Politicians are optimizing for one objective: to be re-elected.

This is very different one from the objective I want them to focus on: improving the lives of their constituency.

In an ideal world, politicians who don't work on improving the lives of their constituency wouldn't get voted for.

As that is not the case and improving the lives of their constituency doesn't necessarily get them voted for again AND whatever good they did may get undone before it really shows its effects: of course they only care about being reelected... Even if they had ideals and morals to begin with.

	▲	ZnerflBerp 6 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Information and investment assymetry means there will always be election-winning rewards for dirty politicking. An actually effective politician, who has morals must balance the two. And they must try to be more skillful in general at politicking than their unscruplous rivals.