Organizations Follow the Leader

My wife, Nancy, has pointed out to me that people in about any organization adopt the attitudes and policies of the leader. This is especially true about the government where prominent people in executive positions are in those positions by political appointment—they are appointed because the absolutely agree with the views of the leader; and they frequently are where they are because they are “yes men.” They can be trusted not to make waves.

Such is the condition of the executive branch of our government. It seems perfectly obvious to anyone that the President’s attitudes toward conservative groups have filtered down to the lower level bureaucrats in the IRS, the EPA, the DHS, the Defense Department, and the Department of Health and Human Services.

President Obama has made precious little effort to take into consideration the views of his political adversaries; and he seems bent on castigating them at every opportunity. His henchmen in all the other government agencies are following suit. This policy began during the administration of Andrew Jackson; it took a brief respite in the administration of Abraham Lincoln; and it is now in full flower during the reign of Barack Obama. The policy of ignoring and disparaging political adversaries makes no room for constructive functioning of a loyal opposition.

The failure to listen to ideas from the right is bearing fruit in the widespread opposition to Obamacare. It now seems obvious that 27 states are not going to buy into the Medicaid bribe by the Federal Government offered by the “Affordable Care Act.”  In fact, House Republicans voted to repeal The Affordable Care Act two weeks ago.

In other areas such as gun control or immigration he either carries no weight or has a negative influence. Obama’s other forays into leadership, such as minimum wage and the common core curriculum are not popular either.  This is a president who has been unable to compromise, see other perspectives, and bring a cooperative group together to accomplish the needs of the nation. Hopefully, our next president will be able to lead our country into a bigger and better future.