In these contentious times, it takes nerve and conviction to be mild. The Deseret News just adventured in Washington, D.C., into the mild waters by combining people willing to seek middle ground while they described techniques to do so.
What were they thinking? They dared to use words like “truth” and “love.” The Deseret News went even further by suggesting there is a higher purpose to making agreements than there is digging your trench, loading your weapon, and firing first.
Political warfare may please the rabid and demanding “base.” But the war is not solving problems or providing government’s role as a positive in our lives. Seemingly we have lost the vision of our American Constitution. It set us up to argue but then to solve problems.
Such words as truth, love, compromise or cooperate have strangely become symbols of weakness. These days we honor instead government shutdowns, building political bases with hard-edged positions, incendiary Tweets, one-sided “news” TV, Democratic-Republican stalemates, and true hatred for the other side. We have lost the vision of what America is about.
I am now a retired guy who spent much of his life in politics. I don’t need conflict and am privileged to think broader than before. I have thought a lot about what worked politically and what didn’t in my own career. I have had the privilege to serve most of 10 years as a mayor, as an environmental adviser to a governor, as a leader of nonprofits and as an advocate for clean air.
What worked, I’ve asked myself? Was it when I fought with police and fire unions over wages? I hung tough and forced two walkouts that endangered the city some, even though I “won.” The troops went back to work, yes, but for almost two years there was resentment that was not good. Learning the lesson of the war-torn victor, I became a much better mayor.
Or was it the time I worked with both sides of a thorny downzoning fight between developers and neighborhood activists? The neighborhood leader was Palmer DePaulis. Frankly, we didn’t like each other much at first. But then we began to talk. The talk led to a quiet get-together one evening where we agreed to compromise. Daring to be mild led to refining zoning densities in central Salt Lake City that have worked well for over 40 years. DePaulis and I became good friends, he succeeding me as the city’s mayor with my support.
I spoke to a leadership conference of Intermountain Health Care a few evenings ago. After my presentation, I was asked: “What is the secret of getting along to make government work?”
I realize daring to be mild was the answer. There is huge joy in solving long-range problems, most often far more enjoyable than beating the other side. As far as enemies go, learn to make them your friends. Having friends among those who oppose you builds strong and positive relationships that will work continuously.
Thanks, Deseret News, for daring to be mild.
Ted Wilson
Salt Lake City