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