Unethical behavior must be called out and excised. Are you listening, George Santos?

Members of Congress were ranked among the lowest in a Gallup Poll about ethics in various professions. That polling was done in December, before the scandal involving Rep. George Santos hit the headlines. Santos is a freshman Republican from New York who admitted to “embellishing” his resume. His fabrications included false claims about his religion, family background, education, and prior employment.

This kind of thing is bad for the profession of politics. The public mind is fascinated by the spectacle of scandal. Even if 9 out of 10 politicians are saints, we fixate on the misdeeds of the sinners.

The Gallup survey asked participants to rank the honesty and ethical standards of people in different fields. Joining members of Congress at the bottom of the list were telemarketers and car salespeople. Nurses, doctors and pharmacists ranked highest.

Of course, an opinion poll does not tell us whether any of these professionals really are ethical. But the public perception of integrity is important. If people think that medical professionals are unethical, they will stop trusting them. The pandemic’s mask and vaccine battles showed us that skepticism about the medical profession can undermine public health.

Skepticism about the ethics of members of Congress does not bode well for the health of our democracy. If we believe that our law-makers are unethical, then why should we obey the laws they make?

When I give workshops on professional ethics, I point out that there are two reasons to be ethical. The obvious point is that it is good to be good. Ethical behavior is its own reward. We ought to do the right thing simply because it is right. But external perception also matters, and it is important for professionals to cultivate social trust. Without that trust, professionals cannot perform their duties.

Professions serve important roles in society. Society expects professionals to do the right thing, tell the truth, and care about the common good. Ethical scandals can tarnish the reputations of all members of a profession. A few bad apples in an occupation can undermine social trust in others doing similar work.

Members of the clergy understand this. At one point, clergy were well-esteemed. Fifteen years ago, 58% of Americans ranked clergy as highly ethical. But scandals involving pastors and priests have sullied the reputation of the clergy as a whole. This year, only 34% of Americans ranked clergy as highly ethical.

Ethical reputation is also politically polarized. Of interest in the Gallup survey are results involving high school teachers and journalists. Teachers came in fourth behind the three health care professions in the ethics poll. But when results are analyzed by party affiliation there is a stark divide: 73% of Democrats view high school teachers as highly ethical, while only 37% of Republicans do. A similar disparity exists for journalists: 41% of Democrats think journalists are highly ethical, while only 9% of Republicans do.

Those results reflect partisan squabbles about fake news and the politicization of education. Republicans think that journalists and high school teachers are dishonest and unethical. This kind of distrust has a negative impact on public education and the need for a common source of information and knowledge. The result will be more polarization and discord.

To remedy this negative perception, teachers and journalists — and other professions — need to be more public about the importance of ethics in their professions. The same is true of members of Congress. To rebuild our trust, we need to hear about how codes of ethics work in these professions. We need to read stories about good teachers, journalists, and congressmen doing the right thing. And we need to see bad actors disciplined.

This brings us back to Santos. Even the appearance of unethical behavior leaves a taint. And the public is fixated on ethical lapses. To remedy this, professionals should be held accountable. Their unethical deeds must be exposed and condemned by others in their profession. And the miscreants should resign or be forced out. This kind of discipline is not only about punishing the wrongdoer. It is also part of the process of ensuring the public that the profession is serious about doing the right thing.

Andrew Fiala is a professor of philosophy and director of The Ethics Center at Fresno State. Contact him: fiala.andrew@gmail.com.