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Opinion: It's Amateur Hour in the Nation's Capital

Special to AOL News (July 1) -- Last week's flap involving Gen. Stanley McChrystal was notable for many things, but what stands out most in my opinion was how it reflects the declining respect that so many Americans have for those in leadership positions.

While decorum can be imposed by fiat, it is genuine respect that prompts teams to achieve in all fields, and which must be earned. I'm not going to defend the general, who clearly overstepped his bounds and had to be dismissed to maintain civilian control over the military. But he was (and I am) clearly frustrated with micromanagement of the Afghan campaign by politicians lacking military experience and situated thousands of miles away.

In recent years, we have seen far too much of this situation, where those with little or no pertinent experience or knowledge impose their views upon the country and in the process undermine respect for major institutions with their ineptitude.

For example:

•We currently see a Supreme Court nominee with virtually no experience in the law, outside academia and the White House, and none as a judge.
•We have the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee considering the Elena Kagan nomination focusing ad nauseam on her handling of the gays in the military issue years ago at Harvard Law School, and largely disregarding issues that are of real significance to Americans today -- such as her views on the implications of the Constitution's Commerce Clause for the new health care law.
•In House hearings on the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, we have noted experts in petroleum engineering -- Reps. Henry Waxman and Edward Markey -- making determinations as to which well-drilling method was preferable.
•We have a treasury secretary with no private sector experience and who had trouble filing an accurate tax return.
•And last year we saw our president -- with no experience running a business -- deciding to oust the CEO of General Motors.
If our country is going to get back on track, we need to redevelop confidence in and respect for our leaders and institutions. This means first and foremost electing and appointing people who command this respect by virtue of their bona fide achievements and not simply their paper credentials.

In recent years, far too many people with prestigious degrees and titles have made far too many horrible decisions that have caused great harm to Americans everywhere. We need people who have shown through their actual performance in business, the military, government or academia (preferably in multiple areas that pertain to the problems we face) that they can and will handle pressure and act at all times with integrity and good judgment.

The time for on the job training in lofty positions is over.

No one knows everything, so we need people whose demonstrated good judgment extends to acknowledging what they don't know, and deferring to those who are more qualified.

Even people who are competent in one or more areas do damage when they turn into "know-it-alls" or "buttinskys," imposing their view everywhere. Even worse are mediocrities or inept people who have too much confidence in themselves and override those with real expertise. They may have the formal authority to do so, but do irreparable damage to the stature of the institutions they represent. Washington hot air jokes were funny 30 or 40 years ago, but that time has passed.

We can adopt all the technical fixes in the world for health care, the auto industry, the financial sector, the energy sector or elsewhere, but they will only succeed in getting people to spend, borrow, invest and function if they are accompanied by a belief that the country is in good hands and that their persons are secure.

This will only happen if we are led by those who genuinely command respect.

Marty Robins is a corporate attorney (J.D. Harvard Law School) and adjunct law professor at the Northwestern University School of Law and DePaul University College of Law. He has authored two books and been frequently published in legal journals on various financial and intellectual property topics. He writes frequently for The Huffington Post.

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Filed under: Opinion
Tagged: Elena Kagan, Commerce Clause, Edward Markey, Washington
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