Are Norms Important?

 I have blogged about norms before, common examples of customs, courtesies, etiquette, and traditions, all of which play an important role in our culture.  However, the norms I am exploring in this blog are different.  They involve the traditional norms in our government.  

Whether we approve or disapprove the changing attitudes of norms in our government, they are happening.  Some are so common that over the years we have come to think of them as laws.  However, just because we regard then as laws does not make them laws.  

Am obvious example is Presidents declining to make money off of being President.   Surprisingly, presidents have respected that norm so often that many of us assumed that it was a law.  It isn't.  

 

Presidents have sometimes been embarrassed by relatives using their family connection for financial gain.  I remember the embarrassment of President Carter when his brother created a soda pop using the Carter name on the lable. People also questioned whether President Biden's son got an important job because of his father's position.  There are other examples of family members benefitting through the position of the President, although the President himself did not benefit.    

 Most presidents have resisted using their name and position while in office simply from a sense of ethics, respect, and dignity for the office they hold, although they are not prohibited by a law.  

Remember, norms are not laws.  The fact that most presidents have declined using their political office for personal gain does not require other presidents to do the same.  In other cases, some presidents have avoided taking personal advantage of financial gain, but they have given family and friends offices of advantage.  

The impact of norms depends on whether American voters disapprove of presidents using their office for their own economic benefit, or they just overlook that greed if they are satisfied with how the president handles the presidency itself.

It is apparent that most presidents benefit in numerous ways after they leave office, selling books about their time in office, giving speeches, and sitting on corporate boards as examples.  We expect that.  

However, if Americans think their presidents and those in other offices have gone too far in using their positions for personal gain, it is up to us to voice our disapproval.  If we think that matters, we should ask candidates running for office about their intentions.  We cannot draft laws about every ethical issue, but we can make our respect for traditional norms known.  It is up to us to let candidates know what we expect from their service to the nation. 

I have used the quote by Ulysses S. Grant some time ago, but I had forgotten that he had included Ambition between superstition and Ignorance.