The framers of our Constitution were really brilliant when they started with the equal branches of government, not just three branches but branches that are equal in power.
What this makes me think is that they understood that one perspective was not sufficient to sustain a democracy.
By that, I mean that they knew there would be differing opinions on just about everything with people on the left, right and the middle.
The First Amendment guarantees that all opinions are not only protected but support the idea that they are necessary in a democratic society.
I would postulate that our Constitution set up the necessity for compromise in this democracy.
All voices must be heard, with everyone knowing (right from the beginning) that the final situation will be somewhere in the middle.
The current divisive chaos exists now because we have forgotten that, in the end, no one sector in our society gets everything it wants.
Governance must be from the center-right or the center-left so everything doesn’t fall apart.
If “the people” don’t consent to this, we get our guns and democracy falls apart.
The recent election gave us an example of how democracy survives.
Bernie Sanders campaigned for Hillary Clinton, and Republicans got behind Trump.
You don’t always get what you want, but you move on, knowing that your voice still needs to be heard.
It’s more important than ever to respectfully participate, knowing that final outcomes must be a compromise.
Linda Benson,
Sequim