GN Commentary: July 9, 2009 - Say It Isn't So Governor Palin!

Do we have leaders today who can be counted on to mean yes when they say yes and no when they say no? How about the rest of us? Can you be counted on to mean what you say?

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Video Transcript

In a strange turn of events; Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin announced that she would not run for another term as governor and that she was stepping down at the end of the month rather than being a lame duck.

What is this all about? Is it some sort of brilliant stroke of political genius, or is it political suicide? For days the news analysts have been debating this from all sides. Both conservative and liberal newscasters have been divided among themselves. And even in Mrs. Palin's own Republican Party there is a mixed opinion.

A number of newscasters believe that Sarah Palin is setting herself up for a run for the presidency in 2012. But if that is true then why resign now and why not say so? The next election is still 3 ½ years away. Some believe she has another job waiting for her—a job as a talk show host perhaps. Still others believe there is a major scandal about to break and she chose to get out. Is she a quitter, after all?

Isn't it amazing that whenever a politician tells us something we immediately start looking for another answer? After all, no politician is going to tell you what he or she is really up to. Is that the case with Governor Palin?

There is a fundamental flaw in our society that is leading us down a very dangerous path. In his book "The Five Thousand Year Leap" W. Cleon Skousen lists the 28 principles that made our country great. Principle # 3 reads: "The most promising method of securing a virtuous and morally stable people is to elect virtuous leaders." By virtuous leaders he means leaders you can trust and believe whenever they tell you something. Consider George Washington, one of our nation's founding fathers.

As he approached the final days of his second and final term as president, George Washington wrote to Alexander Hamilton and shared the pain he felt because of the lies and accusations written about his presidency. He wrote, "It might be expected at the parting scene of my public life that I should take some notice of such virulent abuse. But, as heretofore, I shall pass them over in utter silence; … My politics have been unconcealed;—plain and direct."

Jesus Christ put it this way when instructing His disciples— "But let your yes be yes and your no, no. For whatever is more than these is from the evil one" (Matthew 5:37). What if all our politicians lived by this one principle? How different would Governor Palin's announcement be in such a society? The answer remains to be seen. We have to wait and see what Governor Palin will do.

One should also ask if her politics are "unconcealed, plain and direct" as George Washington made claim. Or is there something hidden behind her resignation? Do we have leaders today who can be counted on to mean yes when they say yes and no when they say no? How about the rest of us? Can you be counted on to mean what you say?

For GN Magazine, I'm Jim Franks.