Is Bipartisanship Dead?: A Report From the Senate by Ross K Baker

Author:Ross K Baker [Baker, Ross K]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Political Science, General
ISBN: 9781317257349
Google: iCQeCwAAQBAJ
Goodreads: 28132677
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2014-08-01T00:00:00+00:00

Flickers of Bipartisanship

As we have seen in this chapter, bipartisanship in the Senate can survive, even thrive, but its vitality depends on a number of conditions that are not always present. The opposition of the majority leader is almost always fatal; the minority leader much less so. A particularly strong bipartisan coalition on a committee may carry the day, but it must certainly include the committee’s most senior members.

The substance of the legislation in question is crucial. It is important to recognize that the success of the leadership of the Armed Services Committee in blunting the opposition of Senator McConnell has much to do with the broad support enjoyed by the military in the public and, by extension, in Congress.

Moreover, the defense authorization bill, like the agriculture bill, tends not to be ideologically divisive, unlike the Affordable Care Act in the Finance Committee. Differences over the effectiveness of weapons systems resembles the arguments over agricultural commodities and may reflect the presence of major defense contractors or military bases in a senator’s state rather than deeply held geo-strategic philosophies. With its jurisdiction over taxation, the Finance Committee stands at the very fault line of American politics: the appropriate size, cost, and scope of federal government. And while Finance has historically enjoyed great prestige because of its jurisdiction, it was not able to surmount the polarizing issues that were handed it.

Senator Tom Coburn gave up his seat on the committee because

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