Payback Time--what we should damn well hope DOESN'T happen

[Mythsaje]

Late last week, toward the tail end of my research for the "Worst Congress Ever" story in the current Rolling Stone, New York congressman Charlie Rangel told me an interesting story.

Rangel recounted an incident in the House in which he went over to say hello to Florida Republican Clay Shaw, who had been ill. Although the two men had been longtime political antagonists, and had frequently ripped each other in public during hearings of the Ways and Means Committee (Shaw is the committee's second-ranking Republican, while Rangel is the ranking minority member), they had always maintained a friendly personal relationship.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/12053713/the_low_post_congress_will_suck_no_matter_whos_in_power

[JohnnyRingo]

1. I hate to point fingers and exonerate the dems, but....

I remember back in '98 when I read an article in the paper and I mentioned to a republican friend that "Tom DeLay says that Republican politics are going to get more aggressive and personal under his leadership"

My friends reply?
"It's about time".

Later, I think it was just after the 2000 election, DeLay made the statement that "Our job isn't to defeat the Democratic party....We want to destroy it".

Maybe behind the scenes there were Democrats who worked hard to end political partisanship as well, but with that cocky Texan in the White House, I think the Republicans made the moves to see that a wall was placed down the center of the aisle, with full intentions of seeing through a single party government.

I understand your concern that an end to bi-partisan legislature is bad for the country, but I think that ship may well have sailed.

How does one deal with or trust such arrogant power mongers?

[Mythsaje]

2. I think the main worry is more of the same

from the Dems. We need to find a way to keep them from corrupting by too closely imitating the Repugs.