Kant brings about the topic of “moral law.” He reasons that the morality of an action is good based on its intrinsic values; those actions cannot have any root in anything evil. For a long time, politicians have given many promises and cannot come through with all of them. It is honestly tough, as there are many checks and balances as to what a single politician can do. Would those promises violate Kant’s moral law? It’s also a matter of perspective as to what is evil and just.
This site tracks the promises of recent and current presidents. Many presidents fail to uphold their promises and even try to stall for more time. This “problem” has been going on for a long time. It’s understandable why they do so: to get more possible voters and pander to their emotional side. Would Kant’s perspective affect future votes and indirectly those promises?
https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/promises/gop-pledge-o-meter/
Hi Theodore,
I agree with your application of Kant’s philosophy to current day issues. When presidents make promises (especially in hopes to get elected), they win the general public’s favor by promising that their issues will be solved. However, as you stated, checks and balances really limit the politician’s ability to carry out those promises. Kant discusses how making false promises is a way for one to get what they want. This leads to others losing trust in that person, and eventually, the “promises” that they make are completely worthless. So in the end, I think that politicians have the right intention, but they need to consider what’s realistic before making outrageous promises to the public.