Government Was Never the Problem

In his 1981 inaugural address, President Ronald Reagan declared, “Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” At the time, many supporters described his remarks as a critique of government size and bureaucracy, but the broader message that took hold was something more corrosive: a call to delegitimize the very idea of public governance. Reagan surrounded himself with advisers who championed privatization, deregulation, and deep distrust of democratic institutions. Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist later distilled the philosophy: government should be shrunk “to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.” That sentiment went beyond arguing efficiency – it aimed to weaken the public’s belief in democracy itself.

The consequence of that approach has defined U.S. politics for more than four decades. As confidence in government declined, government officials began losing confidence in citizens as well. It turns out that “trust” is a two-way street. So, instead of building a partnership with their constituents, elected leaders closed ranks and consolidated power by enforcing rigid party discipline. Campaigns shifted away from policy discussions and turned toward fearmongering. Parties learned that scaring voters about the “other side” was easier and far more effective than earning support through real solutions. That shift made modern politics dependent not on ideas but on marketing, consultants, dark money, and paid outrage. Wealthy donors discovered that a divided public is easier to manipulate, and cultural conflict diverted attention from economic policy decisions that quietly benefit the privileged few.

Missouri offers a clear view of the result. For roughly two decades in the state’s capital (Jefferson City), the Republican supermajority has repeatedly ignored and, at times, overturned the expressed will of the voters.

1. When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, Missouri was the first state to activate a total abortion ban. In 2024, Missourians gathered signatures and passed a constitutional amendment restoring reproductive freedom. Legislators responded immediately by working to place another measure on the 2026 ballot, crafted with deceptive language designed to reverse that result.

2. In 2017, lawmakers passed a “Right to Work” law that weakened unions. Then in 2018, voters rejected it by a landslide, 67 percent to 33 percent. Nevertheless, every legislative session since has introduced new bills intended to undermine organized labor.

3. When Missourians petitioned to raise the statewide minimum wage to $15 and include paid sick leave, legislators quickly stripped out key provisions, again placing donor demands above citizen demands.

These examples indicate a fundamental breakdown of democratic norms. The will of the people, once the grounding principle of U.S. governance, has become a nuisance to be dismissed or overturned if it conflicts with the interests of the wealthy and politically connected. To maintain control, many politicians have relied on perpetual culture wars, conditioning ordinary citizens to tolerate the gradual destruction of democracy so long as their side “wins” the latest symbolic battle. That strategy has created a political environment where cynicism is mistaken for wisdom and open disdain for democracy has become common.

The danger becomes unmistakably clear when officials actively discourage democratic participation. Over the 2025 Thanksgiving holiday, the Republican National Committee sent a state-wide text message warning Missourians not to sign citizen petitions. The request was not subtle: they asked people to forfeit their First Amendment right to petition the government, one of the core methods Missouri voters have repeatedly used to counteract legislative overreach. The message revealed a growing fear among politicians—not of lawlessness or disorder, but of citizens acting on their own authority.

The question facing voters today is not simply whether to choose Democrats or Republicans, but whether to elect leaders who respect the will of the people. The first three words of our Constitution, “We the People,” are not decoration. They are explicit instructions. For decades, powerful interests have promoted the idea that government itself is the problem, while quietly positioning private wealth and political insiders to take its place. The reality is the opposite: a government captured by donors, controlled by lobbyists, and protected by politicians who treat democracy as the problem.

We do not build a more perfect union by surrendering our voices, our votes, or our belief that citizens—rather than wealthy patrons—should shape our future. Government was never the enemy. The abandonment of democratic responsibility is. And the solution remains what it has always been: We the People.