Whatever Happened to Compromise?
Both Senators Obama and McCain caught grief from their "base" and the media last week for being "flipfloppers" Obama was criticized for reversing his position by opening the door to offshore drilling and McCain for reversing his position on tax increases and opening the door to increases via social security payroll taxes.
In actuality, neither man "flipflopped". Obama continues to oppose offshore drilling and McCain continues to oppose tax increases. What Obama said was that we need comprehensive reform of our energy policy to concentrate on alternatives to oil, but that, if he could not get his policy passed by Congress without some concession to offshore drilling, he would agree to a very limited program. McCain's comments on social security taxes were even more benign. He said what we all know; social security needs fixing, and in his Administration, everything would be on the table.
While both candidates are trying very hard to differentiate themselves from each other, they have one common and very much needed trait. Both men have strong views on the important issues of the day. However, both are keenly aware that to pass legislation in this closely divided Congress, strict adherence to ideology leads to stalemate, and that the failure to pass legislation on energy, environment, health care, and social security will lead to disaster.
From the Franklin Roosevelt Administration through the Clinton Administration, governance has been achieved through the art of compromise, even when the Congress was controlled by the opposition party. Unfortunately, starting, with the Newt Gingrich era in 1994, there has been a steady erosion of that art until it reached its Zenith in the first six years of the G.W. Bush Administration. (Read The Second Civil War, by Ron Brownstein, Penguin Press 2007) The current situation with a Republican President and a Democratic Congress and no spirit of compromise has the left the country with very little governance.
So, the good news is that on Jan 20, 2009, we will no longer have an ideologue in the Oval Office. Now, if we can get some real "politicians" in Congress, in the best sense of that term, maybe we get something done, something that will not satisfy the leftys or rightys but will work for the vast majority of Americans, the ambidextrous ones!
In actuality, neither man "flipflopped". Obama continues to oppose offshore drilling and McCain continues to oppose tax increases. What Obama said was that we need comprehensive reform of our energy policy to concentrate on alternatives to oil, but that, if he could not get his policy passed by Congress without some concession to offshore drilling, he would agree to a very limited program. McCain's comments on social security taxes were even more benign. He said what we all know; social security needs fixing, and in his Administration, everything would be on the table.
While both candidates are trying very hard to differentiate themselves from each other, they have one common and very much needed trait. Both men have strong views on the important issues of the day. However, both are keenly aware that to pass legislation in this closely divided Congress, strict adherence to ideology leads to stalemate, and that the failure to pass legislation on energy, environment, health care, and social security will lead to disaster.
From the Franklin Roosevelt Administration through the Clinton Administration, governance has been achieved through the art of compromise, even when the Congress was controlled by the opposition party. Unfortunately, starting, with the Newt Gingrich era in 1994, there has been a steady erosion of that art until it reached its Zenith in the first six years of the G.W. Bush Administration. (Read The Second Civil War, by Ron Brownstein, Penguin Press 2007) The current situation with a Republican President and a Democratic Congress and no spirit of compromise has the left the country with very little governance.
So, the good news is that on Jan 20, 2009, we will no longer have an ideologue in the Oval Office. Now, if we can get some real "politicians" in Congress, in the best sense of that term, maybe we get something done, something that will not satisfy the leftys or rightys but will work for the vast majority of Americans, the ambidextrous ones!
posted by Paul at
12:40 PM
4 Comments:
Good point. The question then becomes why the hysterical reactions from the press and from campaigns to create juvenile labels like "flip-flopper" The campaigns are dumbed down to the level of elementary school tactics. I am reminded of the movie "Idiocracy" time and time again. In that hilarious movie everything is reduced to name calling and slogans and nobody really knows why anything is the way it is. They just know the pitch lines that some marketer stuck in their brains with a thousand repetitious commercials.
A long time ago I was in high school and college and still idealist and under the misguided belief that I could actually change things -- it is the politics of my generation that dissuaded me from any involvement in politics at all. All I have seen since I became old enough to vote is this tug of war and stalemate. I haven't see where change is possible, so I have ceased to care. At this point any change is good change, because it gives me hope there will be change. My dream is for government to stop talking about change and start initiating change -- I am tired of being idealist, I wan to be realistic.
A civil war is really a good concept name for our situation today. Unfortunately so many of our citizens today have no concept of what that was all about for us years ago. But, perhaps I am being ethnocentric, any civil war has the same effect. Our current civil war is one withot gunpowder or dead bodies. Often our friends and neighbors are on the other side but we avoid talking about it because it gets to personal and we are all, at least I am, tired of conflict. I just want to retreat and let the big guns fight it out, I'll wait it out. And while I wait I watch hoping for a leader with a capital L who can influence the whole morass to swirl up into a cohesive movement and create more interest in human potential for good,(reversing climate change, higher value on education, finding a way to co opt big business for the good of the many, always taking the high road and creating a role model for youth). Im just sitten' here in what feels like a barren desert, when it comes to politics, looking for a voice in the wilderness that I can relate to. A part of me says go out , get involved, and another part of me says you go out there honey and you will just become a part of the morass that discusts you. I guess I have my own civil war / conflict going on inside me- a paralysis.
To Carolina:
I share your feelings. However, I find that geting out and doing something about it always feels better than just sitting back in disgust. Work for the presidential candidate of your choice if you feel that he has the potential to become the leader that we sare working for.
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