Reply #15: Okay, here's the deal, for real. [View All]

[Kelly Rupert]

Obviously, it's hard to break things apart in these issue polls, because there are simply so many factors to consider. However, the biggest reason right now is simply partisanship. And by that, I'm not taking the Holy Joe "oh, if we all just got along and compromised people would be happy," because that's the opposite of the problem--the problem is that America is ridiculously polarized, not Congress.

The issues we're facing are, in many ways, black and white. Either you believe that we need to commit fully to "winning" Iraq, or you believe we need to get the hell out. Either you believe the markets should take care of health, or you believe government needs to regulate it. Either you believe the government can detain people indefinitely to fight terrorism, or you believe civil rights are inviolate. Either you believe in raising taxes on the rich, or you believe in cutting them. People have strong opinions on the issues.

Congress, on the other hand, is a split body right now. Just over half are Democrats, just under half are Republicans. The minority party holds the Executive branch. Under this situation, you have compromise or gridlock; either party can torpedo anything it doesn't like. Now, here's the public reaction to any possible result:

COMPROMISE: "My party totally sold out! Those spineless (R/D)INOs; I can't believe they'd stab us in the back! Fuck them and fuck Congress."
GRIDLOCK: "Those bastard other guys are always obstructing progress! Fuck them and fuck Congress."

In a split government, nobody walks away happy.