This morning the sun came out. That is, my morning read gave me hope that sanity might prevail in our politics. The Wall Street Journal published an opinion piece by a leading Republican moderate and the editor wrote a rebuttal to Trump’s recent lies.
Republican Senator Bill Cassidy in an Op-Ed entitled “An Open Congress Would Make Better Laws” argues convincingly that too often today sitting presidents and a handful of leaders privately put together bills and then present them to Congress to rubber-stamp. It used to be that proposed legislation would be subject to hearings, expert testimony and committee scrutiny first. Senator Cassidy rightly condemns both parties for following this “undemocratic” behavior. He concludes by writing, “Does anyone think America’s democracy is in better shape today than it was a generation ago?”
This morning’s editorial, “Donald Trump’s Georgia Rewrite,” addresses Trump’s recent attack on the Journal for recognizing the reality of the former president’s role in the GOP’s loss of the Senate. The editors point out, “In the single Trump term, Republicans lost the House, White House and finally the Senate….Counseling could be in order. Any good analyst will explain that the first step toward recovery is to accept reality.”
Is it my naivete or are these observations a glimmer of hope that just perhaps there is a recognition and acknowledgement that all is not well in our politics and the halls of Congress? Republicans and Democrats must seize the opportunity to try to put Humpty Dumpty back together again!
*Opinion Page, The Wall Street Journal, March 5, 2021.