A message to presidential candidates: Stop the bickering

Quit bickering!

If you have siblings, you probably heard that request close to 10,000 times while growing up.

When my mom asked us to quit bickering — each time with increased volume — she took action after the third warning, causing us to scatter. That stopped the bickering.

Too bad it doesn’t work on presidential candidates. It seems they don’t have to be in the same state to keep the snide remarks and catty comments spewing. How can we know what they have planned for our country’s future when they use air time to bicker and try to one up each other on rudeness? If Abraham Lincoln heard some of the comments being made, he would pull his stovepipe top hat down over his eyes.

When I was growing up, Dwight D. Eisenhower was one of my heroes. Probably because my dad liked him. And I liked Mamie too. (I even had bangs like hers.) But can you imagine Ike in a debate today? I can’t. I’m glad he’s not here to see it.

Since these candidates are being tested and have proven they’re not great at oral exams, perhaps it’s time to hand them a big, fat written test asking questions on how they’re going to cut the deficit, fix health care, handle illegal immigration, fight terrorism, etc. They’ll have to answer every question in 100 words or less. And if they write one bad thing about another candidate, it’s an automatic F, and they would be disqualified. Yep, kicked off the campaign trail.

The written tests would be published so we could finally see what the heck these people are thinking, the solutions they have in mind and perhaps why on earth they want the job. I mean really — don’t we have to question the sanity of a person who wants to be president these days? The price they pay for power is far too great. I’m sure they’d say they’re running because they love this country and they want to be of service.

If only the candidates could understand they would be doing us a service if they stopped their sophomoric bickering and showed off the good American that we hope is deep within all of them.

This story was originally published March 10, 2016 at 6:44 PM with the headline "A message to presidential candidates: Stop the bickering."