Ted Sorensen, who crafted President Kennedy's most famous speeches, defined governance simply: "To govern is to choose." What an institution chooses is policy — to act one way versus an alternative way. It chooses one future over another.
We all make choices, but in the end our choices make us. — Ken Levine
Politics is how the institution chooses its future. When alternative futures of consequence to the institution appear, we have an issue. The choice of action on an issue temporarily ends debate about the institution's alternative futures by selecting one future. The moment an institution sees itself as having to select is also the greatest opportunity to have maximum control over the consequences of selecting. It is the decision point.
Effective decision makers try to see decision points, to think new thoughts, and see new options. Inevitably, in the absence of undisputed facts, sufficient clear analyses, and abundant lead time, decision makers face pressure to weigh the unweighable, compare the incomparable, and develop conviction by consensus. They arbitrate and placate their fellows to avoid end runs and, in general, try to "keep things under control."
The label we assign to an actor in governance can change with the role that actor plays. A decision maker acting on behalf of a group — or recognized by a group as acting in a way that affects it — is a policy maker, a decision maker with authority. One assertion hiding behind these statements is that any decision roots in someone's preceding policy choice. Another is that all choices in politics are, ultimately, about ends — alternative futures.
A policy maker would not intentionally select an end for which the institution has insufficient means. To choose implies that one has the time, talent, and treasure to implement the choice. Regular access to resources allows a governing institution to build assets and become self-sustaining — including a bureaucracy capable of implementing the policy and assessing performance. When resources are sufficient, it is usually because the members consider the governors and governance legitimate.
Positive politics may take longer — but we achieve more and have more fun doing it.