Divided Congress ensures severe gridlock for America

By Michael Powell
Staff Writer

A Congress divided cannot stand. On Nov. 2, the American people voted to give the Republican Party a majority in the House of Representatives. However, the Democrats maintained their majority in the Senate, despite losing several seats. This split of Congress will increase partisanship and weaken the government’s ability to handle our nation’s problems.

The American people’s lack of memory and dissatisfaction with President Barack Obama led to this Republican victory. The American people, due to the sensationalism of the media and the temporary rise of the Tea Party’s artificial ideology, have forgotten all the hardships brought on by George W. Bush. Bush’s trillion-dollar wars, huge deficits and violations of rights led to Democrat victories in 2008. Instead of remembering which party’s policies led to the worst recession in 70 years, the American people made a decision that will negatively effect the overall interests of the country.

With six losses in the Senate and 64 losses in the House, Obama and the Democrats face the prospect of an extremely polarized legislative branch. Much like past presidents, Obama must play the balancing act of appeasing the opposition party while also strictly maintaining his ideological position.

This new stalemate is a perpetuation of the gridlock that has plagued Congress for the past two years. The inability to follow through on the promise of change, one reason for Republican victory, was the result of a lack of Democratic executive leadership.

One of the expected outcomes of this new Senate will be the preservation of the Bush era tax cuts. These tax cuts will cause a loss of $2 trillion over the next 20 years. This lack of revenue means an increase of debt, inability to fix our crumbling infrastructure and bankruptcy for Social Security.

The only hope for avoiding a future of failed Republican policies and a reactionary Congress is the prospect of Obama following the precedent set by presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Bill Clinton. Instead of cowering and compromising, like he has done for the past two years, Obama must use the losses to his advantage and set himself apart from the politics of Congress by staying loyal to his ideologies. Will things really be that different? Yes and no. Although the country faces an increase in debt, again caused by Republicans, Obama’s legislation has been the product of his hyper-willingness to compromise.

The health care bill, the Wall Street regulation bill, and the escalation in Afghanistan have all been very bipartisan measures. In all of these cases, the Republicans got want they wanted (corporate tax breaks, weak regulations, no accountability for BP, etc.) due to Obama’s weakness and the power of dissent.

The Republican resurgence caused by America’s blatant memory lapse will bring our country to a crippling stalemate. When Republicans destroy the middle class, Americans will undoubtedly reject Republican ideology. The effect would be a wake up call for Democrats to stay firm, fight the Tea Party, and most importantly, become stronger and less conciliatory.