By Jeff J. Horn – Divorce Attorney
For Whom Do I Run?
Today’s politics favor the extroverted narcissist. Political performers like Donald Trump, AOC, and George Santos prove this point. Enough said.
As a candidate, if I compete in the realm of the extroverted narcissist, I am doomed. Generally, I get a great charge from hanging out with a small group of friends and family, devoting my energies to my law practice, and learning through reading and listening to podcasts.
Running in a Divisive Time
Who would want to run for office in this divisive and challenging time? The only way to sustain oneself in today’s political environment is to remember for whom you run.
The polarizing media like Fox News and MSNBC would have us believe that our friends and neighbors are actually secret enemies. Those who disagree on some fine points of politics and policy are not simply good folks viewing things differently. No, they are the enemy, personally abhorrent, and at best to be dismissed, at worst to be destroyed. I declare that mindset complete bunk.
Mainstream media profiteers earn a perverse living by staying on the attack 24/7. They have utterly failed to serve the cause of participatory democracy. I truly believe those folks on the extremes do not represent the backbone of this country. Most Americans have worked hard, participated nobly, raised their families, and built our communities. They are sick of being force-fed fear and divisiveness. Those are the good folks for whom I run for office.
My Previous Experience
Campaigning door-to-door is a harrowing and sometimes highly entertaining endeavor. Hitting doors requires tedious tasks like route planning and a supple sense of humor. Thanks to sophisticated software, picking houses based on the likelihood to vote makes selecting who to visit pretty simple. However, technology and software cannot prepare a candidate or campaign volunteer for what lurks behind each door.
Fortunately, my daughter Margaret and her friends have helped me hit doors. After about twenty doors each, we would reconvene, and they would regale me with fantastic stories of people peering through a sidelight and waving the kids away. One spunky senior citizen voter even tried to persuade one of our volunteers to convert from Judaism to Christianity. As my grandmother Grace McGee often quipped, “people can be real characters!”
For me, a day of campaigning does not start until I hit a door and someone tells me to go “blank” myself. I often hear refrains such as, “Tell your friends in Washington they suck.” When I declare myself a “common sense Democrat,” I am aggressively told that “no such thing exists” and to “get the F out of here.”
Serving All People
Do candidates run for those people who would tell a candidate or campaign worker to get the F out of here? Absolutely. By and large, the doors we hit and the homes we visit are occupied by very good people. Even those who chase me, Margaret, and her friends away. For whom do I run? I run for all of those folks. I serve the good people gripped by some of today’s extremism and those like me who are foolishly optimistic about the big future that awaits our country, our state, and our legislative district.
My Answer
Oh, and the answer to George Carlin’s question… We are here for the glory of the Jersey Shore, safe streets, excellent schools, and a vibrant community.
Thanks to Horn Law Group, LLC interns Noah Hilsdorf and Dillon Uhrig.