Being bipartisan does not mean looking the other way
President Joe Biden came into office pledging a change in tone, a lowering of the temperature and a willingness to consider others’ views. To many progressives and Republicans, that sounded like wimpiness. Biden’s rhetoric and actions during the opening weeks of the administration should disabuse them of that notion. We are learning what bipartisanship does and does not mean.
It does mean a civil tone in the White House briefing room and a willingness to correct errors. It does mean meeting with and listening to Republicans’ concerns; and it does mean appointing nominees who get overwhelming bipartisan support.
It does not mean giving up on policy positions overwhelming popular because Republicans in the House and Senate remain intransigent and out of step with the country. The latest Monmouth poll shows the coronavirus rescue plan has over 60% approval. While bipartisanship sounds nice, “Preference for bipartisanship plummets, though, when the public is asked this same trade off about the direct stimulus checks specifically. Willingness to make cuts to this component of the bill in the name of bipartisanship stands at just 25%.” Likewise two-thirds of Americans – including more than half of Republicans – want $1,400 checks even without Republican support.
The Biden team agrees. Citing polling, support from business and labor, and backing of bipartisan groups of mayors and governors, they are not equating bipartisanship with “giving into an unpopular minority position.”
Bipartisanship also does not mean giving stupid policy decisions a pass. The Washington Post reports, “Biden on Wednesday sharply criticized the decisions by Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves one day earlier to lift coronavirus restrictions in their states, calling the moves ‘a big mistake.’” Biden declared, “The last thing we need is Neanderthal thinking – that, ‘In the meantime, everything’s fine. Take off your mask. Forget it.’ It still matters.” He is not calling all Republican governors Neanderthals (although a few more, including Florida Gov. Ron
DeSantis, might qualify), nor is Biden threatening to deny those states aid. But he is turning up the heat on monstrously stupid decisions that defy science.
Indeed, Biden could add his voice in other contexts where states act in ways contrary to our national values and interests. Republicans’ efforts underway in dozens of states seek to deny ballot access, suppress votes and disenfranchise millions of African Americans and other minorities. In issuing its support for passage of H.R. 1 the Office of Management and Budget made a generic reference to voting bills restricting access. “In the wake of an unprecedented assault on our democracy, a never before seen effort to ignore, undermine, and undo the will of the people, and a newly aggressive attack on voting rights taking place right now all across the country, this landmark legislation is urgently needed to protect the right to vote and the integrity of our elections, and to repair and strengthen American democracy,” the OMB statement said.
As he moves forward with his agenda, Biden should not shy away from calling out Neanderthal thinking – be it about covid or about democracy.