Tip of the iceberg

By Jim Thompson
HCP columnist

Kimberly Cheatle’s resignation as the director of the Secret Service is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to incompetence in government.  

If you caught her performance on Monday, July 22 in Congress, you may have been astonished by her lack of preparation. Sorry, but having followed and brushed into federal – and sometimes state and local – governments for over half a century, I wasn’t surprised. Right or wrong, I envision most government bodies to be filled with people this incompetent.

Take the recently departed Joe Biden, or his successor, anointed in the “vape-filled back rooms” (credit—Dana Perino) of the Democratic Party, Kamala Harris. One could write the accomplishments of both of them on one side of a very small postage stamp with a Sharpie. In Joe’s case in particular, this is saying something for his “record of performance” goes back over 50 years.

The government is full of people, besides these three, who have looked out for themselves or done the bidding of their handlers for years. Tell them they work for us and they will laugh in your face.

Take a look at this (from the Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute):

5 U.S. Code § 3331 - Oath of office

“An individual, except the president, elected or appointed to an office of honor or profit in the civil service or uniformed services, shall take the following oath: 'I, AB, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.' This section does not affect other oaths required by law.”

Or this (ibid):

Art. II., S1, C8.1 Oath of Office for the Presidency

“Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation: ‘I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of president of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.’”

In the general private industry realm, when we take a job, we usually don’t take an oath of office, so if we are slackers, it is incumbent upon our bosses to fire us.

However, at various times and places, Kimberly Cheatle, Kamala Harris, and Joe Biden took one or the other of these oaths (second one only applies to Joe Biden up to this point).  

My question now is why do we have public officials take these oaths of office? Obviously, they take them about as seriously as a sneeze.

Such a lackadaisical attitude produces at least two results. First, we develop a cynicism such as mine that such oath busters do not take their positions seriously. Second, their carelessness when it comes to oaths spread throughout the land, fostering an attitude of halfhearted intentions on the part of the entire population of the country.

Nothing good comes from any of this.

Jim Thompson, formerly of Marshall, is a graduate of Hillsboro High School and the University of Cincinnati. He resides in Duluth, Ga. and is a columnist for The Highland County Press. He may be reached at jthompson@taii.com.

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