Freedom to Choose Our Leaders

                The liberty principle for this Freedom Friday concerns our liberty to select our own leaders. A principle that goes with the freedom to choose, is the responsibility to choose well. A third principle is the fact that when we make a choice, we also choose the consequence of that choice.

                As my regular readers understand, I am not certain of my feelings for Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, but I do from time to time write about him. It seems to me that he is showing some real leadership skills and espousing principles at the present time. Here is his most recent statement. http://www.speaker.gov/video/choice

"I've not seen the kind of bitterness in our politics like we have today. And I've got to say, I think it's both sides. It's not—you know, I'd love to say it's just Democrats, but it's not—it's both. And it doesn't have to be that way. 

"America can do better.

"This anxiety has got to be channeled and dealt with [and] with solutions instead of just amplified and accelerated and exacerbated. How do you fix that? I think leaders fix this, and we haven't had that kind of leadership lately.

"Leaders need to say: 'here's my principle; here's my solution.' And let's try and do it in a way that is inclusive, that's optimistic, that's aspirational, that's focusing on solutions.

"And so, that's the choice you'll have, far more than a personality. Republicans lose personality contests anyway. We always do. But we win ideas contests. We owe you that choice."