Partisan Divide Widens Again in National Journal Ideological Rankings

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For the third year in a row, which also is the third year since they began tracking this partisan indicator, National Journal’s yearly ideological ranking of Congress and the US Senate shows that there is no overlap between the two major parties. Up until three years ago, the norm, since they began doing this partisan tracking ,was to have at least some republicans that were to the left of some centrist to moderate democrats, and some democrats who were to the right of some centrist to moderate republicans.

This should come as no surprise to any readers of this site. Every cycle over the last several, we’ve seen more moderates in both parties quit in frustration over partisan vitriol, gridlock and lack of support from their own party. We’ve seen many of the centrist and moderate members who decide to stay in office attacked from inside their own parties during partisan primaries as well.

The end result is a lack of people who can work with ideologically similar people across the aisle, an increase in hyper-partisan hatred, increase in tribalistic political gamesmanship and a whole lot of nothing getting done in Washington. As the video below mentions, however, there are a few issues where there seems to be enough cross-spectrum support for action; namely on immigration, and on some aspects of gun related legislation.

Partisan Gridlock Looms Large Over Few Cases of Cooperation

But big issues loom large over these few examples of nonpartisan legislative progress. The President is still able to pretend that he has some high ground in the debate over debt and deficits, as the republicans one up the democrats and act even more irresponsible.

The GOP’s “Party of No” act seems to be second nature by now, which is made even more sad in how it makes it easier for people to forget that the President and his party had two years to enact the sort of “balanced approach” he’s saying he now supports. Actions, or in this case inaction, speaks louder than the empty words that Obama and the democrats have been delivering on supposedly balanced debt and deficit reduction plans that have never materialized into actual plans that are voted on.

Not to mention neither side is even honest enough to begin any conversation on debt and deficits without naked partisan spin of the numbers, glossing over the dire nature of the situation in an effor to make it seem like the hard choices we need them to make aren’t really a problem at all. Their fairy tales are different, but put them together and all we have is a recipe for fiscal ruin.

Perhaps not in the short term, while these hacks are still in office, but no longer in the long term either – it’s looming in the medium term now. How far down that road… depends on how far this game of partisan kicking of the can down the road was able to delay the inevitable, and shaft future generations in the process.

So all we’re left with is one party with center-left rhetoric and a track record of inaction when they had the opportunity and power to act, and another that is openly hostile to any sort of sensible approach to getting our country on a path back toward fiscal sanity. Just another example of how our politics has fallen so far that all we have to choose from is terrible option A (D) and even worse option B (R).

Anyone want to venture a bet on going four for four next year, with the partisan divide widening even further, and for at least another 4, 6, 8… maybe ten years more to come?

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4 Comments

1. 

   TPS

   March 3, 2013 at 10:04 am  TPSQUOTE

   A way forward is not clear. People I speak with do not trust either side. The lack of trust is really profound and it may lead to an unwarranted degree of cynicism. I feel the same way on trust but try to limit undisciplined cynicism. However, reality being what it is pushes the cynicism button with some regularity. It is also the case that we are voting for the extremes, whether we like it or not. That suggests that there needs to be a viable alternative.

   But what is the alternative? A third party? A centrist wing in each main party? Given the deep ideology of many Washington politicians, judges and bureaucrats, it is easy to be a centrist uncomfortable with either side gaining control and “getting things done”. What both sides want to do is frankly scary. There is some value in some of what both sides want, but the whole package on the left and right is just plain nuts (IMHO). Lacking trust in either side, that leaves gridlock as a plan for waiting for something better to come along. But what is going to come along and when is it coming? The Modern Whigs are not gaining any traction that I am aware of. Americans Elect is dead and not coming back. Gridlock won’t work forever, assuming it works at all.

   We are in a real mess, but how to get out is unclear. Its like snorkeling in mud.

   Reply
   • 

     admin

     March 3, 2013 at 10:15 pm  adminQUOTE

     I don’t trust either side either… it would take a serious effort of revisionist history to get to a place where anyone being honest with themselves could trust either side.

     The only realistic alternative is building a party for centrists and moderates. Could take a generation, but there is no way around it. Would be many times more difficult to try and pull one of the major parties back from the brink.

     Nothing personal against the Modern Whigs, but they’re not getting traction because they’re bad organizers and treat it like a hobby. If we had people like Ken Block and the Moderate Party of Rhode Island in every state, who actually treat organizing like it’s job and use the fundamentals of political organizing (including raising money), we’d see a rising tide.

     Reply
     • 

       TPS

       March 4, 2013 at 10:22 am  TPSQUOTE

       I agree. The two parties are hopeless for several intractable reasons (ideology, special interest corruption and political self-interest trumping public service). They cannot change and it isn’t reasonable (meaningful) to even ask. It will take a new party and probably a generation, maybe more.

       Although I really wish it were otherwise, I also agree with you about the Whigs. My efforts to work with them at the national and my state level simply failed. They are a difficult group to work with – probably a legacy of their rigid command and control military training. That’s unfortunate because but they claim to represent the only truly new thing in politics that I am aware of, i.e., a focus on pragmatism and public service* while downplaying ideology. IMHO, those are some of the necessary components of a sane way forward to doing politics differently, compassionately and intelligently.

       Where does this line of thought go? To me, it looks more or less like this: Centrists have to form a group, collect money (like it or not), articulate some principles or positions that have consensus support in the group and hire professionals to organize and publicize. Other efforts at third parties seem to flounder for lack of money and publicity. The mainstream press cannot be relied on for any support, that’s for sure. But, how did they do it in Rhode Island? Is there another way?

       * I know, I know – both parties vehemently claim to be public servants. Despite their thunder and fury, it is so very easy to argue that they usually serve special interests, including themselves, before they serve the public.

       Reply
       • 

         admin

         March 4, 2013 at 12:27 pm  adminQUOTE

         People try to come up with all sorts of shortcuts to avoid the very real and concrete challenge of political organizing… in other words – no, there isn’t another way.

         Ken Block and the Moderate Party of Rhode Island are doing it the way it works. They set realistic goals for themselves, they’re raising money, building an organization one brick at a time. 90% of centrist/moderate wannabe organizers are just plain naive about what works and what doesn’t. Their “strategy” (or more accurately… their lack thereof) amounts to not much more than buying lottery tickets as a retirement plan… banking on deep pocketed &/or famous saviors like Ross Perot or Michael Bloomberg, or wishing upon a star that a centrist/moderate Tea Party or Occupy-esque movement will come along. Both are possible, but are not things that are relied upon by people who know what they’re doing.

         We need more than a group… we need a network of groups, we need a network of people with rolodexes that they’re willing to open for viable candidates, we need party organizations on the ground to support those candidates, recruit quality candidates and show them how a serious campaign requires it be treated like a full-time job.

         Reply