I read an interesting article by Allen Bourdius over at Hot Air this morning about this election cycle.

[Setting, 2004] If Bush isn’t reelected, John Kerry will destroy America and we will lose the war! This is the most important election in our lifetimes!

[Setting, 2008] This is the most important election in our lifetimes! America will be over if we don’t stop Hillary…uhm…uh…Obama!

[Setting, 2012] If we don’t defeat Obama in the most important election of our lifetimes, we won’t get rid of Obamacare and will lose the supreme court for decades!

[Setting, 2016 (a.k.a. 2008 rewind)] This is the most important election in our lifetimes! America will be over if we don’t stop Hillary…uhm Bernie…uh Hillary!

Sound familiar? It should. I could also toss in the same bits for the midterm elections of 2006, 2010, and 2014 – and for pre-2004 election cycles. And it’s all wrong. There is no one “most important election of our lifetimes”. Hyperbole is a very poor substitute for substance.

Pretty interesting don’t you think? He’s correct in that we’ve faced the same over-the-top breathless utterances during every major election cycle since..well.. since forever. Bourdius points out that many conservatives are and have been caught up in cults of personality regarding Trump, Cruz, and even Kasich. And he’s correct. I’ve been watching it unfold in train wreck fascination for months now.

For all the railing against the “establishment” and DC politics, Bourdius rightly points out this election cycle is no different from those in the past – the focus is on Washington whether we like it or not. Does that mean we ignore national level politics and focus on local and state elections as he suggests? No, that defeats the purpose. However, the messaging needs to change. More importantly, reason needs to trump (couldn’t resist) ill-informed and divisive rhetoric.

Bourdius premise is that this isn’t the most important election of our lifetimes.

Electing one person, or winning one single election cycle—or for that matter, defeating one candidate in one cycle—will change absolutely nothing long term.

I disagree with that statement. Who we elect as our next President of the United States will indeed have a far-reaching impact on the very fabric and bedrock that is our country. Unless miracles happen, we are looking at placing not one but potentially THREE new justices onto the bench at the United States Supreme Court.

Who we elect as President in November will determine if the court moves further left or to that of a more Constitutionally-oriented court. Look at the cases the Court is hearing and has heard right now. They cover the topics of Immigration, Obamacare (specifically the religious exemption), 4th Amendment search & seizure, racial bias, voting rights, interstate commerce, legislative district boundaries, and much more. All issues and rulings that will and do affect every American in one way or another.

I would argue that this is indeed one of the most important elections we’ve ever faced. The future of this country, our Constitution, and who will be placed on the United States Supreme Court in the next four years is at stake.