The Republican wave of victory in the November 2 midterm elections was a dramatic rejection of the recent political agenda of President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats. The widely predicted Republican takeover of the House of Representatives has been interpreted by political pundits and partisan commentators as the expression of public dissent over the Obama Administration’s reforms of the last two years, most notably the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act economic stimulus legislation of 2009 and the Affordable Care Act of 2010.
With the Republican takeover of the lower house of Congress, we Americans now find ourselves facing a divided government with the start of the 112th Congress in January 2011. Many Republicans point to the right-wing Tea Party movement as the driving force behind the GOP’s gains in these elections; critics, however, claim that the Tea Party is a short-lived movement for fiscal conservatism whose political impact will not be far-reaching beyond the midterms of 2010. Regardless of the long-term influence the Tea Party has, the presumed Speaker of the House of the 112th Congress, Rep. John Boehner (R-OH), would be unwise to accept the demands of the far-right members of the Tea Party that call for the impeachment of the President and the complete repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Gridlock in this Congress is not going to be beneficial for either party, as both have a great deal at stake.
Pursuing impeachment proceedings against the President, in addition to being completely unpragmatic, would also waste valuable legislative time for floor debate and would only allow Democrats and critics to capitalize on charges that the Republican Party is obstructionist and nothing more than the party of “no.” While obstruction might have been justifiable from the Republican perspective while both houses of Congress were under Democratic control, the most advantageous way to demonstrate true leadership is for House Republicans to strive for political compromise with the other party to pass substantive legislation in the next two years. There is ample precedent under divided government for substantive, beneficial policy change to occur. If House Republicans are able to accomplish this, it will not only restore Americans’ faith in government, but also might serve as a “spinnable” argument in the 2012 presidential race.
Repeal of the Affordable Care Act wouldn’t be viable, moreover, because it would give the Democrats more ammunition in 2012. With a President who would most certainly exercise veto power and a Senate that is solidly Democratic, the actual prospect of repealing the recently passed health care reforms is unattainable. Symbolically, while such repeal might be significant, it would only give voters more reason to favor Democrats over Republicans in 2012, and thus is not in the best interests of the party. Legislative priorities of the Republican House should instead include pursuing the Bush tax cut extension compromise Mr. Obama mentioned in the wake of the election. Most notably, if Republicans were able to make any headway on implementing the $4 trillion in spending cuts that the President’s Fiscal Commission recommended last week, fiscal conservatives and concerned citizens around the nation would respond positively.
In the final analysis, everyone is looking ahead to 2012. But two years is two lifetimes in American politics. Anything can happen. The GOP should by no means underestimate the strong mandate American voters gave it in these midterm elections; the call to moderation was clearly heard. Whether John Thune, Sarah Palin, Bobby Jindal, Mitt Romney, Michael Bloomberg, Ron Paul, or an unknown contender emerges as the frontrunner for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, the eyes of the nation and political commentators will be on the Republican House of Representatives and Speaker John Boehner in the immediate future. Their actions now may well determine the course of the Republican Party as we know it for the next few decades of American history. Ultimately, President Obama has recognized the forces at work in the American body politic. As the Democratic Party restructures itself and both parties gear up for 2012, Republicans would be wise to keep humility at the forefront of discourse and moderation at the forefront of the negotiation of American public policy.
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