A Simpler Time

On Friday morning, Senator Frank Lautenburg was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. His death signaled the end of a political generation in the Senate that were shaped and molded by their experiences in the middle of the 20th century. Sen. Lautenburg was the last of 115 veterans of World War 2 who served in the Senate and was a torch-bearer. His service is a model for how to be a partisan, fierce defender of his constituency, while still being cordial and working across the aisle to bring about great accomplishments such as the smoking ban on commercial aircraft.

Washington has always been a partisan place. One can simply look back to some of the great political battles in our countries history to see this. In recent years however, the partisanship in Washington has reached a level not seen since the turn of the 19th century. Sen. Lautenburg was a member of a Congress which fought bitterly over divisive issues such as civil rights, foreign policy in a turbulent world, and an ever-changing society. During all of this however, members of Congress found time to talk to their opponents across the aisle, to see the human side of the equation, to try and understand disparate views over coffee and friendship. When they left for the day, you’d see members of both parties mingle and talk over issues their constituencies and country were facing. Good ideas came from both sides of the aisle, and obstructionism was a very different beast.

Congress and Washington today is a very different place, and not necessarily for the better. Gone is the friendly commiseration in the halls of the House and Senate, the dinners after session to talk about solutions to issues with the opposing party, the appealing to reason. Whats taken its place is fear and hatred. Fear that by being too soft, too weak on extreme issues will bring a primary challenger. There is very little incentive to work together when you can get more votes by pandering to blind hate of opposing views in gerrymandered districts. Where is the incentive to reach across the aisle when the blogosphere and talking heads on both side point to failed negotiations with scorn and call for doubling down on the vitriol and failed policies that have created so much trouble for too many Americans.

Sen. Lautenburg was one of the last of a generation. While their are still a few who remember these days and try to embody the progress that was made during them, they are a dying breed. Increasingly, representatives are becoming more partisan, more hard-headed and less willing to compromise. This is not how Congress was envisioned, and the lack of progress made in government in the last 20 years shows this. Without brave representatives who are willing to reach out and think outside the box (and the party talking points), don’t expect to see a change.

Reprinted from 5th District State Sen. Curt Thompson's (D-Tucker) blog. Thompson represents parts of unincorporated Duluth, Norcross, Tucker, and Lawrenceville. Also, check the senator out on Facebook and Twitter.