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President’s Perspective -- Principle Over Partisanship

Political gridlock must end. It’s time for elected officials to put the needs of the people first.

I have been traveling the Commonwealth of Virginia during these first weeks of my presidency talking about the new slogan that I am launching for the upcoming year.  I am replacing the former VEA slogan, “Issue Driven, Party Blind” with “Principle over Partisanship.” I am using this phrase because, like Barack Obama and most of his supporters, I believe the time has come to start urging our elected leaders to change course and stop putting partisanship and petty party politics above principle and doing the right thing.

So, what exactly do I mean when I say that the time has come for us to put Principle over Partisanship? I am talking about getting back to the basics. Our elected leaders are responsible for creating policies and legislation that will improve the quality of life for their constituents—ALL of their constituents—not just the ones who can make big campaign contributions. Lobbyists who lavish expensive gifts and large campaign contributions on their legislators have managed to cheapen the process that our founding fathers had in mind when they drafted the Constitution. Politicians who care only about their next election are not serving the citizens of their respective districts well, and they should take pause and reconsider how they have been behaving.

It is a time for a change.

One of the reasons that I believe Barack Obama has been successful in inspiring so many people to take action and get involved in the political process is that we all recognize that the politics of the present are not serving us well. Obama has pointed out the urgent need for change. He has talked about broken promises and he has offered to set our country on a corrected course if we will just give him a chance. He believes that he can effect a meaningful change...and I hope that he will get a chance to do that.

Principle over Partisanship requires our elected leaders to take stock of how they have conducted themselves. They need to decide if they are interested in what is in the highest good of the people they were elected to serve, or if they are more interested in their own self-serving ends. Whatever they decide, the VEA will be taking note and taking names, and we are going to come out of this election cycle already geared up for the next state election which will be held in Virginia in November 2009.

At that time, we will elect a new group of executive officers—Governor, Lt. Governor, and Attorney General—along with all of the members of the House of Delegates. We will be keeping score, and this time there will be consequences for those who continue to play party politics instead of serving the citizens they were elected to represent. We will target those individuals who need to be sent home for good because they are not doing the job that needs to be done. We need leaders who can see beyond their next election. We need leaders who have the vision to plan for the next generation—and the generation after that. That is what our founding fathers did. That’s why, if our leaders aren’t doing their job, it becomes our job to oust them and elect those who will.

So, what exactly do I believe our elected leaders should be doing instead of constantly campaigning for their next election? They need to be making decisions that will have a positive, long-range effect on our state.

We desperately need improved roads and world-class schools that will graduate more and better prepared students. We need well-paid educators, and we need to provide school support staff a living wage. In short, we need public officials who are planning for our future...not just running for office.

I urge my VEA colleagues to join me in my efforts to call attention to our Principle over Partisanship movement. Start paying attention to what your legislator is doing and how he or she is voting. Please sign up to become a Cyberlobbyist at www.veanea.org/legislative. Participate in the process. We can make a difference—but it takes all of us working together for the common good, and it requires taking the time to participate in the process. Our collective future depends upon our efforts. The time has come and the time is now for the VEA to hold our elected officials accountable. Our students and the students of the future are depending upon it.