Bipartisan? We'll see

Word is that Virginia Governor Timothy Kaine is expected to call for bipartisan cooperation to solve many of the nation’s problems after the President’s national address tonight. I think this would be great, if it is true. I don’t know about anyone else, but the bickering and the partisanship in Washington is getting a little out of hand. When this behavior occurs no one seems to benefit and the divide in our country only gets wider. I’m not saying either party should compromise their respective principles, but there comes a point where politics should be pushed aside and our elected leaders should do the right thing for this country.

I say this on the heels of the Alito confirmation, a process that brought out the worst of partisan politics. There isn’t a single democrat who can challenge Alito’s credentials and dispute his qualifications. Yet, like Clarence Thomas, this fine and decent man was dragged through the mud at his confirmation hearings. Was that the best thing for this country? Did that display ‘bipartisan cooperation’? Was it really necessary?

“Results matter. Planning matters. Management matters, and you can make much more progress if you do it in a bipartisan way”…This is an excerpt from Kaine’s speech tonight. Since this is a rebuttal to the President’s speech, one would assume that his call for bipartisanship is a challenge to the Right to cooperate. But often when a leftist calls for bipartisan cooperation, what he really means is that we on the Right need to quit being so stubborn and come around to their point of view. I’m sorry, I just don’t see it Kaine’s way. If there is a problem with cooperation, my guess is that it’s not a problem with the Right, and the Supreme Court appointments back that position. Does anyone recall a liberal judge being put through an ordeal similar to Alito or Thomas? Wasn’t Ginsburg confirmed nearly unanimously, despite her radical left background? Aren’t the dems still filibustering many of Bush’s nominations for federal judgeships?
If a democrat is going to call for bipartisan cooperation, he needs to start within his own party before turning towards those on the Right. Perhaps that’s what Kaine will do tonight. If so, more power to him.