Alain Badiou breaks it down like this: democracy, philosophy, and politics. Democracy makes philosophy possible. Without democracy there can be no thought. And thought is the search for truths, universal truths. As for politics, something bad happens here for philosophy. Because philosophy is about truths—locating and articulating them—it finds the environment of politics hostile to its ends. Politics is the area of action, of translating thought into actuality. But politics (the area of action) is not the area of (or dominated by) truths, but about (and dominated by) opinions and persuasion—doxa and peithein.

An example: Kucinich’s recent resolution to impeach Dick Cheney for grossly exaggerating the danger that Iraq posed to American security. Though having its source in a Democratic representative, Kucinich, the Republicans promoted it; they wanted the Democrats to vote on the resolution, to take an official position on the matter—impeach for Cheney or don’t impeach Cheney. The Democrats were able to kill (or park) the resolution with a 218 party-line vote. Why did the Democrats not act on the resolution? Because of public opinion.

Such a clash would have forced Democrats to choose between their liberal base, which might cheer a Cheney impeachment, and a broader electorate…

The politicians were worried about opinions and not about the truth, which is this: Cheney fabricated “a threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction to justify the war in Iraq.”

“Impeachment is not on our agenda,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.). “We have some major priorities. We need to focus on those.”

The area of politics has been hostile to philosophy, and its project and policy of truths, since the death of Socrates.