Lincoln’s Lament: We Must Find Our Political Center and Save the Union

Lincoln’s house is most definitely staggering in all directions. Divide and conquer — that’s how the battle goes. The nation is tugged to the left with the progressive, magnetic pull of figures like Warren, AOC, and Sanders most of whom argue for government to take on the burdens of health care, climate crisis, and income equality (they are just some of those proponents).

Meanwhile, America is in the grips of the right with the Trump administration, the influence of McConnell on the judiciary and legislative branches, and the fear of a “Deep State.”

And if that were not enough, Americans find themselves worrying whom to trust. (Where did you go Walter Cronkite?) The “mainstream” media is labeled “fake news” by an administration, which claims that organizations like The New York Times are the “enemy of the people.” The Fox News channel is blamed for being a collaborator and mouthpiece for the interests often labeled “Far Right.”

So what do Americans trust and where is the center of political gravity? The answer: “pragmatism, compromise and limits” according to the writer Beverly Gage. (Yes, for full disclosure, she writes for The New York Times Magazine.) As a matter of fact, she explained that this moderation “…can be hard to rally people behind….” However, this essay is my singular rallying cry. Read on.

While moderation and “centering” oneself may be the mantra of personal wellness; I would argue it is the only way to heal the divide that has pitted patriotic…