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Worldview Watch issue #85 posted 10 /31 / 2026     

  USA Politics: Self Enrichment or Common Good?  / Fear or Empathy?    

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in the news: When asked, during an October 30th PBS News Hour interview, what Democrats should do if they gain control of both houses in Congress in the upcoming November 3rd election, Rahm Emanuel—former Mayor of Chicago, former Congressman, former White House Chief of Staff—replied they should, "pass an ethics package, five quick things for all three branches of government, no stock trading, no prediction market participation, mandatory blind trust, mandatory retirement age or term limits, and what I call... the Kushner Rule: no foreign money while you're in service or for two years afterwards."

worldview related analysis by Stephen P. Cook, Managing Director, project Worldview 

In our "Choices We Make" framework of 52 choices, an issue for leaders in the USA government is choice #33, between an (worldview theme #42) "Ethical Orientation" or (worldview theme #43) "Seeking Wealth and Power." Idealistically one might argue that these "public servants"—whether they be USA President (executive branch head), US House Representatives or Senators (legislative branch members), or Supreme Court Justices (ultimate judicial branch authorities)—have already attained positions of power and amassed wealth given the high salaries associated with positions they've previously held in their careers. And accordingly they should strive to serve the public in honest, respect the law fashion that involves ethical considerations as outlined in the description of worldview theme #42—which suggests considering actions that will "benefit the greatest number of people." 

This argument naively assumes that these folks—who have typically taken an oath to the USA Constitution" —have chosen their path to serve the public and "the common good." The argument can only be made by those who—in choice #32 terms—prefer a (worldview theme #21B) "Service to Others" orientation to one immersed in (worldview theme #36A) "Cynicism". Cynical folks have a dim view of human nature that assumes everyone is self enrichment oriented. As the start of the description of worldview theme #36A puts it, "Once I thought people could be trusted, had good intentions, were decent, caring, honorable. Now I think otherwise:humans are self-serving; many are corrupt: fraud / bribery follows them!" Cynics will scoff at those who hold an idealistic view that public service should be about serving others and promoting the general welfare. . 

Some have attacked the concept of "the common good"—seeing it as conflicting with their view of what living in the USA is about: exercising individual liberty. They are mistaken,  argues Josh Hammer in his Aug 07, 2026 Newsweek essay "The Good and the Bad of the Common Good." In connecting public service with the USA Constitution, Hammer writes, "The Constitution’s Framers explicitly identified the common good as the very reason for the charter’s existence: The Preamble simply refers to the identical concepts of a “more perfect Union” and the “general Welfare.” In The Federalist No. 57, James Madison wrote that the “aim of every political constitution” should be the cultivation and elevation of “men who possess most wisdom to discern, and most virtue to pursue, the common good of the society.”  

Rahm Emanuel, in the above-mentioned interview, after urging Democrats to not go down the same impeachment of the President path they have previously pursued, argues that an ethics / anti-corruption path would position them nicely for a 2028 Presidential election battle. And draw attention to—as he puts it—that "President Trump promised to drain the swamp and he put the swamp right in the Oval Office." Whether Democrats—should they triumph in the upcoming election—are able to resist the temptation to seek revenge / hold accountable those who have broken laws, or enabled those who have, remains an open question. 

It could be that the above analysis is too firmly set in the rational / logical thinking realm. Could be that those who disdain "the common good" are so emotionally wedded to their belief, that pursuit of individual freedom (see note #1 below) means hedonistic self enrichment is ethically and morally right, that they will never be persuaded to consider an orientation that factors in "the common good" ? Just as some evangelical Christians—perhaps the biggest component of the Trump / MAGA support base—have become convinced that empathy is toxic, and that extending it to certain marginalized groups like immigrants, poor people, LGBTQ folks, pregnant women seeking an abortion, etc is a path to sin. Allie Beth Stuckey, author of “Toxic Empathy: How Progressives Exploit Christian Compassion” summarized that argument by saying “Empathy becomes toxic when it encourages you to affirm sin, validate lies or support destructive policies.”

Rev. Canon Dana Colley Corsello in a sermon at Washington National Cathedral, responds by saying “Empathy is not toxic. Nor is it a sin,” She goes on say,  “The arguments about toxic empathy are finding open ears because far-right-wing, white evangelicals are looking for a moral framework around which they can justify President Trump’s executive orders and policies,” And, in a recent email exchange about the sermon, she wrote  “Empathy is at the heart of Jesus’ life and ministry,” She concludes—in seemingly sharing my concerns about how far off "the rational / logical thinking realm tracks" the dialogue between opposing sides in the highly polarized USA political environment can get—by saying, “It’s so troubling that this is even up for debate.” 

It could be that  Christians who fail to value empathy and view it is a path to sin hold that belief that out of fear—they fear God punishing them for their sin and see sins they commit as the primary obstacle to their reaching Heaven. (These people notably subscribe to the "Salvation and Moralistic God" worldview theme #14A.) A choice #18 type analysis firmly places those who hold such a view in the (worldview theme #16A) "Culture of Fear" camp with a vengeful Old Testament God, in opposition to those who embrace—with Jesus in loving, forgiving New Testament fashion—(worldview theme #16B) "The Golden Rule, Village Ethic of Mutual Help."  

Of course many self enrichment oriented notables—like Elon Musk, who has said "The fundamental weakness of Western civilization is empathy"—trash empathy, the common good, compassion, etc. for other reasons. Many such folks disdain focusing on sin, and pooh-pooh the associated fear and need to avoid sin for "fire insurance" reasons. They would point to their money and power as providing all the insurance they need. As for fear, the person most Republican government elected officials fear, in terms of retribution, is not God but Donald Trump. 

Notes

#1 One can argue that "The freedom that matters is the freedom to choose responsibility." And that responsibility should extend to looking out for those less fortunate and factoring  "the common good." into ones' decision-making. 

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