compromise

August 17, 2017|compromise, History, Obamacare, Spending, taxes, William F. Buckley

Does the Right Share the Progressive View of History?

The right and left wings of the Republican and Democratic Parties do not appear to have symmetrical tactics. The right, usually in the House but often in the Senate, refuses to compromise even when that refusal will generate a worse short-term result from their perspective. For instance, the right in the House has refused to vote for federal spending bills even if they were written by the Republican leadership. In 2012, the most conservative caucus refused to vote for a bill that would have limited tax hikes to those earning over a million dollars a year. And they have blocked some of the compromises that might smooth the passage of a partial Obamacare repeal and health care reform.

As a result, the Republican leadership has had to rely on Democratic votes for the budget, leading to higher spending. Without the leverage of the House bill taxes went up on couples earning over $450,000. The prospects for any substantial legislative reform of health appear dim.

In contrast, the Democratic left is willing to compromise. They all voted for Obamacare, even if it was not a single-payer plan. And I do not recall any substantial opposition to budgets passed in the Democratic Congress. What explains this difference?

February 12, 2017|Betsey DeVos, compromise, deliberation, Elizabeth Warren, Marco Rubio, Senate Rule 19, Woodrow Wilson

An Ever Less Deliberative Body

by John O. McGinnis|

The Senate has often been referred to as the World’s Greatest Deliberative Body, most frequently by the Senators themselves. But the confirmation hearings on President Trump’s nominations have been marked by an absence of deliberation and responsive argument. They reveal a nation in the grip of polarization and interest group power.

The Democrats have been making a show of holding up the President’s nominees with late night sessions. And in these sessions they did make some arguments against the nominees. The Republicans almost never responded substantively. It is not as if they cannot respond. For instance, many of the arguments against Betsey DeVos were very weak based on distortions of her record of promoting charters schools in Detroit and on the inaccurate premise more competition in K-12 would harm rather than help children. But Republicans recognized that few people were paying attention other than the Democratic base. More dramatic debate would just draw more attention to the Democratic resistance. And what would please the Republican base were not arguments, but the actual confirmations for which Republicans had the votes.

And lest one think the Democrats were interested in actually persuading their colleagues, they boycotted at least three committee hearings where nominees were going to be debated. Walking out made a great show of anger to please their own base, but made a mockery of deliberation. Woodrow Wilson famously said Congress in action is Congress in committee. During these confirmations congressional inaction was Congress in committee.

The only time that I saw floor debate come alive was about the question of whether Elizabeth Warren violated Senate Rule 19.

October 3, 2016|Citizenship, compromise, Economic growth, Immigration, Multiculturalism

The Contours of a Compromise on Illegal Immigration

by John O. McGinnis|

The next administration and Congress need to reach a compromise on immigration. The continuing battle on the status of illegal immigrants is leading to enormous political divisions and fueling the identity politics of multiculturalism on the both the left and right. For me the compromise must reflect four imperatives. First, it should recognize the reality that we cannot deport millions of people without turning ourselves into a temporary police state—harmful not only to illegal aliens but to our citizens. Second, it should make sure there is a substantial penalty for those who broke the law. Third, the compromise must secure the border of the United States against further such immigration on a massive scale and contain a trigger to verify that security has taken place before those who broke the law benefit from the compromise. Fourth, the compromise should make it easier for highly skilled immigrants to come to the nation, because welcoming more such immigrants will benefit America, not least by continuing our tradition of assimilating talent from overseas.

First, ultimately the compromise will have to provide a legalized status to many aliens who entered illegally so long as they have not violated other laws. Catching all those who have come here illegally is impractical. It would also require a law enforcement presence so heavy as to affect adversely many law abiding citizens, particularly those who share the ethnicity of immigrants who have come here illegally. Moreover, since many of those who came here illegally have had children born here who are citizens by virtue of the 14^th amendment, mass deportations would result in the tearing asunder of children from parents.

Second, the legislation should make it clear that coming into America illegally was wrong. Fines will not prove adequate to make this point either expressively or practically.

March 30, 2016|compromise, Culture Wars, Geneva College v. Burwell, Precedent, Supreme Court

Is an Eight-Member Court Good for the Nation?

by John O. McGinnis|

The Supreme Court yesterday suggested a compromise solution to the contraceptive mandate for religiously oriented service organizations that object to contraception, and required the parties to comment on whether it met their needs. This order, made after oral argument, is very unusual. It likely reflects the fact that the Court was divided 4-4 on the question of whether the Obama’s administration previous accommodation violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

Some initial responses suggest that the compromise might be welcomed by both sides. It should make us reconsider whether a Supreme Court with an equal number of justices is a bad development for the nation. A Court with nine justices would likely have come down on one side or another, embittering the side that lost in the culture wars. And when the culture war divide follows the partisan divide on the Supreme Court, the decision would only increase partisan distrust of the institution.

Greater efforts at compromise would be a hallmark of 4-4 court with such divides. Justices like to render decisions as matter of craft and institutional obligation and would tend to avoid deadlock, where possible.

December 2, 2015|compromise, Nonoriginalism, polarization

Polarization, Compromise, and Nonoriginalism

by Mike Rappaport|

In two recent posts, I have explored the effects of nonoriginalism in the separation of powers. Here I want to mention several ways in which such nonoriginalism has contributed to the increasing polarization of our society, by permitting the political branches to avoid having to compromise.

First, as I argued in one of these posts, the delegation of legislative authority to the President leads to polarization. Such delegations allow the President to decide on policy rather than having the Congress and the President do so through the passage of laws. In the latter case, compromise would be needed to pass laws, which would lead to less polarization.

Second, the Supreme Court’s updating of the Constitution through nonoriginalist interpretation leads to polarization. With such updating, a majority of the Court can allow one of the political parties or factions to get its way in constitutional law. By contrast, without such updating, constitutional change would require the passage of constitutional amendments, which require compromise to secure the supermajorities necessary to pass them.

May 1, 2015|Anthony Kennedy, compromise, Religious Liberty, Same Sex Marriage

Might the Court’s Denial of a Right to Same-Sex Marriage Advance Liberty?

by John O. McGinnis|

At the Supreme Court’s oral argument on the constitutionality of same-sex marriage, several justices asked questions about the effects of same-sex marriage on religious freedom. These questions might not appear directly relevant to the question of whether the federal Constitution secures a right to same-sex marriage. But they are politically relevant because the method by which same-sex marriage is achieved may make a substantial difference to the accommodations to people who because of reasons of religious conscience do not want to encourage this social arrangement or be connected to its creation.

A political scientist would understand the attempt to fashion a federal right to same-sex marriage as an effort to change the political status quo by constitutional litigation. In states that to date do not recognize same-sex marriage, advocates of the institution would no longer have to negotiate with their opponents or compromise on such matters as whether religious colleges should be required to give benefits to same-sex couples.

A Mirror of the 20th-Century Congress

by Joseph Postell

Wright undermined the very basis of his local popularity—the decentralized nature of the House—by supporting reforms that gave power to the party leaders.

The Graces of Flannery O'Connor

by Henry T. Edmondson III

O'Connor's correspondence is a goldmine of piercing insight and startling reflections on everything from literature to philosophy to raising peacocks.

About