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| Jeremy Ball Class of 2017 |
This semester I traveled to Frankfort, Kentucky twice a week
for work. While interning with the Kentucky State Senate, I witnessed firsthand
how Kentucky politics worked… for better, and worse. As a political science
major, I have been well aware of the prominence of partisan politics in our
government; from the local, state, and federal levels. That being said, working
in the midst of it all gave me a fresh perspective on our government officials
work to disenfranchise the general public. Don’t get me wrong, this is by far
not universal, and not every Kentucky legislature is guilty of playing the
political game; however, I have heard first-hand a number talk about supporting
a certain measure internally, but unable to help it advance because of partisan
politics.
When we reflect on our election cycle currently, and wonder
how the “political outsiders” are winning, we must reflect on the current
state-of-affairs of our political system. As a student who is incredibly
interested in politics, it did not turn me away from the concept of politics,
but I fully understand now how it can. When our representatives are more
focused on re-election and gaining majorities, they’re losing site of what
their primary focus is: helping their constituents. The saddest omen of my time
in Frankfort is that I don’t foresee an immediate change in how things are
going, in fact, what I see happening is the continued rise of the “Trumps.” The
obstruction in politics is very apparent, and I should hope our elected
officials realize the importance of moving away from this ongoing reality.
Jeremy Ball is a junior McConnell Scholar at the University of Louisville studying political science and economics.