This post was inspired both by recent political news and a couple of related comments I read on social networks this morning. The combination got me to finally write about something that’s occupied my thoughts lately — the way the American political system is shooting itself in the foot with overzealous partisanship.
Although this is a problem on both sides of America’s political divide, as someone who’s more liberal than conservative I’m more familiar with its manifestations in my own ideological back yard. For example, I really wish liberals would stop saying that every Obama administration policy they disagree with is an example of him “catering to the right.” If he was catering to the right he wouldn’t have made the recent changes to INS enforcement policies that have conservatives up in arms. If he was catering to the right, he wouldn’t have pushed to end the military’s “don’t ask don’t tell” policy or pass health care reform legislation.
I could go on, but I think you get the point. No matter how many liberal policy goals Obama accomplishes, it seems he can never be liberal enough. The Democratic base always seems to find some aspect they disagree with, then applies the no true Scotsman fallacy to reveal Obama’s “real” nature as a covert conservative. After all, no true liberal would sign a health care reform law without a public option. Republicans face similar scrutiny. Many of that party’s presidential hopefuls have resorted to signing pledges authored by special interest groups, swearing they’ll do one thing or another if elected — from opposing gay marriage to refusing to raise taxes under any circumstances.
Treating any policy choice which isn’t strictly party-line compliant as a traitorous concession to the enemy is poison to the kind of compromise needed for good democratic governance. It plays into the partisan absolutism that was at the root of the recent debt ceiling fiasco. It helps create a government paralyzed by partisan intractability.
The thing is, I’m not sure what to do about this problem other than express my frustration. The hyperpartisan mindset is encouraged by our 24/7 news media, which is always looking for the juiciest angle on any political story. It’s also deeply compatible with humanity’s inherent tribalism, which has given us an uncanny knack for dividing ourselves into mutually antagonistic groups despite common interests. With our primary information sources and evolutionary history feeding the hyperpartisan beast, how do we move away from such thinking toward a more rational and moderate approach?
