Let’s take a step back from the daily grief and grind of national politics and ask two broader questions: Who (if anyone) in national political life these days offers an upbeat, aspirational, unifying message, free of anger and rancor? And what is that message — or, if it hasn’t been evident, then what should that message be?
The question arises because that brand of politics seems in exceedingly short supply. For those of us on the Right, who grew up with the politics of Ronald Reagan and Jack Kemp, or those a bit older on the Left who were motivated by Hubert Humphrey, appeals to “better angels” were the essence of motivational politics. Reagan’s “city on a hill” was a trope but heartfelt and welcoming, and he called on us to “dream heroic dreams.”
Kemp, meanwhile, was an almost radically upbeat force of nature who spoke of “breathtaking opportunity” and who insisted that “the purpose of a great party is not to defeat its opponents. The purpose of a great party is to provide superior leadership.” Irrepressibly optimistic and insistently inclusive of people from all walks of life, Kemp spent his post-football career preaching that Republicans “must be the party that unleashes the talents of every single American boy and girl and every child of God.”
This wasn’t just rhetoric. These sunny, buoyant attitudes were elemental to both Reagan and Kemp, parts of their very essence and souls. They could be tough and firm, but they always were more comfortable welcoming others in rather than casting them out, finding things to praise rather than demonize. They didn’t need to stoop to conquer; they hoped to elevate all so that all could win.
As it happens, on Nov. 19 the Jack Kemp Foundation will be holding a 10th Anniversary Celebration gala where it will again push what the late Kemp called the American Idea: “The Declaration of Independence applies to every individual; everyone should have the same opportunity to rise as high as their talents and efforts can carry them; and while people move ahead, we should endeavor to leave no one behind.”
The keynote speaker, Congressman Will Hurd of Texas, is one of the rare officials who embodies a positive answer to the first question asked in this column. Well known for energetically engaging with every hamlet in his very large Texas border district, Hurd’s air of approachable equanimity has earned him the descriptor of “a reasonable man in unreasonable times.”
Alas, at the young age of 42, he is already retiring from Congress. Unfortunately, there’s the rub: Those who embody the Reagan-Kemp spirit aren’t enough encouraged or rewarded for political participation. Yet, if we as a nation are to avoid being riven by noxious, irreparable discord, we need more like Hurd, who win by searching for common ground.
The second question which opened this column is even more difficult. When the public square is as toxic as today, how can it be altered into something broadly aspirational? And must the toxicity be purged, or can it just be transcended?
The answers aren’t obvious. The message should ever remain that of Reagan and Kemp, of opportunity and growth — but it apparently must be honed, polished, and sharpened for an evolving culture and constantly changing modes of communication.
This single column cannot adequately encapsulate the necessarily updated message. For now, though, let’s set out the challenge to reinvigorate the message and find multiple messengers for it. The city on the hill needs to shine once again.
