“Necessity is the mother of bipartisanship.” – Christopher Buckley
Since the beginning, our government has always been partisan, although the political parties have often worked together for the betterment of the country. There have always been politicians who have put their party, (or themselves), before what was best for the people and there undoubtedly always will be. Outside of the period before the Civil War, the parties would often come together in Congress and the state legislatures to pass meaningful legislation.
The Democrat party can trace its origin back to the beginning of our government and Thomas Jefferson. The Republican party was formed in the years prior to the Civil War with the purpose to restrict the expansion of slavery, with the ultimate aim to abolish it completely.
Throughout the last century, Democrats and Republicans worked together, at least attempting to show that bipartisanship could improve things for the people and the country. It didn’t always work out that way. A success was the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that would not have passed Congress without the votes of Republicans. The next year, President Johnson pushed his Great Society legislation and many Republicans supported much of the legislation. Some elements had a positive effect on sectors of the population. However, the greatly enhanced welfare, “war on poverty,” portions had the consequence of destroying many low income welfare families by virtually eliminating fathers and creating welfare mothers.
In the 1980s, President Ronald Reagan and Speaker Tip O’Neil were polar opposites politically, but their friendship, and the many times they socialized together, showed the country that political differences didn’t have to effect a friendship. Working together in 1983, they were able to compromise and come up with the Social Security Reform Act.
In the 1990s, President Bill Clinton and Speaker Newt Gingrich, although from opposing parties and philosophies, were able to work together to cut the budget and the size of government as well as to get major welfare reform. In fact, according to Clinton’s political advisor, Dick Morris, Bill Clinton would have lost his bid for reelection if he hadn’t worked with Gingrich to get welfare reform.
Bipartisanship continued in a lukewarm manner until Nancy Pelosi became Speaker of the House for the second time in January of 2019. She displayed her radical partisanship when she tore up President Trump’s State of the Union Address speech in 2020, while on camera in front of the whole world.
My wife and I went to a meeting around that time. Our Congressman at the time was Paul Gosar, who had invited a couple of other Representatives who were present. One of them told a story of how partisan Nancy Pelosi was. Pelosi was out of town. A few Republican Representatives approached Steny Hoyer, who was the House Majority Leader, the next highest Democrat in the House. The Republican Reps told Steny Hoyer about a bill that was nonpartisan and would be good for the country. Hoyer told the Republican Congressmen that he was sure the Democrats would work with them on this legislation. When Speaker Pelosi returned, she told Hoyer words to the affect that she wasn’t going to give the Republicans “a damn thing.”
Earlier this year, now Representative Pelosi criticized Senator Chuck Schumer when he voted with the Republicans on a government funding bill that would keep the government open. Referring to her style of partisanship, Pelosi said, “I, myself, don’t give away anything for nothing and I think that’s what happened.” One wonders if her handpicked successor, Hakeem Jeffries, will continue with Pelosi’s extreme partisanship or if he will seek to work with Republicans for the good of our country. From what we’ve seen of Jeffries so far, that doesn’t look likely.
