Political "dirty hands" and epistemic concerns for voters

As I follow the political activities of the presidential candidates, I wonder what sound conclusions I can draw from what I hear them say given the nature of the political arena, and its tendency towards creating an environment that promotes "dirty hands" decision-making. In this context, I'm referring to the possibility that politicians may promulgate a position they are morally opposed to in order to curry favor with a certain segment of the electorate, presumably rationalizing that their being elected will allow them to pursue a greater good.

The problem of "dirty hands" relies on certain assumptions and has been expounded by a variety of theorists, but the term itself seems to have originated with Sartre's play Les Mains Sales or The Dirty Hands. However, Laurie Calhoun, and perhaps others, believe its roots date back to Plato's Apology. In any case, the basic idea appears similar to a utilitarian calculation (however, as Calhoun points out, the "calculation" itself is difficult to make, even for someone who subscribes to a teleological moral philosophy) where sometimes it is necessary to decide between two moral wrongs in order to accomplish some end.

While the "dirty hands" scenarios I've seen most often involve political leaders faced with decisions of whether to go to war where innocents will be killed to stop a genocide or whether to torture suspects to attempt to acquire information that could save lives, I am speaking here of a different example, one less obvious, but perhaps ultimately not less important. As I stated above, politicians may be faced with a decision to forsake a position they believe is morally justified, for one they believe is not, based on the belief that they will not be elected to office otherwise, and will therefore be unable to pursue a greater moral goal.

I am more inclined than I once was to accept the necessity of politicians compromising their moral principles under certain circumstances (as Michael Walzer asserts, guilt is a necessary mental state for a politician to justify a "dirty hands" decision). As Hoederer exclaims to the idealist in Sartre's play, "...you invoke purity as your rationalization for doing nothing." To maintain all of one's moral principles absolutely as a presidential candidate would likely lead to defeat, and ultimately accomplish nothing (although Suzanne Dovi argues the politicians unwilling to compromise their morals are critically necessary).

Here I am more interested in exploring the problem voters have in forming beliefs about politicians who may be engaging in "dirty hands" decision-making. This may lead to the electorate believing that candidates represent positions that in reality their moral compasses, absent electoral concerns, would steer them away from. In response to this epistemic concern, I propose it is necessary for voters to base their decisions on more than what candidates say and write, and what is said and written by others about them, during their current campaigns.

Most presidential candidates have been engaged in public service for many years prior to their declaration to run for president. That provides a body of evidence regarding not just what they said they would do before having been elected or appointed to a prior public office, but also what they did once there. If, for example, a trend exists where there has been little or no change in candidates' policy positions over an extended period of time, I would surmise that regardless of what the candidates are currently stating, their long held position is likely the one they would take if elected. Conversely, if candidates have displayed a tendency to change positions regularly in response to then current public opinion, that type of behavior also will likely follow them into office.

Similarly, many political operatives that advise candidates throughout their campaigns have worked on prior political campaigns, or in other capacities that may expose their political beliefs. As such advisers often accompany candidates who win into office, their apparent ideologies could be indicative of the type of advice and information the president would receive. Since a president relies on advisers and deputies to analyze and convey an otherwise overwhelming amount of information, their espoused positions may be as enlightening as any other.

I am not suggesting that the expressed positions of candidates during the current campaign be ignored. To do so would assume much more than could be justified with the limited information we as voters have. However, I think the evidence is ample to suggest that the current crop of presidential candidates has engaged in some "dirty hands" decision-making that requires us as voters to do some digging to ensure as best we can the validity of our own decisions.