Partisanship is ruining leaders’ ability to solve problems
Watching the testimony last week of Attorney General Jeff Sessions before a Senate committee, I was appalled by the outright partisanship of the proceedings. Each senator on the investigation committee, regardless of party, was obviously trying to score political points, instead of facing the very serious issue of how the Russians were able to influence our presidential election. It was ironic that it was Mr. Sessions who focused on the real issue at hand when, in response to a question from Sen. Joe Manchin about what Mr. Sessions himself would ask, he responded by stating that he would want to know if the Russians had succeeded in influencing our election. Isn’t this of critical importance if we are to preserve our democracy?
This partisan sham is in stark contrast to a public forum that I attended concerning another critical issue facing our country. Organized by the Post-Gazette, the event had experts from the fields of academia, industry, government and the media discussing energy and the environment. As participants responded to questions posed by audience members, it was clear that each participant hada strongly held viewpoint. However, it was equally apparent that they were listening to each other. They all seemed open to all opinions and motivated to arrive at a sustainable approach to solve these pressing issues.
It is hard to imagine that our country will be able to come up with any kind of reasonable solutions to the critical issues of energy, environment, health care, economic growth, poverty and, yes, the preservation of our democracy without the kind of free and honest exchange of ideas that I witnessed on that stage that night. Internet sites offering conspiracy theories, fake news and half-truths have cultivated the partisanship we see in government. People live in their own “echo chambers” unwilling to talk to each other, making it easy for Russia to interfere with our democratic institutions. We need a few adults in the room to move this discussion of the issues from political gamesmanship to an honest consideration of the facts. Failing to do this puts our country in real peril. TONY DeCARIA
Murrysville