There are many circumstances in which politics and ethics intertwine, including:
We are a fallen people, so placing one’s self-interest before the benefit of the group is deep within our very nature. The pressure put on politicians to make the decisions that best direct society are tantamount to the choices made by the Sunday pastor as he wrestles with how best to guide his flock along the straightest path to heaven.
One of the fundamental ethical issues in politics has been and forever shall revolve around the concept of utilitarianism and whether or not a politician should prioritize the contentment of the majority, even if it means sacrificing the interests of a minority. In most cases, the search for the position that strikes the proper balance between the welfare of the majority and the protection of the rights of the few is a politician’s unceasing challenge.
That is, unless they are not willing to risk the immediate selfish desire for perpetual political position and the power/prestige that inevitably comes along. In these cases, one could argue that their situation is not to necessarily do what is best, but instead bow to the will of the majority, regardless of emotionality that may blind the masses from the truth, maintaining a politician’s electability and authority.
A cornerstone of political ethics is transparency, a mantra most every executive and legislator espouses when both entering office and uses to levy criticism upon the outgoing administration. Openness in the political processes and holding elected leaders accountable for their actions is essential for a morally sound political system.
That accountability was supposed to be most frequently found in the election process itself, with the occasional power to recall those who egregiously usurped their authority prior to an election opportunity. However, it has become much more murky in the ever-growing number of non-competitive states and districts in which the pattern of tribal mentality through party-line voting prevent the worst offenders from ever facing a truly competitive environment.
To that end, corruption is a never-ending ethical quagmire in politics in which the participants have only become more sinister over time. The misuse of power through bribery and graft erode the trust between citizens and their government, undermining the moral foundation of society.
The general overall lack of transparency and accountability unfortunately make truly condemning and punishing the worst offenders particularly difficult, especially in those situations in which one party rule prevents a competitive environment, thus destroying the opportunity for political culpability from ever being applied.
Particularly in America in which our founding documents clearly note the imperative nature of such protections by the government, upholding human rights is the most paramount of moral obligations grappled with in politics. The violation of human rights, whether domestically or internationally, raises grave ethical concerns that demand to be confronted.
However, when politics and, in particular, the rights of minorities come into contact, politics nearly always wins. It takes a very special group of politicians willing to risk their positions to fly in the face of potentially overwhelming, or certainly exceptionally vocal backlash, in order to place the demands of the ethical concerns first and foremost before the desire of the majority of the populous.