It’s fast becoming impossible for ordinary voters to know which politicians to believe.
The days of honest statesmen brokering deals behind closed doors in smoke filled rooms have long gone.
Instead voters are left with stage-managed set piece rallies, Twitter sound bites and statements that are not quite the whole truth.
US President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson both have reputations as being economical with the truth. It’s even worth counting your fingers after shaking hands to make sure you have all of them left.
Doing business with either comes down to listening very carefully for what is not said and trying to work out their motives.
Trusting your leader
As soon as one of them says they love their country and that’s their motivation, it’s time to start thinking about what they are gaining from the deal.
Bother are facing important elections.
General Election 2019 in the UK is Johnson’s bid to bolster his support to push his Brexit deal through Parliament without interference from Labour and other Remainers.
Trump is heading for re-election in November 2020 while fighting impeachment fires the Democrats are lighting all around him.
The big question is who would you trust?
Who should you vote for?
So how do you decide who to vote for – an honest joe or crooked candidate? And how do you know the propaganda spread in the media and on social networks is accurate?
The answer is you don’t.
You can put your mark on a ballot paper, hope for the best and hope your vote counts.
It doesn’t in 60 UK constituencies. The Liberal Democrats, the Greens and Plaid Cymru have stitched up the vote with an agreement not to stand against each other to not split the remain Brexit vote.
But that takes away choice and leaves voters a simple choice – the Tories or Brexit Party for out; Labour for dithering and the Lib Dems to remain. Both sides will gain from Labour, who have no clear policy.
The shambles is all about manipulating voters so politicians get their own way.
And isn’t that why your vote doesn’t really count?