Although the prescient Founders provided a means, Article Five, to change America's two-hundred- and thirty-two-year old Constitution and democratic-liberal governance, the hard truths of political compromise, civility and Presidential leadership in ideology-driven public policy, are the stuff of 'greatness' in American civilization. Modern post-World War II social historians arguably credit President Lyndon Johnson's 1964 massive Federal government intervention and anti-poverty efforts to achieve a 'Great Society.' Others may cite President Richard Nixon's Federal intervention to protect the environment, assure clean air, drinking water and end housing discrimination. President Ronald Reagan's paradigm shift, looked to lessen government's regulatory role and instead to 'trickle down' market forces, for his resonating slogan "Let's Make America Great Again." In 2010, President Barack Obama's landmark achievement of the Affordable Care Act, provided health care coverage to over thirty million Americans. By 2017, President Donald Trump, trademarked MAGA and provided massive, deficit-ballooning, tax cuts to the ultra-wealthy, sought to repeal environmental protection, health care legislation, and auto-fuel standards; minimized the federal regulatory oversight role in air travel safety assessments; initiated trade tariffs and adopted anti-immigration, anti-refugees and anti-asylum-seeking measures. Whether at the individual self or nation level, the road to 'greatness', first either affirms or solemnly swears to the rule of law and truth telling.
A road trip by a team of investigative reporters revealed many deflections (rendered in free verse poetry) from America's quest for 'greatness: ' from the delusional dance of the anti-government discontents; tax avoiding corporations, billionaires and wannabe trillionaires-all protected by the world's mightiest military and judiciary; the discontented food-fighters, demanding non-discriminatory, plain language access to labels on what they eat or drink; the plundered low wage workers (many most likely undocumented) in liberal, blue cities-whose crie de coeur 'middle-up, ' highlighted the income disparities of the 'haves' and the 'have-mores: ' from fired American high-tech professionals demanding an end to the illegal visa abuse of lower-paid, sought-after graduates of leading foreign technical universities; to the threatened deportations of American-born children.
Tragically, planet earth faces the absurd consequences of mindless self-destruction caused by man-made pollution for untaxed profits; and many other bold newer threats, including the approaching hordes of climate change refugees. Unlike the many unknowns of a Shakespearean tragedy, we know the remaining acts necessary to sustain life on planet earth's annual free ride around the sun. Yet, a despoiled earth appears inexorably poised on the path of abandonment by the trillionaire class for a new planetary home. Bon Voyage!
