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The True Meaning Of Bipartisanship
The Republican Party of Orange County regularly solicits the views and news of the state and federal delegation. Please read this week's Op-Ed by California State Assemblyman Bob Huff
All this talk about partisanship, bi-partisanship and post-partisanship begs a thoughtful discussion on what these terms really mean, and how each approach helps or hurts the political process.
The Governor’s recent inaugural speech and State of the State Address have brought new attention to political maneuvering in the legislative process. But both the statements and the reactions have been shrouded in enough rhetoric and hyperbole to mask the real issue we should be discussing: how the principles of the minority party can survive in this legislative session to effect positive change for California .
Being partisan can mean two things, depending on who is being partisan and who is being “accused” of being partisan. Within our own circles, partisanship is standing strong for the ideology that guides us; it represents a steadfast commitment to our values and ideas. But, when partisanship is hurled as an indictment, we become the victims of an elementary political tactic. Partisanship has become a buzz word to demonize the minority party as obstructionists. Unfortunately, only the latter is fodder for mainstream media.
Regrettably, the term bipartisanship is suffering the same fate. What once meant two major political parties working together, negotiating compromises to reconcile opposing positions for the benefit of our constituents, has now been reduced to a political tactic. Today, talk of bipartisanship is really a thinly veiled bully-pulpit move, the first offensive strike in the marketing campaigns to sell ideas like increased minimum wage and reduced greenhouse gas emissions to the public. In the last six months, the term “bipartisanship” has been mostly used as a club to beat errant Republicans into line without incorporating Republican principles into landmark legislation.
As polling will verify, voters like the idea of legislators working in a bipartisan manner, as bipartisanship is technically defined. But, within the halls of the State Capitol, the textbook definition of bipartisanship and its practical application vary greatly.
For a Republican, any successful legislation results from a bipartisan effort, by necessity. With only 32 votes in a house that requires 41 for a simple majority, we wouldn’t get legislation passed without Democrat support.
But for a Democrat, if you motivate at least one Republican, maybe a Republican governor, to support your legislation then, voila! – you have succeeded in being bipartisan (see AB 32). And, if you are a Republican governor, who gains the support of every Democrat for an issue like, say, universal health care, then you also earn the bipartisan label.
And, now we are being introduced to “post-partisanship.” Unfortunately, we have already fallen too far down this slippery slope to even consider a concept that requires us to completely abandon our Party for the purposes of becoming “centrist.” I’m sorry but the floor of the Assembly is not Romper Room, and it shouldn’t be. We aren’t playing Chutes and Ladders – we are trying to solve the very real and complex challenges facing California .
Instead of using the term bipartisanship as a sound byte, I hope we can preserve the original definition – the one the voters want. For the purposes of this legislative year, a good "bipartisan" effort should be to listen to the Republicans and find middle ground between the two competing philosophies.
For example, a bipartisan approach to solving one of the serious issues in the healthcare industry could resemble the following: our Governor could begin by pointing out that using emergency rooms as routine healthcare facilities is driving our healthcare costs through the roof and is one of the reasons the price of healthcare has grown more than twice the rate of inflation for the last 25 years. Then he could provide broad brush strokes of a plan that could take care of the more than 6 million uninsured that he wants to help. Next, the Democrats can examine the plan and then remark that it is reminiscent of plans they have proposed over the past several years and that they look forward to working with the Governor to pass a similar bill.
But, here’s the clincher: in the spirit of bipartisanship, this next step would not be overlooked… We Republicans would then look at the plan and acknowledge that the underlying objective is noble, but with a softening state revenue situation, the ongoing structural deficit of more than $5 billion, and continued reduced new housing development, perhaps this plan is more aggressive than the state can afford. Because of these concerns, we could then suggest that the emphasis should be shifted to universal healthcare access, not universal healthcare coverage. And while we need businesses to provide our jobs and drive our economy, we stress we should work on creating incentives for business, rather than issuing another costly mandate which gives them yet more reasons to move to neighboring states., not universal healthcare . And while we need businesses to provide our jobs and drive our economy, we stress we should work on creating incentives for business, rather than issuing another costly mandate which gives them yet more reasons to move to neighboring states.
And in this bipartisan nirvana, all our opinions are respected, and the final product is policy that a majority of both Democrats and Republicans can agree on to move the ball forward on healthcare coverage without compromising the financial future of our state. Would it be everything the Governor, or Democrats, or Republicans want? No, but the result would reflect the best components of each others’ ideas.
To me, the above outlines a truly bipartisan approach to one of the most pressing issues we will debate this year. Some issues are non-starters because there is no money for a newly proposed or amended program. But if the legislature truly worked in a collaborative, bipartisan way as hypothetically outlined above, then we could achieve what the voters want through their concept of bipartisanship. The Assembly Republicans stand ready to work in a truly bipartisan fashion toward affordable healthcare reform—anyone else interested?
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