What Happened to Decency and Respect in Politics?

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By Maya J. Carter

It has been a punishing past few years in politics, as I am sure you have noticed. Political discourse of the past has been able to overcome ideological rhetoric in order for politicians to produce legislation that at the heart and center puts the benefit of the people they serve at the forefront. And despite differences in beliefs or opinion regarding numerous subjects affecting the populous, the rights of all people had been the critical factor in decisions and discourse tasked to politicians to promote the welfare of the people they serve. Yet, compromise and dialogue through compassion and empathy have been sorely lacking as of late. The people of this country have bore witness to far too many contemptible interactions between our politicians in recent history. And unfortunately, we repeat the cycle of toxicity in our societal interactions.

The problem is that now only rare instances of respectful political discourse between people who hold different ideological positions seem to exist, false equivalences permeate discussions about politics, and we are left reeling when we see continual blatant disrespect regarding political dialogue as the new normal. Personal attacks and snide remarks have insidiously made the way into what should be honest differences of opinion or principles to meet the needs of people of all walks of life. It is truly tiresome and disheartening.

Take for instance…Senator Rand Paul and the questions he posed to President Joe Biden’s nominee Dr. Rachel Levine for the Assistant Secretary of Health cabinet position. Dr. Levine’s historic nomination places her as the first openly transgender federal official to receive Senate confirmation. Rand Paul, who is also a physician lest he forget, opened his questioning with a false equivalence, comparing transgender reassignment surgery and medical transitioning with the equally important global topic of “genital mutilation”. C-Span video clips of the questioning can be found on web, as I cannot even allow myself to repeat his repulsive remarks. Coincidentally, the Senate hearing occurred on the same day the House passed the Equality Act which amended the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which allowed for equal protections for people based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Dr. Levine professionally and courteously replied to Senator Rand Paul despite his blatant disregard and disrespect towards people of the LGBTQ+ community with his line of questioning: “Transgender medicine is a very complex and nuanced field with robust research and standards of care.” She also invited Senator Paul to have further discussions with her at a later date if he should chose to have a proper discussion. Rand Paul countered by presenting a statement of a person who as a teen underwent gender reassignment surgery who later regretted their decision as an adult, an anecdotal case, as opposed to addressing the cumulative data presented by multiple medical associations including the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Medical Association, American Psychological Association, Endocrine Society, World Professional Association for Transgender Health, and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

First, just from the standpoint of a physician, Senator Paul’s unbelievably intolerant line of questioning was not supported by the wealth of research by the medical community, which should give anyone pause. As a physician, he knew that his line of questioning was disingenuous at best, and odious at worst. Secondly, when he discussed two topics that are diametrically opposed and unequivocally disparate is gaslighting at its finest. He felt the need to elevate vile, hostile, reprehensible alt-right talking points during the confirmation hearing to sully and belittle such a historic nominee. Thirdly, as a physician who is known to promote disinformation about other medical topics such as the COVID-19 pandemic which did even affect him personally, Senator Paul disregards his medical oath to first do no harm on a regular basis whether through his personal behavior or through his rhetoric for political gain, which is truly disgraceful and harmful to the people he represents. I cannot wrap my mind around how disrespectful his line of questioning was towards Dr. Levine, and the unfortunate truth is that this has become a norm.

I refrained from delving into the current unproductive and false narrative presented by Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and her transphobic signage she posted outside her door in the halls of our democracy as she seems to be a lost cause, yet this is another example of disrespectful discourse that disregards medical facts and science, and is overall blatantly and mind-numbingly ignorant. But her display stands to reaffirm the general theme of disrespectful hostility and disregard of others within the political arena.

I have grown weary of the duplicitous doublespeak and overall antagonistic discourse in politics, and our political representatives have made this impossible to ignore. We now live in a society where discourse has turned antagonistic and negative, and people are yelling from their corners to avoid the adult responsibility of meeting in the middle with mutual respect. We score talking points and “right fight”…for what exactly?!? How do we progress with such toxicity within our political parlance? Especially during a time where we have so many important topics to address, like the loss of 500K+ American citizens through the pandemic and ways political leaders need to come together to put an end to the suffering. I long for the day that we highlight and bring to the forefront respect, decency and genuine debate of important topics affecting people of this country to reach compromise and progress aimed at benefiting the welfare and equity for the constituents of this country. “When will we get there?” is the question at hand.

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