Political hot takes

There’s a girl I follow on TikTok who frequently posts short videos in a series called “hot takes.” She starts these videos by saying, “I have had exactly one glass of wine, and here are my thoughts on life.” 

She then proceeds to give her audience her thoughts on life. Today, I’d like to do something similar. 

Although I have not had a glass of wine, I am caffeinated. Although not even remotely close to the same thing, readers will still get my point. Instead of giving my thoughts on life, I’ll give my thoughts on a specific topic – the government. 

Now keep in mind, these are my opinions, not facts. I have and always will readily give all of my opinions on agriculture to anyone who asks.

My general political opinion, however, I usually keep to myself. Not because I necessarily disagree with most of the people in my life – I usually agree with them – but because I don’t see a point in harping on a broken system I cannot fix. 

I care about political issues, and I stay up to date on them, but a person won’t find me thinking about these issues so hard my brain hurts at the end of the day. In other words, I don’t like to be in a bad mood, and most of the time, when people talk about politics, they usually end up in a bad mood. 

However, I’m feeling particularly froggy today, so I’ll jump – just this once.

I have had exactly one cup of coffee on this fine morning, and here are my thoughts on the U.S. government. 

Starting today, I will only vote for someone if they pass my “do I want to see them in the Oval Office” test. This may sound ridiculous, but every big-name politician has to start somewhere.

 If they have success in the lesser populated, murky waters of whatever town they are from, they could one day go on to live in “The Swamp.” So, before I vote for my next state representative, I’m going to ask myself if I would like to see them as president one day. If the answer is no, I won’t vote for that person. 

What happens to politicians to make them so corrupt? I want to know. Did high-up politicians take bribes or cover up scandals when they were running for city council or school board in their small hometowns? 

Furthermore, what made them want to run for these smaller, yet still important, positions? Did they always have a senator or secretary position in mind? Or did they start their political career because they wanted to fix an issue smaller than federal taxes?

I don’t think many bills will get passed in the next few years. Democratic President, Democratic Senate, Republican House.

Unless the bill is “don’t kill puppies in cold blood,” I don’t see how any bills will become laws until the next election. And, even if the Puppy Bill (hypothetical) did pass, there would still be endless debate over it.  

I don’t think Biden nor Trump will be elected in 2024. Sorry to the Trumpers and the Bidenites, but I will be incredibly shocked if one of these two men get elected. Based on both of their images in the press alone, I just don’t see a world where either of these two men are calling the shots ever again. 

I think military experience should be a requirement for all presidential candidates. No offense to many politicians out there with their eyes set on the White House, but if someone is to be commander and chief of our U.S. Military, wouldn’t it make sense for them to have served in the military?

I mean, I wouldn’t want Joe Blow to manage my cow herd just because he’s a titan of business. I wouldn’t expect to be hired on as the editor of a magazine had I not been a reporter first. I don’t trust a career politician to be the person pushing the red button to drop a nuke on Russia if they don’t know what it’s like to be on the battlefield. It just makes no sense. 

Finally, my last thought and question – how can we trust a House of Representatives who took 15 rounds of voting to elect a speaker, to not only represent us as Americans but do the best thing for us? 

I saw footage from their sessions, I saw what was reported online, and personally, I don’t believe they care about anything more than themselves and subsequent power.