Bipartisanship Suddenly Rules Washington

by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright December 22, 2010
All Rights Reserved.                                

            Since his thumping in the Nov. 2 midterm elections, President Barack Obama, the Democratic Party and the GOP have suddenly gotten voters’ message of more bipartisanship.  When he ran as a candidate in 2008, Barack promised Washington more bipartisanship, something sadly missing during former President George W. Bush’s eight years in office.  In the course of one week, Barack signed sweeping tax cut legislation Dec. 20 and today a repeal of the 17-year-old Clinton-era “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” allowing gays to serve openly in the military.  Both bills were polarizing issues but were handled differently, find consensus across party lines.  In yet another miracle, Barck led Congress again to bridge differences for a new START treaty with the Russians.   Judging by the three bipartisan bills, it signals something different than last year’s bitter partisanship.

            When Democrats passed health care reform July 20, Washington hit a new low in terms of bitter partisanship.  Whatever Democrats’ good intentions, pushing through one-sided health care reform sparked the Tea Party revolt that led Republicans to sweeping victories in the mid-term elections.  While incumbent parties typically do poorly in midterms, health care reform backfired on Democrats, sending the unmistakable message that voters expect more bipartisanship.  “We are on the brink of writing the next chapter in the 40-year history of wrestling with the treat of nuclear weapons,” said Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), urging senators on both sides to get behind the legislation.  While the new treaty seemed dead only a week ago, more Republicans joined Democrats to support a reduction in U.S. ICBM-warheads from 2,200 to 1,550.

            Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and his colleague Sen. John Kyl (R-Ariz.) led the opposition, insisting that it weakened U.S. missile defense capability.  They sought an amendment that would have antagonized the Russians, sending the pact back to Moscow.  Saying the treaty leaves the U.S. “with enough warheads to blow any attacker to kingdom come,” the Senate’s No. 3-ranked Republican Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) threw his support to the treaty, giving proponents the two-thirds majority needed to pass the accord.  “The administration did not negotiate a good treaty,” said Kyl.  “They went into negotiations with the attitude that the Russians just like the guy who goes into the care dealership and says, ‘I’m not leaving until I buy a car.’”  With the old START treaty expiring last year, Kyl would send the treaty back to Moscow in hopes of eventually getting a better deal.

            If you believe in linkage, having a new START agreement helps the U.S. negotiating posture with bigger fish to fry, including enlisting Russian help in hot spots like North Korea, Iran and the Middle East.  Building off a new START treaty, it’s possible to create better rapport to solve other more pressing problems.  Whether Kyl’s right about the U.S. getting out-negotiated in the START treaty is anyone’s guess.  Reducing warheads and imposing U.N. inspections can’t hurt the current proliferation atmosphere, where both sides continue the arms’ race.  “We know when we’ve been beaten,” said Sen. Orin Hatch (R-Ut.), realizing Barack has the votes to pass a new arms control pact.  McCain, Hatch and other opponents haven’t yet embraced the new bipartisanship that has led to the most productive legislative session in the last 10 years, maybe longer.

            Closing in on a new START treaty, the Senate passed another bill to assure treatment and support for Sept. 11 first-responders.  If START passes today, the Congress will go to Christmas break having passed five major pieces of legislation in one week.  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) have backed down from partisan demands.  Pelosi and Reid had to suck it up voting to continue Bush-era tax cuts.  Obama has led Republicans and Democrats to end the partisan gridlock and back bipartisan legislation.  If the trend continues into next year, it’s going to change the course of Republican politics, polarized today around a shrinking band of GOP moderates, currently dominated by Tea Party conservatives.   Looking toward next year’s presidential beauty contest, it’s bound to favor candidates capable of working on both sides of the aisle.

            Nearing a new START treaty, Obama has prevailed over his Party’s liberal wing, insisting on bipartisanship in advance of the 2012 presidential sweepstakes.  Passing five major bipartisan bills in one week indicates that Barack has a new bipartisan strategy heading into 2011.  Extreme partisanship, as seen in Democrats’ July 20 health care reform, backfired, prompting Barack to pivot heading into the New Year.  Faced with legal challenges on his health care bill, the president has chosen to find common ground and get things done collaboratively with the GOP.  With his approval ratings around 46%, Barack is in good shape  in early jockeying next year for the 2012 presidential elections.  More growth in the stock market and positive news on the economy should help Barack climb back over 50%.  Phasing down the Iraq and Afghanistan wars should also pay rich dividends.

About the Author

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

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