Really? Really?

For the 48 (as of this writing) Democrat Representatives who’ve publicly said they are boycotting the Presidential Inauguration:  Really?  Really?

I support your freedom to go to the inauguration or not.  But think about this:

Approximately half the US population voted for the President-elect.  That translates to your thumbing your nose at the choice of those Americans.  (And we’re not – again - getting into the electoral vote vs. head count here.)

Of those who voted in this election, a majority voted out the Democrat party’s elected officials and didn’t elect many Democrats running for the first time.  Do you not understand how that translates into dissatisfaction with the Democratic party as a whole?

When Bernie Sanders was visibly sidelined by the Democratic political machine, did you really think his followers would blindly accept your candidates.  Those who desire a form of socialism are not eager to back a party that is more and more smacking of McCarthyism. 

Don’t you understand there is a large segment of the US voters who may be registered in one party, but who always vote their conscious and not a straight party ticket?  By pigeon holing everyone who voted against Clinton as barely being able to walk upright, you are alienating members of your own party or potential voters for your candidates in the future.

Voting against Clinton was not necessarily a vote against Obama.  Stop playing the race card in this election.  Clinton is no Obama.

The era where the voters put politicians on a pedestal is over – long over.  We go to work, we suck up the bad and try to make the business better.  You are not a celebrity; you are an elected business person.  Pull up your big girl/boy pants and go to work to make things better.  It’s called being a responsible working adult.

You do not have to go to the inauguration of your new boss but in the business world, publically boycotting the big welcome for a new boss would be such a huge mistake even the very newest and youngest employee would know better. 

Celebrities love/need to be in the limelight.  They can even begin to consider, because of their performance ability, their opinions are more relevant than the average voter.  Again, you are not a celebrity.  Your personal opinions really don’t matter; your representation of the people matters.

Can you grasp that your job description is not to boycott, not to hit every news service with your closely held opinions and not to alienate the other departments of the government.  Your job is to represent the people of your state.

If those of us who work in the business world threw tantrums every time we had to work for someone who has personality flaws, we would be fired in short order. Long time employees understand it’s necessary to work with all kinds of personalities.  Threats and childish behavior has no place in the work place.  We even say it has no place in schools, yet it’s evident among elected officials to the point it’s accepted as an attribute.

Let me be perhaps be the first to tell you a celebrity insulting me does not help your cause or make me change my mind and accept your politics or encourage me to vote for you next time. 

I vote for the person who does the job I hired them to do.  I vote Democrat, Republican, Independent and occasionally a write in.  The next time I vote, it will be based on that person’s job performance not their party.

And as a long time corporate employee, I vote for the person who has the ability and intelligence to work well with others to get the job done in a professional manner for the betterment of American.  Sound too lofty?  No, it’s good business.

When did teamwork go out of style for elected officials?  Kids in T-ball get it, kids playing Red Rover in grade school get it, the high school scholastic team gets it, college basketball teams get it, your local business persons get it – it’s time for that maturity to be put on the government’s playing field – now.

Boycotting the inauguration and all the other silly marches and whoopla on inauguration day is doing nothing but showboating.  If you disagree with your President elect, then get busy working and doing your job.  He’s from big business, work with him on a level he will respect.  The head of a large organization has to work with those he disagrees, he’s done it constantly in his work and he respects those that have firm opinions, have the facts and intelligence to make a plan and are capable of working with others.

I go back to my career and think of the times I disagreed with my bosses (and sometimes for good reason and quite strongly) and had I refused to work with them, refused to meet with them, threw tantrums, worked to create division among the employees or acted the jerk – seriously I would have been gone immediately – no severance – no gold watch – no pension – just out the door in a quick and ugly way.

Voters must wait four years to “out the door” if our officials perform poorly.  But nothing makes a vote choice firmer than grinding one’s teeth for four years watching the inept.

Elected officials please become business leaders to make America better, to pull us together and not divide.  Americans are begging our elected officials to work together – to act mature – to run our country’s business in a way that makes us stronger, better and proud even if we disagree.