You do not need me to tell you about how our American government is currently in disarray.
In the last decade, we have experienced all sorts of governmental constructs. We have seen a Democrat-controlled government, a Republican-controlled government, a mixed House and Senate, and a Republican legislator with a Democrat executive.
Coming this November, it is likely we will see either a mixed House and Senate again, or possibly a Democratic legislator and a Republican executive. Basically, we have seen nearly all the possible shapes our government can create in the last decade, yet we are still stuck with the same thing: frustration.
John Haltiwanger of Newsweek reports, “approval of Congress is at 16 percent… The last time the approval rating for Congress was lower was in July 2016.” Additionally, according to Gallup, Congress has not had an approval rating over 30 percent since 2009. Congress has not even passed roughly 400 bills, the historical average for any given two-term Congress, since 2007, according to Govtrack. To put it in layman’s terms, our government has sucked for about a decade.
Unfortunately for Americans, we still need our government to do their jobs, yet it has failed us time and time again. Our government is so inefficient Americans have turned toward other avenues for aid and assistance. One troubling trend is the reliance on big corporations to replace our government. 
Leanna Garfield of Business Insider reports, “Domino’s announced that it has started paying construction crews to fill potholes in towns across the US.” In 2018, in the most wealthy and powerful country the world has ever seen, a pizza company is fixing our roads because our government refuses to pass a substantial infrastructure bill.
Kristina Swallow, the president of the American Society of Civil Engineers, states, “The trend that is troubling is that companies… and citizens feel compelled to pick up the slack on this government responsibility,” as reported by Garfield.
Infrastructure is not the only area our government is failing our country. Issues such as “healthcare, affordable housing, and fresh food access” are all services which are “usually heavily funded by the government rather than by corporations,” Garfield explains. GoFundMe is used to help people pay for medical bills, Google is constructing affordable housing, grocery stores and restaurants are donating fresh foods to food banks, and NASA is selling ad space on rockets and satellites to help offset budget cuts. Companies have replaced our government.
The problem with this concept is the underlying truth: the government is supposed to work for us, and companies only work for themselves. Companies need to make a profit either by hook, or by crook. Everything they do to aid or support communities is somehow connected to their bottom line. Domino’s, for example, is paving roads to help their delivery drivers.
Companies have no incentive to help anyone but themselves, unless it can make them a quick buck. Public service and charity work can go a long way in building a good reputation. A good reputation which can hide other secrets and encourage customers to shop guilt free. Companies do not, will not and cannot care about you, your family or your friends. They do, will and can only care about their customers. We cannot trust companies the same way we are supposed to trust our government.
On the other hand, the government is supposed to function for all of us. The U.S. government is one of the people, by the people and for the people. If the government refuses to serve us as Americans, then who do they serve? What is the point of having a representative government if it does not succeed in its ultimate goal of serving the voters? Our political leaders have a duty to work for the American public, but on a more basic level: it is their job. How can we have congressmen and women who stay in Washington for countless amounts of decades doing nothing we beg them for?
This November, regardless of party or beliefs, we should all agree this is unacceptable. We cannot allow our frustration to be normal. We should not turn to companies because our government is terrible. We should turn to a new government. We should turn to new leaders. Please vote this November because while it may seem big businesses can do everything, we do not want them voting for us.