According to public opinion, politicians are generally classed as liars, tossed in with the stereotypical used-car salesman (my apologies to all the honest and hard-working used-car salesmen reading this column . . . and all the honest politicians out there who have gotten a bad rap).

This moniker is not entirely unearned (by some), only misapplied. Just because some politicians seem incapable of telling the truth, that doesn’t mean that all politicians should be painted with the same brush. In fact, all politicians should be held to a very high standard when it comes to truth-telling. Their promises—to voters and taxpayers— should mean something.

Truth is important. For the survival of a civilized society, access to the truth is essential. Every criminal trial is an attempt to determine the facts; that which is completely true. The well-known courtroom promise to “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth” is intended to create a society, a culture, and an environment where a person’s word is reliable. Decisions will be based on the statements of eyewitnesses. People’s lives and property hang in the balance. That’s also true of politicians, educators, and media. Voters make decisions based on their words. When those words are not “the whole truth,” voters will make bad decisions based on false information.

Sometimes people refer to “little white lies.” That phrase refers to untrue statements employed to accomplish a good purpose. Some people think it’s okay to lie if it prevents some negative consequence. “The dog ate my homework,” comes to mind.

Where does such thinking lead? Politicians may campaign on “balanced budgets” as the Conservatives did in 2015 after racking up over $150 billion in new debt during their ten years in office. Politicians may promise “no new taxes” as Ontario Liberals did under Dalton McGuinty, who earned a Pinocchio from Canadian Taxpayers for winning the election on that promise and subsequently raising taxes in spite of it. In some other cultures, “white lies” are taken for granted. Promoters of radical Islam have made lying an honourable thing if it is done to further the expansion of Islam. Lying to unbelievers to promote Islam is called “taqiyya.” Such a concept is entirely foreign to Christian culture. Jesus even called Himself “the Truth,” an indication of the value of truth in our society.

In the U.S., presidential candidate Hillary Clinton claimed—regarding her private email server—that:

1. Nothing marked “classified” was sent or received.
2. No classified material was emailed through her private server.
3. She only used one device for sending and receiving.
4. All her work-related emails were returned to the State Department.
5. Her lawyers had read her emails individually and in detail.

Testifying before U.S Congressional House Committee, FBI Director James Comey answered that ALL FIVE of those statements were false. They were lies. Were they “white lies”? Is there such a thing? Is a liar fit for high office?

Back to Dalton McGuinty: In the 2003 Ontario provincial election, then Liberal leader Dalton McGuinty promised that—if they formed government—the Ontario Liberals would “balance the budget, not run deficits and not raise taxes without the explicit consent of Ontario taxpayers . . .” Of course, Ontario Liberals broke all three promises, along with many others. The tragedy is that Ontario voters did not learn from their mistakes but elected them again and have been paying the price ever since.

What we need to realize is that if a man will lie to you about simple things like taxes and debt, he cannot be trusted with things more important and more complex—things like educating your children according to your values or protecting innocent human life at both ends of life’s journey.

As taxpayers and as voters, we have a responsibility to elect men and women who can be trusted to tell the truth—all the time. We need discernment of character. On top of outright lies we also must face the more confusing barrage of deceptions. Words like “choice” and “autonomy” are meant to sell us on ideas which we would otherwise reject. The social engineers on the left never use phrases like “baby-killing” or “killing old people to save money.” Yet those goals are hidden within their policies. “Free Trade” sounds good but apparently it only applies to some. “Saving the planet from climate change”—who could be against that? It may mean just another tax grab that does nothing to save the planet. All of us are against “bullying.” That distraction has been used for more than a decade to cover for the introduction of sexual perversion in our public schools.

We in the Christian Heritage Party believe that moral integrity includes a solemn reverence for the truth. Unless we, and all those who love life, liberty, and family are willing to put truthfulness and character above political expediency, we will have nothing to offer Canadians. Let’s offer Canadians the truth that can set them free. Truth has nothing to hide. Truth is its own reward.

To support policies based on truth and politicians who hold to a firm standard of truth, join CHP Canada.

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