A piece in yesterday's WSJ on how Republicans Are Gaining Ground Among Independents contained this priceless nugget:
More generally, independents made clear in the survey what they want candidates to do: Decrease the size and scope of government, cut spending and taxes, balance the budget, reduce the federal debt, reduce the power of special interests and unions, repeal and replace the health-care legislation, and decrease partisanship.
That's it? What about asking them to cure cancer and secure world peace while you're at it?
The survey also showed that independents believe they aren't getting any of this from the current representatives in Washington.
Really? Maybe they would get all their needs met from their representatives in Candyland.
What's really striking about this list of wants is the last item: decrease partisanship. Considering that the party currently in power is diametrically opposed to each and every one of the previous wants in the list, I'd love to ask one of these survey respondents how exactly politicians should accomplish these goals while becoming LESS partisan?
Politics is all about partisanship. The only thing that held the line against the Democrats' agenda of further expansion of government and encroachment on personal freedom was a for-the-most-part unified Republican opposition. That was partisanship in action. Had the Republicans been less partisan, we would have had more of exactly the type of things that these independents are now saying they oppose.
Partisanship is not part of the problem with the Democrats' overreach. It's the answer.
