Yesterday, Senate Minority Leader McConnell insisted the American people voted Republican because they stand behind the party of “no”.
“I get the impression that [the Democratic Party's] view is that we haven’t cooperated enough. I think what the American people were saying yesterday is they appreciated us saying ‘no’ to things that the American people indicated that they were not in agreement with.”
To the contrary, according to a series of polls inquiring about partisan behavior post election, voters hoped for collaboration and compromise after the election, In a Bloomberg poll, 80 percent of respondents wanted both parties to “work together even if it means compromising.” Seventy-eight percent of respondents thought Republicans in Congress should “compromise some of their positions in order to get things done” and 69 percent say the same about Obama per a CBS/NYT poll.
Doesn’t look like the GOP got the message:
In an interview with CNN’s Candy Crowley, RNC Chairman Michael Steele made clear that compromise is not on the table:
Well, I think that, to be very clear here, when we talk about not compromising, not compromising away on the principles that our party have run on and have stood for, for a long time. For example, we’re not going to compromise on creating more debt. We’re not going to compromise on raising the debt ceiling. We’re not going to compromise on increasing the burdens on the backs of small-business owners and families.
Shortly before the election, Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana also shot down any hope of compromise:
Look, the time to go along and get along is over. . .there will be no compromise on stopping runaway spending, deficits and debt. There will be no compromise on repealing Obamacare. There will be no compromise on stopping Democrats from growing government and raising taxes. And if I haven’t been clear enough yet, let me say again: No compromise.
At a Heritage Foundation talk today, McConnell reiterated his goal of making Obama a one-term President because his agenda does not fall in line with that of the in-coming Republican majority in the House.
But the fact is, if our primary legislative goals are to repeal and replace the health spending bill; to end the bailouts; cut spending; and shrink the size and scope of government, the only way to do all these things it is to put someone in the White House who won’t veto any of these things.
At least voters are more aware of the reality than they’re given credit for. In that same CBS/NYT poll, “72 percent thought that Obama would try to work with Republicans—but only 46 percent thought that the Republicans would try to work with Obama.”
It’s going to be a rocky road to 2012.
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