The only time, it seems, we hear anyone talking about bipartisanship is during the campaign season.
Democrats have no respect for Republicans and Republicans have no respect for Democrats.
Bipartisanship is all about finding common ground through negotiation, making concessions and getting things done. In the legislative process, when it is working like it should, you win some and you lose some.
Bending without breaking should be seen as strength not weakness. It takes a great deal of strength to listen to people with whom you disagree, see the merits in their arguments and, most importantly, be willing to concede when and where you can.
Whether lawmakers on Capitol Hill, at the statehouse or city hall, the rancor and polarization among politicians mirrors the divisions in our communities, families and, most obviously, on social media.
Democrats and Republicans don’t just disagree on certain issues; instead, they regard each other as evil, sinister, uneducated, backward and unredeemable. Anyone in the other political party is just seen as the enemy. Politicians on both sides resort to name calling, vilifying and extreme rhetoric.
Party loyalty is not wrong in and of itself. It is extreme partisanship that creates the gridlock we now regard as normal.
Our nation has been partisan from the beginning. Washington seated Hamilton as treasury secretary and Jefferson over the state department in the first administration because he wanted both ends of the political spectrum represented in hopes of building consensus. The plan, of course, didn’t always work.
Still, both then and now, we are always stronger united than we could ever be divided.
Democrats and Republicans can work together without either party compromising core values and standards, but first they must come to the table with basic respect and dignity, seeing members of the other party as people with whom they disagree and not merely as the enemy.
Of course, in order to be respected, you must show respect and if anything is missing in our political landscape it is respect.
Jim Zachary is the editor of The Valdosta Daily Times, CNHI’s director of newsroom training and development and president emeritus of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation.