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Bipartisanship Will Not Be a Reality Anytime Soon

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People hear it all the time, and in fact, it was the focus of President Joe Biden’s campaign. Unfortunately, it is an idea many people believe will never become a reality, at least not in baby boomers’ lifetime, and that is bipartisanship.

First and foremost, winning elections. History proves that voters favor the progressive ideas of the Democratic Party. However, history also shows that those who vote for Democrats are often lazy in elections, especially midterms. When there is a large voter turnout, as in 2020, Republicans seldom win. This is the reason today’s Republicans, in name only, are hurrying to pass voter suppression laws in at least 40 states.

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Courtesy of Fredrik Andersson (Flickr CC0)

Fact: If there were no Electoral College, not a single right-wing politician would have resided in the White House since 1993.

However, the Electoral College does not affect midterms. The popular vote decides every contest. There will never be a bipartisan agreement that would guarantee fair and secure elections.

Right-wing politicians will forever protect the existence of the Electoral College. They cherish a system in which the states decide who will lead our nation. The idea that every vote would count, and the popular vote would determine who would reside in the White House for the next four years frightens them. The truth has become the right-wing’s biggest enemy. This is why every man and woman on the right side of the aisle voted against the Right to Vote Act.

Most importantly, the two parties are diametrically opposed to each other’s core beliefs.

Universal Healthcare

The majority of Americans, Democrats, many Republicans, and Independents, support free health care for all Americans. Republican politicians oppose any plan that guarantees every citizen the right to the best healthcare in the nation. According to Moscow Mitch McConnell and his minions, medical care is a right reserved for the wealthy.

Accessible or Affordable Education for All

This issue is soon to become a national security issue. The cost of higher education has become unaffordable for most of the nation’s families. As a result, many graduates will be paying off student loans for the remainder of their lives.

The bigger problem is that America is wasting some of its greatest young minds every year. Once lost, they are gone forever. Only wealthy graduates will have the opportunity to acquire jobs in areas where only the best minds can succeed. Everything, from new medical discoveries to national defense breakthroughs, is affected by losing the best of the best. At the core, there is only one obstacle — money.

Income Inequality

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Courtesy of Paulien Osse (Flickr CC0)

It began in 1981. An economic policy is colloquially known as former President Ronald Reagan adopted trickle-down economics. The actual name given to the fiscal policy was supply-side economics.

Regardless, the basic premise was that by giving the super-rich, large corporations tax breaks increasing their profits, they would create more jobs and raise wages, growing the country’s economy. Of course, this never happened. Instead, the wealthy officers of the largest corporations simply bought more homes and toys and sent millions and billions of dollars to their offshore bank accounts. This was the beginning of the plutocracy that exists in America today and what is now known as income inequality.

Republicans continue to support this policy used by Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump. As a result, America is now $30 trillion in debt.

What they are not considering is that capitalism cannot exist without consumerism. Today, nearly one-half of the nation’s population lives in low-income or below the poverty line. Capitalism is headed for a massive crash as the gap between the super-rich and working-class Americans widens.

White Supremacy, Bigotry, and Fascism

“Domestic terrorism is the greatest danger to the American people in the 21st century,” according to a statement made by FBI Director Christopher Wray appearing before Congress. He appeared before the legislature once again after the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection and confirmed that this was what he feared, an act of domestic terrorism.

It is a fact that the leaders of the violent assault were Trump supporters and leaders of white supremacy/Neo-Nazi groups. Trump’s illegitimate presidency revealed that racism and bigotry are far more pervasive than most once believed.

Republicans continue to downplay the facts seen by the eyes of most Americans. They claim that January 6 was a normal protest and continue to denounce the special committee formed to investigate who in the government was involved in the planning and execution. Unfortunately, the path is headed right to the top and will include as many as 1,000 men and women who call themselves Republicans.

Sensible Immigration Reform

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Courtesy of Justin Zhuang (Flickr CCO)

Immigration reform was a problem long before Trump began his baseless allegations. However, he blamed all immigration problems on Hispanics and the Southern border. Facts prove that most illegal immigrants arrive at legal ports of entry, including commercial airports and seaports. They arrive carrying visitor’s visas and simply never leave.

Melania Trump is a perfect example. She arrived on a visitor’s visa, then went to work for Trump’s “modeling agency,” but never applied for a work visa. As a result, she received her citizenship under false pretenses.

Where would the United States be without Albert Einstein or Wernher von Braun? Both Black and Hispanic Americans have innumerable contributions to the American way of life. Without Hispanics, much of the western agricultural industry would perish. Their willingness to perform the most rigorous tasks, which white Americans reject, proves their value to the nation. Black men and women are responsible for many inventions, including laser surgical devices, the modern blood bank, the world’s fastest computer, a refrigeration system used to transport blood, food, and medicine during WWII, and even the incandescent light bulb. Their contributions during the Revolutionary and Civil wars, not to mention WWI and WWII, fills volumes.

Yes, Karen, like it or not, we are a nation of immigrants. Still, in the 21st century, national security and the ability to absorb a controlled number of new residents must be part of the process. All other developed nations have either solved these problems or continue to find ways to lessen the severity of the situation.

America’s diversity is growing far more quickly than any sociologist predicted. It is impossible to halt, and many people believe this is a great thing for its future.

In the Capitol building, the right and left sides of the aisle are on opposite sides of these issues and nearly every other supported by most Americans. Bipartisanship is an impossibility when one party continues to support 788 billionaires and 22.3 million millionaires while ignoring the needs of the great majority.

Op-ed by James Turnage
Edited by Jeanette Vietti

Daily Kos: Maybe it’s finally time for Democrats to stop fetishizing ‘bipartisanship’; by Joan McCarter
Havasu News: Jim Small: Bipartisanship failed on expanding voting rights. Kyrsten Sinema and her backers ignore that
Congressional Black Caucus Foundation: Top Ten Black Inventors (You Didn’t Know About)

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Senator Claire McCaskill’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
First Inline Image Courtesy of Fredrik Andersson’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Second Inline Image Courtesy of Paulien Osse’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Third Inline Image Courtesy of Justin Zhuang’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License

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