- MENU
- HOME
- SEARCH
- WORLD
- MAIN
- AFRICA
- ASIA
- BALKANS
- EUROPE
- LATIN AMERICA
- MIDDLE EAST
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Argentina
- Australia
- Austria
- Benelux
- Brazil
- Canada
- China
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- India
- Indonesia
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Korea
- Mexico
- New Zealand
- Pakistan
- Philippines
- Poland
- Russia
- South Africa
- Spain
- Taiwan
- Turkey
- USA
- BUSINESS
- WEALTH
- STOCKS
- TECH
- HEALTH
- LIFESTYLE
- ENTERTAINMENT
- SPORTS
- RSS
- iHaveNet.com: Politics
by Kenneth T. Walsh
Polarization in Washington (© Mark Weber)
President Obama took office pledging to end the rancor that was contaminating official Washington. A year later, it's clear that his effort has failed, just as it fizzled when George W. Bush said he would end the capital's divisions in 2001, when Bill Clinton promised to work with the opposition in 1993, and when George H. W. Bush pledged to create the "age of the offered hand" in 1989.
Political polarization is at least as bad as and possibly worse than it's been for a long time.
Congressional Republicans are fiercely united against Obama on many issues. His healthcare bill received no
But today's divisions seem more extreme.
"Polarization is the evil twin of partisanship," says Ross Baker, a political scientist at
Obama is accepting part of the blame.
"That's what's been lost . . . that whole sense of changing how Washington works," he told
The most recent example of Washington's polarization was last week's extended confrontation over some poorly chosen and insensitive words from Harry Reid, the
A
Steele's case was bad enough. He used a derogatory term to refer to American Indians. But Reid's case was more explosive because it involved racial remarks about the president of the United States. Reid was quoted as saying in 2008 that then candidate Barack Obama had a good chance to win the presidency because he was "light-skinned" and did not talk with a "Negro dialect."
Reid quickly phoned Obama and apologized, and the president, while admitting that the remarks were "unfortunate," accepted the mea culpa. That wasn't enough for some Republicans, who called for Reid to resign as majority leader.
Obama and his aides say the administration will try to put all this aside and extend another olive branch. "The president is going to continue to reach out to Republicans," says another
There is a larger problem. If the politicians continue their bickering and if the pundits continue to incite them, the country will be left with what most voters abhor, a prolonged stalemate in Washington. And that will generate more cynicism about the ability of the governing establishment to function, which won't be good for anyone.
AMERICAN POLITICS
WORLD | AFRICA | ASIA | EUROPE | LATIN AMERICA | MIDDLE EAST | UNITED STATES | ECONOMICS | EDUCATION | ENVIRONMENT | FOREIGN POLICY | POLITICS
Obama's Failed Bipartisan Efforts | Kenneth T. Walsh
© Tribune Media Services