In this week's political debate surrounding the defunding of the Affordable Care Act (more popularly known as Obamacare), casual and more astute observers can come away with one conclusion: there is so much venom in our political discourse.
Republicans have been accused of being everything from terrorists to hostage takers to rapists for their stance against funding a law that this the antithesis to every core plank of their political platform.
Interestingly, Democrats have not been victims of such high-level barb throwing from the other side.
Of course, this political vitriol is not something new.
After all, John Adams' character was assailed in the press during his time in office.
That time's political discourse was so full of venom that the Adams Administration, under the pressure of foreign disagreements and accusations of disloyalty to the United States, passed the unconstitutional Alien and Sedition Acts.
Part of that legislation was to muzzle free speech critical of the Adams Administration.
Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States, didn't have it very easy heading to the White House.
Opponents assailed his character constantly.
And in the long road toward the civil war, South Carolina House Representative Preston Brooks assaulted Massachusetts Senator Charles Sumner over overly personal attacks in regards to slavery.
Brooks pummeled Sumner with a gold tipped cane right on the Senate floor! This violation of decorum in the usually regal-minded Senate was shocking.
Flash-forward to today's argument between Democrats, Republicans, and people of all stripes of ideology: while the political atmosphere is poisonous, there is precedence for it in our history.
Still, this is not settling to those who fear that the United States is in a most perilous time.
Having been thrust into an international battle against terrorism, the nation has spent precious sums of blood and treasure trying to find a way out from the ashes of September 11th.
Civil libertarians decry the invasions on personal privacy in the name of security.
To the dismay of so many, The National Security Agency (NSA) now harnesses personal digital data in an attempt to thwart terrorism.
Our national debt is hurling toward twenty trillion dollars, and our unfunded liabilities from our social welfare programs are avalanching toward 90 trillion dollars.
All these factors have made the American people quite nervous, angry, and yes, even more polarized than any other time except for the Civil War.
In addition to it all, President Obama and his acolytes in Congress passed Obamacare with solely partisan support.
Not one Republican in Congress voted for that legislation.
Imagine such a radical transformation of the country without even the slightest input from the opposition? And to boot, the transformation is so fundamentally opposed to the fiber of the conservative spirit, for the law grabs more power and decision making for the federal government.
It is unsurprising why Democrats decry the powerful and unrelenting opposition to the healthcare law.
But their reasoning for decrying it has their own fingerprints on it.
Force a law on the country and you guarantee that those who opposed it will never come to your side again.
There is a reason that Democrats and Republicans seldom cooperate on legislation: the process itself has become poisoned.
How to begin to drain this swamp of toxic political sludge? Here are a few good starting points: 1.
President Obama should lead as the President of all The President has shown a complete disregard for the concept that he is president of all and not just of liberals.
Yes, he was indeed reelected, but almost half of the country voted against him.
Why won't he take the high road of moral authority, call the leaders of Congress and extend a conciliatory hand? On Obamacare, he could agree to a delay of the law's implementation given all the early problems that have arisen.
On the debt ceiling, why not embrace a comprehensive budget solution that cuts the budget and bends the cost curve of government downward? After all, in the 2008 and 2012 debates, Mr.
Obama agreed that he would pursue such policies.
If the President would engage in these discussions, many Republicans would soften their opposition.
2.
Congressional leaders should focus on the basics Comity and efficiency should be the new norm of the Congress.
Leaders need to set a better tone of cooperation where possible.
The constant campaigning is tiring and worst of all, damaging to the process.
Americans are losing faith in the political process because of all the mudslinging.
Set a new tone and members of Congress will follow.
And stop all the artificial deadlines.
For example, if Congress actually passed long-term budgets instead of one-year continuing resolutions to fund the government, then we would not face these periods of stress trying to get deals done at the last minute.
3.
Americans should insist on electing members to Congress who are versed in the Constitution If more representatives in Congress understood the law then they would not do things that are contrary to our republic.
Many Americans are furious with a government that taxes too much, has too much say in our lives, and constantly seems to undermine the will of the people.
Therefore, Americans must be more politically active and elect members to Congress who will defend the Constitution and the interests of everyday Americans.
Of course, some will say that these suggestions are quite naive.
Perhaps they are.
But we need to start somewhere and reverse this negative political atmosphere.
For if we do not, then I fear we are headed to such heightened tensions that will create unforeseen conflicts.
These battles of politics may spill over from the typical Democratic and Republican squabbles.
If the 1850s can provide any guide, those tumultuous years showed how an intractable problem led to such political venom that it required a thorough blood letting in the Civil War.
Let's learn from history.
Let's start extracting this political poison before it becomes too late.