to vote in that election. Whatever the reason for their absence, they are still Americans, even though their enthusiasm for, or against, either candidate kept them away from the booths. If we include these non-Obama voters, he now enjoys a 29.5% 'majority' of the electorate. But having a mandate assumes that the votes for the President were actually FOR him and not AGAINST his opponent, so this fact distances the Administration even further from anything close to whelming.

NOT A MANDATE.

The point I'm trying to emphasize has nothing to do with the President's credentials or the legitimacy of his election, he won fair and square. I am just sickened that another intelligent, seasoned politician can be so out of touch with the hearts and minds of Americans that he can translate an election win into some kind of worshipful free ticket to go and do whatever they feel. It stinks of the same ignorance as Romney's "one-percenter" quote from his campaign that so greatly damaged his chances.

I look forward to a day when politicians stand up and TRULY declare that they feel the burden of responsibility that their election to office thrust upon them. That they do not sense a mandate but instead feel indebted for the opportunity. That they owe all voters, whether they voted for or against their election, their utmost leadership, honesty, and diligence. That they understand that they do not RULE... they REPRESENT.