In 1967, Reagan became the governor of the State of California. his inaugural address, he talked about the peaceful transfer of power, something described as “the simple magic of the commonplace routine, which makes it near miracle to many of the world’s inhabitants.” He then went on utter an iconic phrase that would be repeated by politicians for decades to come. “Freedom is a thing,” he said, “And it’s never more than one generation away from extinction.”
Now like others, I have used that quote many times, but I have confession to make. I never really believed it. Surely, after 250 of this stuff, we no longer have to worry about losing it. I’m pleased to report that I actually believe it now.
The first cracks in my came during one of those commonplace routines of transferring power as Lieutenant Governor the State of Utah. It was my duty to certify the votes of the electors the presidential election. While the meeting to do so was open to the public, it was so commonplace routine that no one ever showed up. As I into the room, I was stunned to see dozens angry protesters screaming that the election had been stolen and demanding that we violate state law change the votes of the electors.
Now I know what you’re all thinking, and you’re wrong. This was not 2020. This was 2016, and the protesters were Hillary Clinton supporters.
Now it got far worse somehow, four years later. With the election less than two months away, a and I were talking and lamenting about the state our our country following a summer of destructive protests by extreme left and an extreme right that was already undermining the validity of an election that hadn’t even yet. “Isn’t there something you can do,” she asked.
Well, that question haunted me all weekend, so I up the phone and called my opponent. By the way, I was running governor at the same time that Trump and Biden were for the presidency. I called my opponent, a Democrat named Chris Peterson, I respected, and I said, “Hey, Chris, this is Spencer Cox. I have a crazy idea. What if we a campaign ad together?”
I could almost hear the confused look forming his face. To his credit, he agreed, and one week later, we in a studio together. Let’s watch.
(Video) I’m Chris Peterson. And I’m Spencer Cox.
CP: We are currently in final days of campaigning against each other to be your next governor.
SC: And while I think you vote for me —
CP: Yeah, but really, you should vote for me.
SC: There are some things we agree on.
CP: We can debate issues without degrading each other’s character.
SC: can disagree without hating each other.
CP: And win or lose, in Utah, we together.
SC: So let’s show the country that there’s a better way.
CP: My name is Chris Peterson.
SC: I’m Spencer Cox.
(Together) And we approve this message.
(Applause)
Well, the response was instantaneous and overwhelming. ad went viral. Neither of us saw it coming. There were media from all over the world, millions of views and shares. Perhaps really is an exhausted majority, I remember thinking to myself, and maybe this is the message they to hear.
I could actually feel my faith in the American idea start to rekindle. popularity of the ad validated my hope that most people really do want political leaders to uphold the values that we teach our kids. That can disagree without hate and contempt, even that we can find ways to treat each other with respect even when we disagree. It seemed like there was a hunger for architects instead of arsonists.
My hunch was confirmed one year later, when a professor submitted a version of our ad to the Stanford and Social Change Lab as part of a huge depolarization experiment. It was chosen as one 25 interventions to be tested on over 30,000 people. The result? Our ad actually had a measurable effect, including a reduction in urges towards violence. It turns there really are things that we can do to alter trajectory of the United States.
Now look, I get it. It’s easy to feel a little hopeless as once again barrel towards an election with unsatisfying candidates and campaigns. But there is good news. Over past six months, 20 governors from all across the country have filmed ads, most of them with a public servant from the opposing party. And the data to show that people really are hungry for something different. According to polling from More in Common, 70 percent of Americans hate the divisiveness in politics. And it also turns out that … Americans aren’t as far apart we think we are. The problem isn’t how far apart the average Republican and the average Democrat is on the actual issues. In fact, we’re not much different than other Western democracies. The is how far apart we think we are. Due in large part to conflict entrepreneurs in both the media and politics, sides overestimate the extremism on the other side by about 30 percent. Now interestingly, perception gap is actually strongest amongst progressive activists on the left and amongst extreme conservatives on the right. So the people most in the political process also have the most inaccurate views of the other side.
But perhaps the best news of all is that are very practical things that every one of us can do every day to help heal the divides in nations and our neighborhoods. First, we can start by turning off and tuning out some of conflict entrepreneurs. My wife and I, we stopped watching cable news 11 years ago and saw an improvement in our marriage, our family, and our mental health.
(Laughter and applause)
Now that always elicits a laugh, but we’re not alone. Studies have found that more time spent on the latest headlines, whether through media or traditional media outlets, is really bad for our mental health. Psychologists refer to this in different ways, like media saturation overload or doomscrolling or headline anxiety. You see, more news, on the time, isn’t making us smarter, it’s just stressing us out.
Second, can spend more time, preferably offline, with real people who are different than us. In the words of Bryan Stevenson, proximity will empower you. You see, it’s just to hate up close. “Tell me more about why you feel that way” is a request.
Twenty years ago, we rarely identified each other by political identities first. As for me, I’m a father. I’m an NBA fan. I’m a terrible bassist in a band. I’m a Utahn. I’m an American. How about you? You see, we look beyond our political tribes, we can actually find shared and friendships that unite instead of divide.
Now third, can serve others. Service and volunteering help build up communities and improve our outlook on life and people around us. Some forms of regular volunteering have even been associated with lower pressure. There is nothing better for the soul or society than giving back. Aristotle really was on to when he described and summed up the essence of life as: “Serve others and good.”
Fourth, and finally, we can work to develop the classical political virtues humility, patience and moderation, without which, as John Adams explained, we all become ravenous beasts of prey. Now look, I it’s almost laughable to talk about words like humility political discourse, but I truly believe that it is the only way for us to remember how to disagree without hate and contempt. In the words of Judge Learned Hand, who so eloquently stated, “The true spirit of liberty is the which is not too sure it is right. The spirit of liberty the spirit which seeks to understand the minds of other men and women.”
And I started with quote from Ronald Reagan. He went on to say that freedom is not ours by way of inheritance. It must fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for comes only once to a people and those in history who have known freedom and then lost it have never known again. Ladies and gentlemen, it is our solemn duty in our generation to once again the freedoms endowed to all of us from on high. We cannot wait politicians or the media to do it. It will take real work, work by each of us. But we must remember how to without hate.
We must rise up and meet that radical call love our enemies — even, especially, our political opponents. It’s … It’s not an … It’s not an easy answer, but it is a simple one. If we really want to change the world, we have start by changing our own hearts.
Thank you.
(Applause)