ASHLAND — As we celebrate the nation’s 236th birthday today, I can’t help but think if we would have anything to celebrate if those gathered in Philadelphia in the summer of 1776 had been more like the politicians who govern in Washington, D.C., today instead of being the extraordinary men of vision they were. Frankly, I doubt it.

I see little evidence of anyone in Washington today having anything close to the vision, intelligence and understanding of human nature and how government works that Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin possessed in adopting the most revolutionary document in all of history. Instead, I see an abundance of elected leaders whose vision does not extend beyond the next election and who are unwilling to put aside their own convictions and make compromises to accomplish the greater good.  

In this case, the “greater good” was having 13 independent colonies declare their independence from Great Britain, which in the eyes of the leaders in London was nothing short of an act of treason. To convince representatives of 12 of the 13 colonies to vote for independence, they had to put aside their deeply held convictions on slavery, the role of the church and the state, the economy and numerous other lesser issues to approve the primary issue of independence.

It was not a pretty sight. Adams, the Massachusetts delegate who would later become the second president of the United States, was adamantly opposed to slavery and he initially insisted words supporting the abolition of slavery were included in the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson, who wrote the Declaration of Independence, owned slaves along with other delegates from the South.

Adams finally realized the Continental Congress was not going to approve a Declaration of Independence with an anti-slavery clause, so he agreed to delate the anti-slavery phrase in the interest of advancing the greater good of independence.

Such a willingness to compromise is likely to gain one much criticism in today’s Washington. Indeed, Richard Lugar, R-Indiana, one of the most able men in Washington, lost his re-election bid to an opponent who has promised to never make compromises. While I firmly believe we all should have convictions in which we are unwilling to compromise, the refusal to compromise is a recipe for a dysfunctional government in which little or nothing is accomplished. That’s exactly what we have today, and until more of our elected leaders demonstrate a willingness to work together and seek a common ground, our government will remain broken.

We have been unable to reach an agreement on immigration because of the unwillingness of those who support an amnesty program and those who think all illegal immigrants should be either deported or thrown in jail to seek a middle ground. Social Security and Medicare continue to speed toward certain bankruptcy because our elected leaders play politics instead of seeking realistic solutions.

I could go on, but you get my point. Serious problems continue to get worse in this country, and as long as we continue to play politics instead of seeking tough solutions, that is sure to continue.

So what does this have to do with Independence Day? Well, our founding fathers were able to approve the Declaration of Independence only because they were willing to compromise.

This country has many needs and problems, but what it needs most of all is another Jefferson or Adams. Sadly, I do not see any on the horizon.

JOHN CANNON can be reached at jcannon@dailyindependent.com  or at (606) 326-2649.