A Leader We Can Trust

“Politics is a good thing.”  That is the slogan of Larry Sabato’s Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, and it is the message he hammered home to me every day I sat in is Intro to American Politics course.  In a climate where it is easy to be cynical about government and use the word ‘politician’ as a slur, we all need to be reminded that politics, and government, are good things.  When in the hands of people who promote the common good, who stand up for justice, and mercy, government can be a tool that is used to improve the lives of it citizens and ensure that everyone has the potential to reach his or her God-given potential.  That is why we need moral and principled leaders like Travis Childers in office.

Our nation is facing serious problems that are profoundly moral in their nature.  Will we continue to invest in policies that have us bogged down in war, beholden to a form of fuel that, in order to acquire the amount we need, threatens our national security and ravishes our planet, and lavish tax breaks on the wealthy while breaking the back of the middle class and poor?  Or will we be bold enough to elect leaders who will put our common interest before the special interests?  Travis Childers understands that we need policies that invest in America’s greatest natural resource, her people.  His economic policy is based on a principle of fairness where people who work hard are given a helping hand, not a pink slip that says their jobs have been shipped overseas.  His plans to support healthcare, education, and our seniors, mirror the biblical command to care for the least and last.  Every life, no matter how old or young, has value and deserves to be treated as such.  Childers has demonstrated his understanding of this principle throughout his entire life, be it in working to create an assisted living center for seniors in his hometown, or supporting S-CHIP so no child is denied the medical treatment she needs because of a parent’s inability to pay.

In the rich tapestry that is the American narrative, Childers’ personal story reflects the heartache, determination, and faith that are shared by so many.  In one blog post, he poignantly describes the tragic losses of his father and sister early in life.  Childers’ strong work ethic, as he describes, is no doubt an important part of his success story.  But what stands out to me even more is his commitment to family.  Since the age of 16, Childers’ worked full-time, while attending school, in order to help support his mom and sister.  His personal experience underscored for him the simple fact that many of us hold true, that our families are the most important unit of our society.

We need leaders who will hold the value of every life and every family paramount in their minds as they make the difficult decisions our nation asks of them.  We can trust Travis Childers with those decisions.