The Ethical Issues Encountered by Politicians

Introduction 

Ethics in politics generally refers to the process of making moral decisions, actions, behaviors, and judgments that are political in nature. Politicians play important role in any society as they make decisions and policies that affect lives of many people. Key decisions that are made in any society have some political elements in them. Therefore, politicians should not only make decisions that serve their interest, but the interest of the society at large while at the same time considering the consequences of their actions and decisions. As a result, it is important for politicians to adhere to ethical standards in order to benefit the majority. It is important for political leaders to critically analyze the implication of their decisions and action. Max Weber is one of the classical scholars who wrote about political ethics, especially in one of his essays titled “Politics as a Vacation” where he discussed ethics of conviction and responsibility in politics. Aristotle is another scholar who devoted his time to write about ethics. He maintained that the ultimate goal is happiness, and politicians should not focus only to a mean to an end. Some of the ethical problems that politicians face include conviction, responsibility, truthfulness, the ultimate end, and balancing outcome and rights of people ( Downe, Cowell & Morgan, 2016) . The paper primarily focuses on types of ethical problems encountered by politicians. 

Overview of Ethics in Politics 

There is a controversial debate about ethics in politics, as there are some people who believe that ethics does not apply in political arena while other advocate for ethics in politics. Critics of political ethics argue that ethics has no place in politics because political process takes place in a rough-and-tumble environment where individuals and groups pursue power solely based on their interests ( Girardin, 2012) . In the contrary, proponents of political ethics maintain that, even though ethics may seem to have no place in political arena, politicians end up making ethical decisions and judgment, either explicitly or implicitly. Proponents also argue that ethics makes it possible for politicians to pursue less than universal interests as well as less than absolute principles. 

There is a controversial debate on ethics in politics because of lack of strict moral values that guide politicians and political processes. Every country in the world is based on different principles and morals that define who states and individuals act or behave. For instance, the freedom of speech is respected by many countries across the globe, but how it is practiced and implemented varies from one country to another. Therefore, the main problem of ethics in politics is that moral arguments are based on different principles ( Downe, Cowell & Morgan, 2016) . 

Downe, Cowell & Morgan argues that d espite the controversial Debate, ethics in politics exits. Political ethics can broadly be divided into two parts. The first part is the ethics of progress that is mainly concerned with the public leaders or officials and the methods and strategies they use to execute their mandates. The second part is known as the ethics of policy that focuses on the judgment on policies and laws by politicians. However, the two parts are based on morals and political philosophies. Hence, politicians across the globe are subjected to ethical requirement that they are expected to adhere to, even though they frequently violate the due to their defined and vested interests ( 2016 ). 

Ethical Problems Facing Politicians 

There are a number of ethical problems that politicians are likely to encounter, especially based on how the public view and perceive those active in politics. Many people believe that politicians are selfish and selfish and corrupt power-players who are only paying attention to their own special interests and not the good of the majority of the population. Scholars like Aristotle and Weber discussed various ethical issues facing politicians in various parts of the world. 

Weber: Ethical problems facing Politicians 

Max Weber is one of the scholars who extensively wrote about ethics in politics, especially in one of his famous essays known as “Politics as a Vocation” that was written in 1919 ( Mittleman, 2006) . Weber was particularly concerned about how politicians were behaving and acting and he wanted to know the reasons behind their consistent behaviors. According to Weber, there are three essential qualities that every politician should have. First, he argued that politicians must be passionately dedicated to a particular cause. He maintained that politicians should be committed to the matter at hand. Secondly, Weber opined that politicians should have a sense of responsibility for the things he or she is passionate about ( Mittleman, 2006) . Thirdly, a politician should have some sense of proportion, which is the ability to act rationally amid irrational impulses or forces that he might face, both internally and externally. Weber further argued that the three qualities represent a politician in a vocation. As a result, Weber believed that there are two main ethical issue that politician face in their daily lives and they include ethics of responsibility and conviction. 

The ethics of conviction and responsibility are broadly covered in Weber’s “Politics as a Vocation”. A person who is guided by the ethics of conviction is mainly concerned about justly motivated actions and does not care much about the outcome of his actions ( Girardin, 2012) . The ethics of conviction, therefore, as explained by Weber, are meant to guide politicians the same way as the Ten Commandments guide Christians. For instance, a politician who believes that it is wrong to kills a person will maintain his conviction regardless of the circumstances. In the contrary, a politician who believes in the ethics of responsibility is aware and acknowledges the morality only that he is not ready he is not blindly convictions, as he considers the consequences of his actions. Therefore, the need to be responsible makes politicians to be concerned about the possible consequences of their actions. Politicians faced many issues with regard to ethics of conviction and ethics of responsibility. 

Political responsibility is one of the main ethical problems that many politicians face in their line of duty. Politicians are public officials or officers who are always required to act in line with the public interest. In charging their mandates, especially when it comes to making laws and policies, the main principle that should guide their decisions and actions is the need to support course that serve the interest of the majority of the action that has the most worthy reasons to support. Whilst performing their responsibilities, politicians are required not be personal or purely ideological ( Downe, Cowell & Morgan, 2016) . The ethics of responsibility does not require politicians solely rely on their personal conscience when delivering legal issues and when discharging their duties. They are requires to set aside their personal values and morals and only follow the public publicly defensible actions, particularly when they are formulating and executing policies. 

Ethics of responsibility also makes it a requirement for politicians not to serve the interest of their parties but that of the public and the majority in their areas of jurisdiction. Individual politicians should use their parties to come up with the best policies and actions that is best for the majority of the people they serve. It is not the interest of the party that matters but that of the public. It is against the ethics of responsibility for a politician to only focus on issues that serve the interest of his or her party. According to the supporters of the ethics of responsibility, what matters the most is not what individual politician or party thinks is right, but what is defensible to the public ( Mittleman, 2006) . The main responsibility of politicians, therefore, is to serve the public. 

A good example that shows that politicians always serve their own interest and that of their party was when Republican politicians opposed the Obamacare. Even though the majority of American is not able to access healthcare insurance and quality care, Republican politicians believed that the universal health policy that was being proposed by Obama administration was not necessary because it was going to be a burden to many citizens (BBC News, 2017). Republican party had made a stand to oppose the Obamacare and its elected and non-elected politicians abided by the party decision. In this case, politicians were not serving the interest of the public but their own interests. The Obamacare was aimed at ensuring that the majority of US citizens access quality health care services at an affordable cost. 

Apart from taking actions that serve the interest of the public, politicians also have the ethical and moral obligation politicians must also understand the possible consequences of their actions and decisions. They should strive to ensure that their actions and decisions achieve the desired outcome. According to Weber, the actions of politicians should not only focus on doing what is good for the public, but also take the responsibility for foreseeable consequences. Weber further argued that politicians should be concerned and understand the overall outcome of their actions. Therefore, to act responsibly, the actions and decisions that are taken by politicians should be able to produce the desired outcomes while at the same time minimizing the negative consequences (BBC News, 2017). 

In addition, based on the concept of ethics of responsibility, politicians should follow the correct or legal procedures when planning and executing their mandates. It is ethically wrong for politician to mainly rely on his or her intuition or personal belief and understanding when making decisions that serve the interest of the public. In the contrary, they should rely on the formal procedure and steps that have been formed to execute various public mandates and responsibilities (BBC News, 2017). 

However, ethics of responsibility is an ethical problem because many politicians only serve their interests and not that of the public. To effectively serve the interests of the public, politicians must be able to find ways of balancing various competing interests. Some of the main competing interests include political ideologies, personal ambitions and interests, constitutional requirements, and economic interests. In many cases, politicians fail to effectively balance the competing interests, as they learn more on their personal interests and ambitions, including the interest of their political parties. Even though a politician may be interested in serving the interest of his people, he might not be able to do so because of personal and party interests ( Comaroff, 2009) . Hence, politicians find it hard to adhere to the principles of ethics of responsibility as envisaged by Weber in his essay known as “Politics as a Vocation”. 

Ethics of conviction requires that politicians only take justly motivated actions regardless of the consequences ( Comaroff, 2009) . It means that politicians have the moral obligation to do the good to the public. For instance, a politician may refrain from following party ideologies or actions if he or she feels that they are wrong and do not serve public interests. Ethics of conviction, according to Weber, requires politicians to follow their fundamental values, ideas, and beliefs without leaning towards or take positions and stands that are popular ( Reis, 2007) . Therefore, politicians should stand their grounds and freely speak their minds regardless of the consequences. However, it is important for politicians who are led by their convictions to allow rationality to prevail. Nevertheless, politicians find it hard to follow their conviction, especially due to external pressure and prevailing environment. A politician may strongly have opposing view to an issue because it goes against his or her convictions. However, due to the fear of going against his party’s position or perspective, they are forced to shun their views. At the same time, rules and laws may make a politician to take actions and decisions that are contrary to his conviction. As a result, conviction is an ethical issue facing many politicians, especially in modern world where politics is largely not based on ideology or values, but personal and party interests ( Comaroff, 2009) . 

Another ethical problem facing politicians that can be derived from ethics of conviction and responsibility is honesty. Honesty is one of the ethical dilemmas facing many politicians across the globe. Many politicians are associated with lies and a lot of dishonesty, which explains why they are rarely trusted by the public. In many cases, in order to win the support of the public, politicians are forced to make promises that they know cannot be achieved ( Downe, Cowell & Morgan, 2016) . They are also forced to lie about their performance records, accomplishments, and make dishonest statements against their opponents, especially during campaigns. The need to serve personal interest and that of the party makes politicians to violate ethics of honesty. Honesty is one of the main ethical problems that is inevitable in politicians and that politicians find extremely hard to avoid ( Vadi & Jaakson, 2006) . Honesty is common among politicians due to lack of rules and regulations to monitor dishonesty. For instance, it is argued that a negative campaign is not a bad thing if it is based on facts and evidence. However, lying during campaign is now common among politicians regardless of the party and their information to the public is never based on facts. Politicians take advantage of the fact that the public is not always privy to critical information. 

In connection to honesty is political dilemma of transparency and fairness. A significant number of politicians are not ready to disclose some crucial information to the public due to the fear if the consequences. Politicians should be open and transparent because they are public officials. Importantly, they should make crucial documents and information that touches on the public open for access. At the same time, politicians mainly favor their family members, friends, and people they know, making them unfair. Politicians engage in unethical practices when they do not uphold fairness ( Vadi & Jaakson, 2006) . 

George Ryan is one of American politicians who have grossly violated the ethical principle of honesty. Ryan was a Republican politician who served as the Illinois governor between 1999 and 2003 (RealClear, 2009). In December 2003, he was charged with dishonesty and corruption after it was found that he was engaging in racketeering, tax fraud, and extortion. He was accused of giving many state contracts to his chief of staff Warner and his close associates. He was found guilty by the court in 2006. He is an example of how politicians can be dishonest, engage in corruption, and only help his associates. 

Therefore, according to Weber, there are a number of ethical problems facing many politicians. The need to adhere to ethics of responsibility and conviction is a challenge to many politicians across the globe, as they always serve their personal interests and those of their parties of affiliation. In connection to the argument by Weber, politicians find it extremely hard to uphold the ethics of honesty, fairness, and transparency. Hence, Weber is the main scholar discussing ethical challenges facing politicians in various parts of the world (RealClear, 2009). 

Aristotle: Ethical Challenges Facing Politicians 

Aristotle was one of the main people who extensively wrote and discussed ethical and moral issues in a society. He is mainly known for Nicomachean Ethics, which wrote about 2,000 years ago ( Irrera, 2005) . Aristotle’s discussion on ethics majorly focuses on personal morality as well as the end of human life. He ethical works, although written many years ago, provide valuable insight into human needs and personal conducts. One of the main Aristotle’s ethical arguments is that the ultimate goal of any human being activity is happiness. He also argued that moral virtues cannot be achieved abstractly because it needs moral action in a social environment. Unlike other scholars who argued that ethics and politics are not related, Aristotle maintained that there is close relationship between ethics and politics, as politics is the way of creating a moral society in which human beings are able to achieve their full potential. Therefore, Aristotle is one of the scholars who discussed ethical issues in politics. 

Aristotle argued that happiness is the ultimate end and it is what many people pursue. Individuals are always determined to achieve happiness ( Irrera, 2005) . At the same time, the ultimate goal of many politicians is to achieve happiness. Therefore, even though politicians may be forced to do other things such as helping the vulnerable and coming up with policies that favor the disadvantages, the end result is to attain happiness. Consequently, politicians are in constant conflict of interest because they need to achieve their own happiness and that of voters and constituents. The ultimate end of happiness is also an ethical problem facing many politicians because of the need to serve the interest of his or her few friends and that of the majority. 

The ethics of ultimate happiness is also an issue in politics, particularly in the formation of policies that are aimed at making individual citizens happy. According to Aristotle, in the case where politicians are focusing on policies aimed at achieving hedonic pleasure and happiness, politicians are only meeting the instant and superficial gratification of the people instead of real or actual fulfillment. Consequently, the policy will only lead to short-term happiness among people, but not ultimate happiness. At the same time, in order to create eudemonic or long-term happiness, politicians will be under pressure to develop policies that require short-term suffering and temporary unhappiness ( Irrera, 2005) . 

Therefore, politicians are faced with ethical dilemma when they formulate policies that intended to make citizens happy. They are under ethical dilemma on whether to create policies that bring short-term happiness or long-term happiness, but with some short-term sacrifices to be made. Besides, changing happiness into policy goal requires individualistic policy approach, which may also lead to some biases and favoritism. Hence, politicians encounter some dilemma when they formulate policies that are intended to enhance the well-being of the people ( Irrera, 2005) . 

In addition, the end justifies the means is another ethical dilemma facing politicians across the globe. Many politicians believe that the end is the ultimate goal and how the outcome is achieved is not an issue. They argue that they have no moral obligation on how the end result is achieved so long as the outcome brings happiness to the majority of people. Many politicians, therefore, use unethical means to obtain power and deliver promised they make to their supporters regardless of the process or means of obtaining the results. This is an ethical issue facing politicians because they use immoral tactics to ascend and maintain powerr ( Irrera, 2005) . 

Other Ethical Issue Facing Politicians 

Electoral fraud is another ethical issue facing politicians in various parts of the world. Electoral fraud, manipulation, and vote rigging are common among politicians, especially to stiff completion among political candidates during an election period. Even though electoral fraud is largely considered to be a legal issue facing politicians, it is always taken to be morally unacceptable because it violates the moral principle of an election as well as those of democracy ( Green & Davis, 2013) . Electoral fraud can lead to various consequences such as such violence and high level of corruption to maintain power. However, many politicians always strive to win an election, and electoral fraud is one of the main tactics that they use to succeed. 

Political bribery is common among politicians during campaign and election period. Many politicians rely on the power of money in order to win an election. They use money and other privileges in return for political concessions and support. At the same time, because politics is mainly about the persuasion of voters, bribery is used as a persuasive technique to lure electorate. Bribery is inevitable in any political contests. It is an ethical issue because it forced even politicians who do not believe in bribery to follow the same trend to win the support of voters ( Green & Davis, 2013) . Political bribery, therefore, poses a lot of ethical challenge to many politicians. In addition, political intimidation is an ethical issue that is encountered by politicians. Politicians use intimidation or control of others in order to gain and maintain their power. They mainly rely on indoctrination, military pressure, and economic blockade to intimidate their opponents. It is an ethical issue because it violates the principles of democracy and moral values in the society. 

Conclusion 

Ethics is one of the most controversial issues in the political arena, as some people believe that politicians should not be subject to ethical standards. However, every decision that is made by politicians has some moral and ethical dimensions. Therefore, ethics is inevitable in politics and politicians must uphold ethical standards. They must act in the interest of the majority of the public. Politicians should not serve their own interest and that of their cronies and parties. They should be guided by the convictions, fairness, honesty, and adherence to moral standards. 

References 

BBC News. (2017, July 13). Why is Obamacare so controversial? Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-24370967 

Comaroff, J. (2009). The politics of conviction: Faith on the neo-liberal frontier. Social Analysis , 53 (1), 17-38. 

Downe, J., Cowell, R., & Morgan, K. (2016). What Determines Ethical Behavior in Public Organizations: Is It Rules or Leadership?. Public Administration Review , 76 (6), 898-909. 

Girardin, B. (2012). Ethics in politics: why it matters more than ever and how it can make a difference . Globethics. 

Green, D. D., & Davis, L. R. (2013). Government Ethics Strategy: Case Study of Foley Scandal. Journal of Virtues & Leadership , 3 (1). 

Irrera, E. (2005). Between advantage and virtue: Aristotle's theory of political friendship. History of political thought , 26 (4), 565. 

Mittleman, A. (2006). Weber's Politics as a Vocation: Some American Considerations. Notre Dame JL Ethics & Pub. Pol'y , 20 , 279. 

RealClear. (2009). The Ten Most Corrupt Politicians in U.S. History . Retrieved from https://www.realclearpolitics.com/lists/most_corrupt_politicians/intro.html 

Reis, F. W. (2007). Weber and politics. Teoria & Sociedade , 3 (5), 22-47 

Vadi, M., & Jaakson, K. (2006). The importance of value honest: determining factors and some hints to ethics . Retrieved from ftp://ftp.repec.org/opt/ReDIF/RePEc/mtk/febpdf/febawb43.pdf