Republican Maine Senator Olympia Snowe is calling it quits. She joins a growing list of political moderates from both the Republican and Democratic Parties who have had enough of the bizarre political partisanship that has sadly become the norm in government.
Not that long ago, Senators like Ted Kennedy and Alan Simpson would verbally duke it out on the Senate floor, but at the end of the day they would find a way to compromise and do what's best for America. Senator Simpson once told me that "If you like to get your own way, don't go into politics."
Polar political opposites, Senators Kennedy and Simpson were also close friends. After a tough day of doing the nation's business, they were as likely to go out together for dinner and enjoy each other's company, knowing full well they'd be battling the next day in the Senate. But things got done.
Another political odd couple was President Reagan and House Speaker Tip O'Neill. Both folk heroes in their respective parties, with differing views but when the going got tough, they could get together (often over a nip or two) and figure out a way to craft legislation that benefited the folks on Main Street. Again, it involved compromise. Both fully understood what their duties were.
I met Speaker O'Neill briefly at an event at the Kennedy Center. We were standing in line at a bar and chatted briefly. It was a black tie gala, but I noticed O'Neil had dirt under his fingernails. The true sign of a working man.
I don't know about you, but I watch and read with great sadness the political hoo-ha from both parties this election year. It's all about painting your opponent as being evil. Can you remember any candidate looking into the camera and telling you how they wanted to make life better for you and your family? I thought not.
Government is described these days as dysfunctional, by definition something "that is flawed and doesn't operate correctly, or someone that deviates from normal and accepted social behavior."
Maybe it's time we start all over again, time to throw all the bums out. Goodness knows they're not hard to find.
Brian Olson
Owner/Consultant
Conversation Starters Public Relations
Not that long ago, Senators like Ted Kennedy and Alan Simpson would verbally duke it out on the Senate floor, but at the end of the day they would find a way to compromise and do what's best for America. Senator Simpson once told me that "If you like to get your own way, don't go into politics."
Polar political opposites, Senators Kennedy and Simpson were also close friends. After a tough day of doing the nation's business, they were as likely to go out together for dinner and enjoy each other's company, knowing full well they'd be battling the next day in the Senate. But things got done.
Another political odd couple was President Reagan and House Speaker Tip O'Neill. Both folk heroes in their respective parties, with differing views but when the going got tough, they could get together (often over a nip or two) and figure out a way to craft legislation that benefited the folks on Main Street. Again, it involved compromise. Both fully understood what their duties were.
I met Speaker O'Neill briefly at an event at the Kennedy Center. We were standing in line at a bar and chatted briefly. It was a black tie gala, but I noticed O'Neil had dirt under his fingernails. The true sign of a working man.
I don't know about you, but I watch and read with great sadness the political hoo-ha from both parties this election year. It's all about painting your opponent as being evil. Can you remember any candidate looking into the camera and telling you how they wanted to make life better for you and your family? I thought not.
Government is described these days as dysfunctional, by definition something "that is flawed and doesn't operate correctly, or someone that deviates from normal and accepted social behavior."
Maybe it's time we start all over again, time to throw all the bums out. Goodness knows they're not hard to find.
Brian Olson
Owner/Consultant
Conversation Starters Public Relations
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