How partisanship is preventing political cooperation
“A house divided against itself cannot stand,” said Abraham Lincoln in his famous 1858 speech accepting his Senatorial nomination for the state of Illinois.
These words came in a time of turmoil for the United States; the American Civil War was only a few years away. Lincoln’s words still hold true today.
While the nation does not currently face the same issues, we stand divided by a similarly polarizing force: Partisanship.
This is not a call for radicalism, although the ideas put forth may seem so, nor is it a call for either of the ruling American political parties to dominate the other and usurp all control of the United States.
This is a call for cooperation among the men and women called to represent average American citizens. The utter refusal these past years to reach across the proverbial aisle and work together to reach a solution acceptable to the American citizenry has set us on a dangerous path.
Especially in the last two years, the rhetoric used by congressional members has become increasingly violent and radical. Pundits have been guilty of the same, demonizing the perceived opposition and flooding the media with half-truths and lies of omission.
Nobody is innocent of this. Too often, painting an opponent in sweeping strokes and generalities is easier than treating him or her as a human being or, God forbid, an equal.
The fear of actually listening to a different opinion and trying to understand the reasoning behind it seems to force many into the easiest defense mechanism: Hatred. Of particular note would be the final debate in the 2010 Kentucky senatorial race between Conservative Rand Paul and Democrat Jack Conway.
The debacle was filled with ad hominems hurled by both sides and turned into more of a grade-school argument than the intelligent debate that should be the norm in politics, not the rarity it is today.
Following the assassination attempt on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona in January, a noticeable détente has fallen on Congress. Republicans and Democrats sat intermingled at President Obama’s State of the Union Address, rather than split into separate sections, as is the usual arrangement. Many members seemed uncomfortable with the new seating chart.
These new efforts at “civility” seem to be more for show than anything else. To truly achieve bipartisan cooperation in our legislature, representatives and senators need do just that: cooperate.
This is not a call for members to abandon their ideals and set on the bandwagon with other members. Rather, this is a call for members of our legislature to work together to understand the others’ positions in a respectful manner. This is a call to our nation’s lawmakers and legal pundits to do what is truly in the best interest of the American people.
Civility is a step in the right direction, but perceived civility is not enough. A change from the schoolyard-style shouting and mudslinging is needed. Until we see each other as equal human beings, true civility and cooperation will be nothing more than a practice put on for the cameras.
