Charles Bernard Rangel and ethics
In terms of the ethical issue in politics, there are a lot of cases, when a Congressman is expelled, reprimanded, censured, or excluded for a violation or multiple ethic violations. One of the most vivid examples is Charles Bernard Rangel, who managed to stay in the governmental structure of the USA from 1971 to 2017. In 2010 he was censured for violating the ethics and other crimes of the similar character, though he never admitted his fault. Even now, he still rejects all the acquisitions. The main matters of concern are his unregistered income and using the official privileges in his personal needs. In particular (this can also be called one of the most widely-spread reason), Rangel was censured for inappropriate expenditures of governmental funds for his own needs, renting apartments for prices lower than market ones, and unregistered assets together with tax avoidance. It is also noteworthy, that he was accused of using the free parking lot of the House of Representatives without putting this expenditure in his tax declaration, but later this acquisition was withdrawn.
Anyway, the problem of ethics violation is deeper, than simply an issue of the rank abuse. Ethical penalties strongly influence the level of belief, which people give to a Congressman. Being a representative of a state in Congress is a hard and very responsible work. People let the representative be their voice and point of view. When any Congressman breaks ethical rules or commits harder crimes, he or she betrays the given confidence and violates the governmental system, which also gives a certain kind of devotion its servant. A person, who takes a chance to be empowered or endowed with certain possibilities, is at the same time seduced by the privileges he has, as a representative of people in a governmental institution. It is closely connected with the Congress of the US and its politicians in particular and the political system of the country in general. On the other hand, it is possible and necessary to penalize the people of power, probably even more severe than ordinary citizens. If one is endowed with privlelgies and authority, he is supposed to be a modest and deserving person, which absolutely contradicts any kind of violations (Rangel & Wynter, 2012).
Third party candidates and their lack of success
Another interesting aspect of the US politics is the two-party system of the government. The fact is that, the Democrats and the Republicans are not alone in the governmental system and the election run, whenever it takes place. There are always third parties and their candidates, who have the same rights for voting and being elected, but who can hardly win the race. Surely, there also should be certain reasons for such differentiation.
Among the most logical reasons, it is possible to mention historical and social ones. In the evolution of the country, the Republicans and the Democrats have won much authority and power, due to being the only two parties from the foundation of the country after the Revolutionary War in 1783. Together with the development, people got used to creating a choice of a certain kind in every aspect of life. The presidential election now is the same field, where there should be a choice, and there is a choice of two most powerful parties and the third ones. Nevertheless, third party candidates are less successful, as from the historical point of view, people are likely to choose those, who have enough strength and power for changes and support, which is inevitably one of the biggest: either the Democrats or the Republicans. Speaking of the social aspect, it is logical to state, that the vision of the citizens is well shaped by the media in all their variety. Here, the law of choice is rather straightforward and people tend to choose those, who are well announced and advertised; those, who are larger than the others; those, who have more broadcast time. Thus, the Democratic and the Republican parties again seem to be the best decision for the president election, unlike less famous and discussed third party candidates (Aarts, Blais, & Schmitt, 2015).
State and Federal authorities in the USA
The most discussed issue in the current politics is the cooperation and difference between State and Federal authorities. This controversy has been acute for years and does not lose its positions now, and it seems to be true. The Federal authority now has more power, than it is needs. Politicians and specialists in the field say that there is a certain difference in the level of response and power between the two sides of authority, which finally leads to the difference in funding. In other words, instead of supporting and uniting the States, the Federal government separates them, threatening them in different ways. This problem concerns not only the consuming side of the Federal authority, but also the question of bribery, where the Federal government is capable of giving pressure to the States, again, due to larger funding and the higher level of power. Nevertheless, concerning the current situation, there are still cases when the two sides of authorities are capable of cooperation and it ends up in a considerable win for the whole country.
For example, in January, 2017 the cooperation of the federal, the state and the local authorities in Texas led to the arrest of fifteen drug traffickers and the seizure of “22 kilograms of methamphetamine, four kilograms of cocaine, and over $91,000 in U.S. currency.” (“Federal and State Authorities Arrest 21 Individuals Based on San Antonio Federal Drug Trafficking Indictment”, 2017). It may become a simple, but quite a vivid example of how cooperation and collaboration of different authority levels can lead to a success.
References
Aarts, C., Blais, A., & Schmitt, H. (2015). Political leaders and democratic elections. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Federal and State Authorities Arrest 21 Individuals Based on San Antonio Federal Drug Trafficking Indictment. (2017). Web.
Rangel, C. & Wynter, L. (2011). And I haven’t had a bad day since: From the streets of Harlem to the halls of Congress (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Griffin.