When The Who’s Tommy catapulted onto the music scene in 1969, Americans were enraptured by the haunting music and story of a fictionalized young boy, Tommy Walker, who witnessed his father kill his mother’s lover, was sworn to secrecy by his parents, and retreated into an uncommunicative catatonic state.
Eventually, the adolescent Tommy became “the deaf, dumb and blind kid” using the vibrations of the pinball machine to master the game and become an international pinball wizard.
Richard Cizik
Almost 60 years later, the music of Tommy is still thrilling but the story has new relevance for today.
In the play, Tommy’s parents said, “You didn’t hear it, didn’t see it” when Tommy witnessed the murder, causing him to go mute.
Now, in real life, too many leaders we count on — in Congress, in state legislatures and in local governments — also look the other way and go mute, even as millions of Americans struggle to make ends meet, ICE arrests more than a thousand tax-paying immigrants a day, and huge AI data centers drive up utility bills while consuming millions of gallons of water daily in communities from coast to coast.
While looking away is bad enough, what is even more troubling for the future of democracy are today’s shape-shifting leaders who often speak passionately on an issue and then vote for the status quo.
You don’t need to go further than the contentious debate over confirming Todd Blanche as U.S. Attorney General to see how expressions of “deep concern” often fade away when the vote is taken.
During the Senate confirmation hearings, Sens. John Cornyn from Texas and Thom Tillis from North Carolina were forceful in objecting to the $1.776 billion slush fund Blanche helped create and his arrangement granting President Donald Trump, his sons and the Trump businesses broad IRS tax immunity. The senators claimed they held the cards, yet when Blanche agreed to some concessions, they quickly announced their support.
This rapid folding by two senators in the final months of their terms in office was followed by Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, another who leaves office in January.
Cassidy was the deciding vote on Blanche’s confirmation. When Cassidy went to the Senate floor to announce his vote, he acknowledged his reservations about Blanche’s past actions but then stated he would vote for Blanche as a pragmatic alternative to a potentially worse replacement.
These are not the only recent examples of political leaders turning a blind eye or remaining silent when matters affecting the well-being of the public are at stake. Look at the lengthening list of stony silence from elected and appointed officials at all levels of government in this country:
- When Elon Musk’s unofficial Department of Government Efficiency gained direct access to highly sensitive government payment and data systems, 140 House Democrats demanded answers regarding potential privacy violations. However, congressional Republican leadership remained silent.
- Legislative leaders in Pennsylvania used state resources and employees for political campaigns for years while internal administrative and oversight offices looked the other way. They treated illegal state-funded campaign work as standard practice until a grand jury stepped in.
- Local and state officials across the U.S. are frequently bypassing public input and minimizing environmental or noise concerns to fast-track massive AI data center developments. Recently, residents near Vineland, N.J., near a proposed 2.6-million-square-foot data facility, voiced intense frustrations over unaddressed water usage figures and low-frequency humming vibrations making nearby homes unlivable. Yet, with the backing of city leaders, the AI developers maintained they stayed technically within minimal noise limits.
- Surveys by organizations like the American Library Association show more than 70% of voters oppose removing books from public libraries. Yet book bans often happen quietly through administrative decisions by small groups, school boards or state mandates rather than public votes, which can make it feel like the community has no say.
These officials “didn’t hear it?” They “didn’t see it?”
So much of the Tommy story from six decades ago is still relevant today.
After Tommy becomes a pop-culture icon, his mother smashes a mirror, which miraculously restores Tommy’s senses. The healed Tommy is treated like a spiritual guru but rejects his celebrity status, instead choosing to find peace and reconnect with his family.
The song “See Me. Feel Me. Touch Me. Heal Me” is Tommy’s powerful cry for human connection, spiritual healing and recognition.
As Americans consider the different candidates competing in the midterm elections, the gospel of the pinball wizard is simply this: The power of this country rests with “we, the people” who should demand to be seen, heard, touched with helpful hands and hearts, and healed through policies that allow hard-working individuals to provide for themselves and their families.
Put another way, political leaders who don’t see us, don’t know us and are not representing our interests should find other work.
Richard Cizik serves as executive director of Evangelicals for Democracy, which brings together people of faith — Republicans, Democrats and independents of all walks of life — who believe that as Americans, we are stronger and more resilient together than when we are divided.