Everyone lies from time to time. As a result, we can only conclude that there are far more lying citizens in the world than there are lying politicians. But politicians are public figures who are provided enormous authority and power, they get far more attention than the average citizen, and they depend on their public image and sales points for survival. Politicians are simply easier targets for scrutiny and are put in a position where lying may be the only option.
This topic forces the assumption that “all politicians lie”. People make such broad and all inclusive statements every day, but offer no concrete proof, or specific examples whatsoever. This is a case of lying to distract attention away from their own lying political favorites. We have no proof that the average politician lies any more than the average mechanic, insurance salesperson, doctor, lawyer, parent, apartment complex manager, or anyone else.
But today, more politicians are riding high atop a mountain of obvious, often silly, and frequently infuriating lies. It means that the nature of the job has categories of lying:
For politeness and conduct: A politician might lie to a ranting lunatic at a Town Hall meeting and say that he or she “Really cares…”
In formal settings: A politician might make a diplomatic lie in order not to offend an important constituency or contributor.
When blindsided by a question: A politician might be forced to give on-the-spot answers that turn out to be factually incorrect. One congressman was notorious for documenting every minute of his day so that he could not be blindsided by a question and then called a liar for saying “I don’t know, maybe I was golfing.”
Today’s clowning, foolish extremist politicians think that they have special powers to convince, con, scam or to manipulate others by uttering bald faced lies, then getting belligerent or dodging the questions when they are confronted. Such tactics get rewards from certain segments of the population, so the tactics will continue to be used.
Some politicians are sociopaths and psychopaths who have spent a lifetime in controlling and manipulating others. Such people can no longer control their compulsions to lie. Most mature adults have experienced life with people who lie for lying’s sake, even when it would serve them better to tell the truth. Politicians are no different when they have become addicted to lying in order to get what they want from others.
A politician may decide to not answer a question no matter how aggressively and persistently he or she is asked. A politician might change the subject, duck and dodge, and otherwise make a fool of him or herself, and that is lying by omission or evasion.
Other politicians are accused of lying by evasion or omission when they are actually exercising their right to not answer a question that is off topic or out of line.
A politician might be bound by security rules or may not know whether if talking might reveal classified information. Believe it or not, even mentioning that the classified information exists might be a security violation. This will give the appearance of dodging the question or withholding information, but is not lying, no matter how shrill, aggressive and persistent the questioner happens to be.
In the past, many politicians were statesmen and stateswomen who conducted themselves in a fashion that did not call for excessive lying. Most politicians now operate in a minefield of privileged, controversial, classified, or volatile information and communications issues that call for just saying “no” to some questions. But instead of saying “no”, the politicians make something up and manage to convince many people that they are telling the truth.
Most politicians deal with hideously complicated matters, but they have limited understandings. Such politicians know that the audience has even more limitations than they do. This opens up opportunities for charismatic opportunists to tell blatant lies, then to defend themselves with a persistent, obnoxious and even pugnacious attitiude.
But most of today’s politicians are forced to tell more and more lies because they work in a culture and a world where lying, or where accusing everyone of lying is a fixed and sad way of life for those who wish to succeed.