Having never coped with the complexities and contradictions that must be overcome to effectively manage large organizations — and the United States is a very large organization — the very people who most want and need change tend be too critical of the politicians trying to implement that change and too quick to equate them with the politicians who are actively working to do them harm.

Balancing the competing desires, aspirations, prejudices, and self interests of the electorate, the politicians, the bureaucrats, and the corporate and special interest lobbying groups that make up our great nation is an impossible and thankless task. Perfection is not possible.

Trying to navigate the ship of state to any desired goal, without running it up on the rocks, is a daunting and exhausting task. Doing something too quickly can break things. Doing something to slowly can break things. Doing the “right” something can break things. Doing the “wrong” something can break things. Doing nothing will break things.

The problem is made worse because there are no unmitigated “goods”. Anything that benefits one group is very likely to harm another — while the whole time, the law of unintended consequences is waiting to kick you in the butt. Honestly, I do not know why any sane person would want to be President.

The best we can hope for is a reasonably honest (no politician can be totally transparent and survive) President, with a working moral compass, decent judgement, and the ability to put the needs of the country above his/her own self interest. We are all seeing what happens when that hope is dashed.