Nelson’s Corner | October 2024

The swimming pool “promise” is attributed to Andrew Moore, a candidate for mayor of Erie. The attribution was hard to deny, as it was accompanied by a lovely photo of a lovely pool. The campaign promise was implicit and shamelessly manipulative.

The under-recognized truth is that neither Moore nor Hoover has or had the power to deliver chickens or pools, even if they wished to do so.

These kinds of false promises, aided by astonishing levels of citizen ignorance, have turned elections at all levels from exercises in civic responsibility into exercises in civic futility.

In a long-form article I wrote for Yellow Scene in 2022, I cited the following dismal statistics:

From a 2022 poll:

• 92% of Democrats believe that former president Trump threatened democracy with his post-election actions.
• 19% of Republicans believe that to be true.
• 61% of Republicans believe Trump won the 2020 election.
• 48% of Americans between 18-29 years old believe voting doesn’t matter.
• 34% of Americans are confident that major newspapers and television stations are accurate and fair.
• 7% get information from a major newspaper; 1% from a local paper.
• 58% of those polled believe our constitutional democracy no longer works.
• According to Pew Research, the United States ranks 32nd of 36 countries in terms of voter participation.

A mock exam conducted by The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation in 2018 revealed that two-thirds of Americans could not pass the United States Citizenship Test. Even worse, 81% of those under age 45 failed.

Sixty percent don’t know how many justices sit on the U.S. Supreme Court. Only 24% know why the colonists fought the British. And just for humor, 2% believe climate change caused the Cold War.
A more recent display of ignorance came via an MSNBC segment featuring Alex Wagner with a focus group of Pennsylvania union members.

When asked for a show of hands among the 40-50 group members, a single palm rose in response to, “How many of you know what the Dobbs decision was about?” No woman raised a hand.

Answer after answer from the crowd reflected inaccurate Trump campaign talking points: Trump is better on the border. Border crossings were higher under Trump. Harris caused inflation. Inflation is down under Biden-Harris. A great many comments were equivalent to Trump’s assertion about pet-eating Haitians: “I saw it on TV.”

When so many Americans have their heads under blankets of propaganda, it’s hard to get them to see the light.

As to chickens and swimming pools, the glaring absence of civic knowledge allows political campaigns to make promises that won’t be kept. This is not a partisan matter, as declarations of, “I will … ” are inherently dishonest, no matter the political affiliation of the declarer. In nearly every instance, the promiser hasn’t the capacity to effectuate the pledge, no matter the sincerity of belief.

Donald Trump will not build a wall or get Mexico to pay for it.

Joe Biden could not cancel most student debt.

J.D. Vance cannot and will not lift the middle class.

Kamala Harris will not expand tax credits or lower drug costs.

Donald Trump will not replace the Affordable Care Act.

Herbert Hoover had no chickens and …

Andrew Moore won’t build a swimming pool.

The kinds of civics education offered in (too few) schools touch on the three branches of government but are absent any useful contemporary context or nuance. Even those in the slim segment of the population who could pass a citizenship test have only a cursory knowledge of the sausage but no understanding at all of how the sausage is made.

In response to Elizabeth Willing Powel’s question: “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?,” Benjamin Franklin replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
These days he might answer, “A republic, if you deserve it.”

I’m not so sure we do.